Be fully present – Page 639

Losing contact with basic goodness

March 12, 2014March 12, 2014 Karl DuffyLeave a comment

The losing of paradise is enacted over and over again by the children of Adam and Eve. We clothe our souls with messages and doctrines, and lose contact with the great life in the naked breast of nature

Rabindranath Tagore

Does the rose have to do something? No, the purpose of a rose is to be a rose. Your purpose is to be yourself. You don’t have to run anywhere to become someone else. You are wonderful just the way you are. This teaching …. allows us to enjoy ourselves, the blue sky, and everything that is refreshing and healing in the present moment. We already have everything we are looking for, everything we want to become. I am happy in the present moment. I do not ask for anything else. I do not expect any additional happiness. Aimlessness is stopping and realizing the happiness that is already available.

Thich Nhat Hahn

The Basics of practice 2: Be patient with the mind

March 11, 2014March 7, 2014 Karl Duffy2 Comments

The biggest hindrance to (mindfulness) is constant intrusive thoughts. This is normal for everyone and from the beginning you should expect it. The nature of our mind is to think, and it is childish to imagine that we can simply turn that process off when we wish to.

Our minds have been almost completely out of control for most of our life. Recognizing this can help us to be practical and patient — it may take us some time and a lot of skillful practice to tame the crazy “monkey mind.”

Bob Sharples

photp mahbub shaheed

The open space

March 8, 2014March 7, 2014 Karl Duffy6 Comments

Yesterday was a lovely Spring morning and I was driving through the beautiful countryside of Co Wicklow to start an MBSR Course in Arklow. The mountains in the distance, the lambs playing in the fields, and the brightness of the light made it easy to feel a mind that was spacious. When that happens I find that I do not struggle with life as much. And our meditation practice is simply that – letting the mind settle, become more spacious and resting in that.

There is a foundation for our lives, a place in which our life rests. That place is nothing but the present moment, as we see, hear, experience what is. If we do not return to that place, we live our lives out of our heads. We blame others; we complain; we feel sorry for ourselves. All of these symptoms show that we’re stuck in our thoughts. We’re out of touch with the open space that is always right here.

Charlotte Joko Beck, Nothing Special

photo j h jansens

Teach us to sit still

March 7, 2014March 6, 2014 Karl Duffy4 Comments

For the Week that is in it, an extract from TS Elliot, Ash Wednesday:

Blessed sister, holy mother, spirit of the fountain, spirit of the garden,
Suffer us not to mock ourselves with falsehood
Teach us to care and not to care
Teach us to sit still
Even among these rocks,
Our peace in His will
And even among these rocks
Sister, mother
And spirit of the river, spirit of the sea,
Suffer me not to be separated

And let my cry come unto Thee.

Moment by moment

March 7, 2014March 5, 2014 Karl Duffy2 Comments

We do not remember days,

We remember moments

Cesare Pavese 1908 – 1950 Italian poet and novelist

photo Catherine Scott

Where else

March 6, 2014March 4, 2014 Karl Duffy2 Comments

If you are unable to find the truth right where you are,

where else do you expect to find it?

Dōgen

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