As we marinate in the present moment, we let go of the urgencies of the self, the agendas of the ego. Our marvelous mindfulness is a kind of marinating in the present moment. Seemingly solid things, like squash or zucchini, with fixed boundaries, when placed in a marinade of olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice,
As we approach the last pages of our human story, in Buddhism aging as a spiritual practice encourages us to be softer, more vulnerable, more caring and loving. The other day at the hospital, I ran into a nurse I haven’t seen in a while. She looked at me and asked “You’re still working?” I
If we know how to experience our discomfort gracefully, we suffer much less. We’re no longer afraid of eating the blame when this is called for. One of my favorite Zen stories goes like this: One day at a certain monastery in 10th century China, ceremonies delayed preparation of the noon meal, and when they
When I started out, I had no idea exactly why meditation was important. Now meditation is truly life changing. When I first started meditating, I thought I knew why meditation is important. It helps reduce stress, improves sleep, and reduces negative emotions–all aspects of my life that really needed an overhaul. But it took a
… when the mind complains it does NOT want to meditate, says the Buddhist monk U Tejaniya I’m going to assume that you are like most of us who are into meditation–you struggle maintaining a regular practice, right; you might even ask when is the best time to meditate. The instructions are so very simple—be
We have been practicing the opposite of what meditation asks of us for so many years, no wonder it is so hard to meditate every day. I am often asked why is hard to meditate every day? Despite the utter simplicity of the practice itself, why is it so difficult to consistently sit down and
Meditation turns special moments on their head. It turns out we don’t need special moments to savor the openness of experience. Are you familiar with the Calvin and Hobbes cartoons? One of my favorites is when Calvin trips and falls down a flight of stairs, landing on his rear and looking confused. Then he stands
Who is maladjusted? It is someone who lost the ability to be surprised. We must re-learn how to be surprised. Alice Walker has good advice for all of us who practice mindfulness meditation: Expect nothing. Live frugally on surprise. As a meditation teacher, I’m happy when folks describe feelings familiar from childhood resurfacing in meditation,
My news feed can incline my mind toward fear, confusion and anger. But I can also re-frame my news feed to spark compassion for the suffering of others. The news. OMG, how to deal with the news? The horrors in Ukraine, and the suffering of forced migration are just one of multiple national and world