January 2014 – Page 9 – Mindfulbalance

Not grasping

January 7, 2014January 6, 2014 Karl Duffy1 Comment

Some things may not be grasped in the moment they are happening. They are in motion, and thus cannot be fully clear. Things are continually changing, even from minute to minute. Our main practice is to try to be aware of each breath and each moment, as if it is fresh, without seeing it with preconceived eyes. A second aspect is to say “Don’t know” frequently, and allow events develop, without placing immediate judgmental labels as to whether they are “good” or “bad”

The past mind is unattainable’; the present mind is unattainable; the future mind is unattainable

The Diamond Sutra

A quarter of a million

January 7, 2014January 6, 2014 Karl Duffy14 Comments

Just a short update at the start of the New Year. The Blog received its 250,000 WordPress visitor a few days before Christmas and now is in its fifth year. It has survived a number of changes in style and in blogging platforms, and a recent relocation to Ireland. I try to keep its focus simple – on words or ideas that help mindfulness meditation practice – without getting in the way too much and hope that they may touch one or two readers in the same way as they help me. I just wish to thank all of you who stop by or who read every day and hope that some of the thoughts and quotes are of benefit in your personal growth and in the development of a more conscious life.

Don’t put names

January 7, 2014January 5, 2014 Karl DuffyLeave a comment

We rarely take a breath without making a judgment.

Don’t mistake naming for knowing.

Ezra Bayda, Saying Yes to Life

Part of the path

January 6, 2014January 5, 2014 Karl Duffy1 Comment

Our habitual patterns are, of course, well established, seductive, and comforting. Just wishing for them to be ventilated isn’t enough. Mindfulness and awareness are key. Do we see the stories that we’re telling ourselves and question their validity? When we are distracted by a strong emotion, do we remember that it is part of our path? Can we feel the emotion and breathe it into our hearts for ourselves and everyone else? If we can remember to experiment like this even occasionally, we are training as a warrior. And when we can’t practice when distracted but know that we can’t, we are still training well.

Pema Chodron

photo calle eklund

Storms of life

January 6, 2014January 6, 2014 Karl Duffy2 Comments

Strong weather systems here in Ireland, the UK, and in the US, dominate the news headlines. A reminder that a lot of things are outside our control and an insight into the fact that impermanence is a part of life: calm and storm, darkness and light, cold and warmth.

The capacity to suffer wounding and learn to adapt to it is crucial to the development of self. . . We have wounds, and the clusters of energy that accompany them, because we have a life history. The deeper question is whether we have the wounds or they have us.

James Hollis, The Eden Project.

photo anro0002

Each moment is complete

January 5, 2014January 4, 2014 Karl DuffyLeave a comment

Treat every moment as your last.

It is not preparation for something else

Shunryu Suzuki

About this Blog

Mindfulbalance supports the slow, patient practice of mindfulness meditation, as a way to find balance and meaning in life, reduce stress and develop health and wellbeing. It contains reflections to encourage the practice of meditation as well as occasional posts from psychology, spirituality and the wisdom traditions. The daily posts are prompted by Rilke's advice: "Write about what your everyday life offers you, your sorrows and desires, the thoughts that pass through your mind, and your belief in some kind of beauty". Written in County Laois, Ireland