The practice below works wondrously well when one is ready. Readiness is absolutely key.
“Consciously bringing into awareness the impermanent nature of conditions is the gateway into emptiness.
The transformative power of a conscious, mindful thought is that it reveals its own transiency. For example, the thought ‘Who is thinking?’ is an invitation to make contact with the present moment. In doing so, the thinking process is recognized for what it is. When we’re not so enchanted by our thoughts, we notice something else, something quite simple. We notice that all thoughts manifest and dissolve back into silent listening. This is a great relief. We don’t have to become shaped by our thinking. We can be liberated from its bondage. In seeing thought as ‘just thought,’ the sky of the heart is revealed, with no footprints. ‘You won’t find the sage out there.’ When there is wisdom, the endless searching for happiness ‘somewhere else’ vanishes. Where is there to go? Beautiful thoughts and ugly thoughts, all arise and cease in awareness, and yet awareness remains unmoved.
In a moment of letting anxiety, or out-of-control worry, be just what it is – not fighting or getting swept away by it – the heaviness disappears. Right where there was suffering, peace appears. Sometimes in those moments, painful sensations may still be experienced in the body, but the added distress of believing ‘it shouldn’t be this way’ vanishes."
Kittisaro & Thanissara. "Listening to the Heart. A Contemplative Journey to Engaged Buddhism." North Atlantic Books, 2014.
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| AwakeningArtsAcademy.com |
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