Welcome to the eighth issue
of Light-Up-Your-Life
Newsletter. The aim of this newsletter is to guide you
as you discover the very source of Happiness and Wisdom.
This source is so deep that it is unaffected by the
conditions of your environment, your body and mind.
In this issue we will show
you how to meditate so you
can discover what your mind really is. This will put an
end to the need to purify or quiet your mind. You'll be
surprised how by just losing a few assumptions, you can
change your meditation and your life in ways that you may
not have dreamed possible.
Then we have a short article
on overcoming obstacles in your
meditation. Even when you feel like you're suffering, you are
remarkably close to freedom.
See our new e book, "Making Your Wisdom Come Alive."
In this season of joy, give
gifts to your friends, your loved-ones,
and yourself. At the same time you will help Light Up
Your Life.
Go to: http://www.light-up-your-life.com/gifts.html
If you have questions
or comments please send an e-mail to:
michael@light-up-your-life.com.
We look forward to your comments and questions.
If you missed an issue
of our Newsletter click on:
http://www.light-up-your-life.com/Newsletter/newsletterindex.html.
First, here is a poem:
Michael, do you ever look
to see who you are,
Before you swim in the pond of suffering
Boiling at noon on a hot summer's day,
Before you try to cool down in the raging ocean
of time.
Stop, right here - before you take the next step.
There is freedom right in the heart of this monster
and the cool breeze supports the ground that you walk on.
Can't you see that spring is everywhere.
Our real nature is Liberation,
but we imagine that we are bound.
We make strenuous efforts to become free,
although all the while we are free.
From The Essential
Teachings of Ramana
Maharshi, A Visual Journey
Edited by Matthew Greenblatt
Copyright
© 2001 by Sri Ramanasramam
For more information go to: Ramana
Maharshi
It's always astonishing
how much of your meditation practice
is based on what you think your mind is supposed to be. So
many people ask me, "how should I meditate?" In this question
they have an implied question, "What should I do to still my
mind?"
They expect answers like
sit up straight and cross your legs in
the lotus position, or breath deeply, or count your breaths, or
repeat a mantra, or just watch your thoughts by remaining as
the observer. They are surprised when I don't give them any of
these answers. Then they ask me again, "I'm just a beginner,
how should I meditate?"
What do you think your mind is, anyway
First you have to find
out what you think your mind is. If you
want to know this, ask what happens to your mind when you're
not looking, not meditating and not doing anything with it in
particular. Whatever happens to it then — that's what you take
your mind to be. That's what you are calling your mind in its
natural state.
Your answer could be many
things like, "My thoughts race all
over the place." "I get depressed." "I just want to get
up and
do something." "Tunes start running through my head." "I
remember all of the things I have to do today." Or"My mind
shuts down and just becomes blank." If you stop there in your
quest to find this natural state for your mind, you have a
problem. Imagine if your mind was like a child. As soon as
you turn your back
on it, the child starts
running around and
crying.
How to control your mind
If every time you're not
looking, your mind acts up then you have
to maintain constant vigilance. Now I don't know about you, but
I've never been able to constantly pay attention to my mind. Even
now I am thinking about what I'm writing and not about which
thoughts are going through my mind.
So if you are committing
yourself to pay attention to this naughty
child that you call your mind, then you are committing your
meditation to a never-ending battle. And your not the only one;
over 1300 years ago in China the fifth Patriarch asked Shen-Hsiu to
write a poem expressing his enlightenment. Here's what he wrote:
(1) Our body is a Bodhi-tree,
Our mind a mirror bright.
Carefully we wipe them hour by hour,
And let no dust alight.
Stepping out of the battle
Fortunately for us, however,
if you don't like continuos dusting, there
is another way of looking at your mind. See, all the states of mind
that we described above are just states of mind. When you look
closely you find that they are just thought constructs, concepts. If
you are thinking about what you have to do today, or not thinking
at all, you are just looking at thought patterns and not at the mind
itself. So how can you see what the mind is in itself?
Whether you are a beginner,
or you have meditated for many years,
the essential quality to develop in this meditation, is the ability to look
at things afresh. Things are not always the way they're supposed to be.
This freshness is what puts the delight and surprise back into your
meditation.
Get out of your rut
What do you do if you feel
that your life is in a rut that you just can't
get out of, if life seems dull and boring, and if your mind seems in a
fog? Maybe it's time to take a fresh look and see if your mind is what
you think it is.
So, are you ready?. You
see thoughts, right; tell me what's the color
of these thoughts? Are they red or purple or green. What shape are
they, round, square or triangular? You may not be able to answer
these questions in words, but go by your direct experience, not the
way things are suppose to be. I guarantee that you will find a sparkle
in life and in your mind that you never knew was there.
Hui Neng discovers the nature of his mind
Thankfully Shen-Hsiu
did not become the sixth Patriarch. Rather, Hui
Neng who was an illiterate wood chopper and rice pounder became
the sixth Patriarch. Let's see what Hui Neng said about his mind.
(1) "Who would have thought," I said to the patriarch, "that the essence
of mind is intrinsically pure! Who would have thought that the essence
of mind is intrinsically free from coming and going! Who would
have thought that the essence of mind is intrinsically self-sufficient!
Who would have thought that the essence of mind is intrinsically
free from change! Who would have thought that all things are the
manifestation of the essence of mind!"
When Hui Neng found his
essence of mind he discovered his home, his
mind in its natural state. Here he could abide without the least worry
about his mind. Although it was out of his control, he found that it is
vast and in perfect
harmony; a harmony that needed no control. There
was never a need to cleanse it or dust it in any way. He discovered
perfection.
So if you want to know
how to meditate, find out what your mind really
is and you will be free.
For more information on
finding the nature of your
mind so that you can abide in freedom and joy
go
to "Making
Your Wisdom Come Alive".
(1)
These quotes are from:
The Sutra of Hui Neng
Translated by A.F. Price and Wong Mou-Lam,
©Shambhala Publications
for more information go to:
The
Sutra of Hui Neng
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Whenever I think of overcoming
obstacles I think of Hui Neng.
How many strikes did he have against him? One, the people of
Northern China, where he came from, were considered outcasts
in Southern China. Two, he was illiterate. Three, he was the only
one who could take care of his mother. Four he pounded rice and
chopped wood and never went to the hall to hear the teachings of
the fifth Patriarch. So if
you think you run into obstacles in your
meditation just think of Hui Neng. He overcame all of this and
became the sixth Patriarch.
How quickly can suffering end
Furthermore, how many times
have you been embroiled in your
suffering, brooding over this or that. Then you heard some good
news like, you didn't have cancer after all. In
an instant the suffering
that seemed so real and pervasive a minute ago disappeared and it is
replaced by relief and joy.
Similarly, if you are struggling
trying to open the door by turning
the knob to the left it may seem as if you are in a hopeless situation.
But a small shift, turning the knob to the right, will easily open it.
If you feel that you are
facing insurmountable obstacles in your life
or in your meditation, just take a fresh look. What is your mind and
what is life? Look and you will find the uncaused joy that's on this
side of the obstacles and you will see that your suffering was just an
illusion. I wish you the best in your life and in your meditations.
Look at life in the same
old way and life will seem old and stale.
Look at life afresh
and life will become new and fresh.
Please feel free to contact me with questions or comments
at: Michael@light-up-your-life.com.
Sincerely,
Michael Gluckman