The art of living is to enjoy what we can see
and not complain about what remains in the dark
Henri Nouwen, The Dance of Life
photo: Philippe Alès, Contre-allée de l’avenue Foch, Le Havre.
Category: Be fully present
No longer rushing after something
The mind can be free only when it is completely still. Though it has problems, innumerable urges, conflicts, ambitions, if — through self-knowledge, through watching itself without acceptance or condemnation — the mind is choicelessly aware of its own process, then out of that awareness there comes an astonishing silence, a quietness of the mind in which there is no movement of any kind. It is only then that the mind is free because it is no longer desiring anything; it is no longer seeking; it is no longer pursuing a goal, an ideal — which are all the projections of a conditioned mind.
Jiddu Krishnamurti
photo russavia
Calm weather
The rain has stopped, the clouds have drifted away
and the weather is clear again.
If your heart is clear, then all things in your world are clear
Ryokan, Zen poet, 1758 – 1831
Photo nevit dilmen
Entry points
If the intention is to bring awareness to the direct experience of the present moment, with fresh eyes, then life itself becomes the practice. What’s so powerful about understanding that wherever you are that is the entry point is that it frees us of this false belief that we need to be in a certain head space to train our minds toward mindfulness. In the moments you are doubting, agitated, restless or bored, these are the entry points to the present moment…no matter what is happening in your life at any given moment, that is what you can practice being mindful with.
Elisha Goldstein, A Key Mindful Lesson for us all
You do not have to wait
Wherever you are,
that is the entry point
Kabir
Stopping the verbalizations
The greatest support we can have is mindfulness, which means being totally present in each moment. If the mind remains centered then it can’t make up stories about the injustice of the world or one’s friends, or about one’s desires, or one’s lamentations. All these mind-made stories would fill many volumes, but when we are mindful such verbalizations stop. “Mindful” is being fully absorbed in the moment, leaving no room for anything else. We are filled with the momentary happening, whether that may be standing or sitting or lying down, being comfortable or uncomfortable, feeling pleasant or unpleasant. Whichever it may be, it is a non-judgmental awareness, “knowing only,” without evaluation.
Ayya Khema, All of Us
photo 9jules9 of Le Silence, d’Antoine-Augustin Préault.
