On Wisdom
Just as real seeds need particular conditions in which to germinate and ripen… so does karma: The results of our actions depend on certain conditions for fruition, and we cannot foresee when these conditions will take place. Sometimes the results are immediate. For example, if we share our lunch with a friend, we might experience appreciation.
Exercise: Taking Refuge
The three refuges involve strengthening our intentions to let go of suffering and to cultivate happiness. Spend a few moments considering your intentions, and then take the refuges formally using the phrases:
- I take refuge in the Buddha.
- I take refuge in the Dharma.
- I take refuge in the Sangha.
Exercise: Movement Meditation
The key to walking and movement meditation is to focus on the movement of your body as you are performing the act. For walking this would be to focus thought on the action of walking (lifting foot, shifting weight, moving leg….). In addition, this could include walking by counting steps to 10 and then resetting. One of the keys of this and other forms of meditation is to be aware and cultivate mindfulness, if you begin to focus on seeing something, label it as seeing or hearing or thoughts, then focus your attention back to walking.
Exercise: The Hindrances
- Explore each of the hindrances for a day. The hindrances are Desire, Ill Will, Sloth and torpor, restlessness, and doubt.
- Notice your relationship to the hindrance. Use antidotes for coping with the hindrance and observe what happens.
- Keep a journal or take some moments before you fall asleep to reflect on your day and what you learned about the hindrances.
- Appreciate your efforts
Exercise: Right Intention
Begin to notice your thoughts, and for one week keep a journal of the kinds of thoughts that predominate. Notice the qualities associated with your thoughts. Do they bring a sense of well being? Of tension, anger, doubt, desire, contraction, or opening? Do they bring you into connection with life, or do they separate you further in the little box you are already struggling to free yourself?
Notice any physical qualities associated with your thoughts. Can you feel contraction, tension, and pressure? See if you would like to let go of unskillful thoughts and cultivate skillful ones in one particular area of your life. Write down the kinds of thoughts you would like to cultivate and the ones you would like to let go of. Keep reminding yourself of the intention.
Exercise: Right Effort
Begin to notice the patterns of when you make an effort in your life and when you do not. What are the results? Practice one particular of the four efforts (guarding, abandoning, nourishing, and maintaining – each week for four weeks.
Exercise: The four foundations of Mindfulness
Take two weeks to practice each foundation of mindfulness. Start with the first foundation – the body. Focus on specific practices such as bending and stretching, eating, or bathing. Each night write down when you remembered that foundation and how it felt to you. Also, begin to notice if any patterns arise as you work through the foundations. Take a foundation and think about it before you meditate.
For increasing concentration, when you notice your mind wandering while you are in the middle of an activity, try making an effort to come back to what is happening and to remain focused on the activity as long as you are doing it. See if you can make a determination to remember more each day.
Exercise: Daily Practice
You can strengthen your capacity to be mindful in your daily life by choosing some specific prompts. Pick one simple everyday action, and use this one action in particular eto try to train yourself to remember what you are doing. It might be walking upstairs, which can bring you back to yourself through feeling the effort of thigh muscles lifting the body. It might be turning the knob to the bedroom door. It might be opening the car door. Write yourself a note in your diary, and give yourself cues that you can easily see. Write a cue on your cubicle wall. When you feel that, you have become very mindful of that action (opening a door for instance), expand that practice to one more action (closing the door or starting the car for instance), and continue adding to the exercise.
