Meditation as part of a daily routine is not something that is gotten, to quote a Dusty Springfield song by “Wishing and Hoping”, It takes a firm resolve and discipline, but discipline in that sense of service to ourselves and others. It is something to be learned, to be internalised. We learn an attitude of mind, an orientation of our spirit. And it is gotten by being schooled until you forget about the ‘rules’. I have in the past and probably will in the future abandon daily practice but fortunately have been able to return often enriched by the experience of noticing what I have been missing. That’s ironic, but that’s how it is!
This story might help…
“What action do I need to take to understand meditation?’ the student asked the teacher.
“If you wish to understand meditation” the teacher said, “there are two things you must know. The first is that all your effort to understand is of no avail.”
“And the second,” the student insisted.
“The second is that you must go to meditation as if you didn’t know the first.”
Clearly the great mystics know that the secret of meditation is to live it until it becomes real. It should never be ‘harsh or burdensome’ but rather practiced with patience.
And now let us meditate in the fashion that we are accustomed to.
You might like to dedicate your meditation to those that are affected by Covid-19 virus either through illness, bereavement or unemployment or some special intention of your own.
(Meditate for up to 20 minutes.)
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As we go about our daily activities I hope that by being in the present, by remaining mindful we will find joy in the midst of this long lockdown. Peter