<<<Spider wrote: I do not meditate as much as I want to, sometimes hardly at all.>>>
Dear Spider, how do you feel about this? Do you feel guilty? Do you feel burdened by meditation? Ideally and practically, how often would you meditate?
Would it be impossible for you to meditate once for only five consecutive minutes per day, every day? If so, you are an extremely ambitious person and should be exempt from meditation.
Like "they" say, "there's nothing to it, but to do it."
In my experience (i am still learning), it was not the meditation from which I benefited, but it was when I resolved to meditate regularly that I noticed results in daily life. The dedication itself to meditation allows dedication to everyday practice. The meditation part is just collateral to show myself that I am going to stick to my agreement. If the meditation 'goes well', then I did fine. If the meditation does not 'go well', then I did fine.
I'm still learning everything, including learning how to learn, but that was my experience. This post is not to point out spider as a miserable failure. From what I've read here he has a good conviction and has posted several relevant posts. I am just trying to emphasize the benefits of the mind which is now dedicated to meditation. If you need to ask yourself if you are dedicated, then you are not.
From The Myth of Freedom and the Way of Meditation by Chogyam Trungpa:
"When you see ordinary situations with extra-ordinary insight it is like discovering a jewel in rubbish. If work becomes part of your spiritual practice, then your regular, daily problems cease to be only problems and become a source of inspiration. Nothing is rejected as ordinary and nothing is taken as being particularly sacred, but all the substance and material available in life-situations is used."
"True work is acting practically, relating to the Earth directly. You could be working in the garden, in the house, washing dishes or doing whatever demands your attention. If you do not feel the relationship between the earth and yourself, then the situation is going to turn chaotic. If you do not feel that every step, every situation reflects your state of mind, and therefore has spiritual significance, then the pattern of your life becomes full of problems, and you begin to wonder where these problems come from. They seem to spring from nowhere because you refuse to see the subtlety of life."
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com
Current Book Discussion: Appreciate Your Life by Taizan Maezumi Roshi
YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS
- Visit your group "ZenForum" on the web.
- To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
- Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.
