Understanding Equanimity: A Felt Sense

This practice helps to understand equanimity, one of the most important principles in meditative practice. It's guided in a way to not just understand with our minds, but to develop a felt sense of understanding in our bodies.

Practicing equanimity allows us to be more relaxed and at ease in any and all circumstances, leading to less inner reactivity and a sense of well-being and inner peace.

Transcript

This practice is about understanding equanimity.

Not just understanding it in our minds,

But getting a real felt sense of it in our body.

Equanimity is simply our ability to be open to experience.

When we feel truly safe and relaxed,

We are equanimous.

The problem is that our body is often in a protective or defensive state,

Even when we don't realize it.

Our body is wired to defend against threats.

And unfortunately,

Our world seems full of danger.

Our body often ends up in a state of hypervigilance,

Never quite able to feel safe or relaxed.

This is compounded by the fact that we often feel some sort of discomfort,

And our body tries to avoid or resist discomfort,

Only leading to more inner conflict and in turn more discomfort.

The beauty of equanimity is that the more open we can be to discomfort,

The more safe we can feel to have the experience of discomfort,

The more okay the experience becomes.

Regularly practicing equanimity radically transforms our experience.

Experiences that were once stressful and uncomfortable become smooth and tolerable.

We can maintain relaxed composure in situations that previously caused overwhelm or distress.

This practice will help to bring this inner process more into awareness,

So we can learn to be more relaxed and equanimous,

Regardless of our experience.

Start by imagining yourself in a warm and relaxing environment.

You can imagine yourself on a pristine beach,

Sun shining,

Birds chirping,

Or maybe in a cozy cabin with snow outside,

Sitting in front of a fireplace,

Allowing its warmth to penetrate through your being.

Feel free to get creative,

Allowing yourself to really sink into the experience.

Your breath naturally slowing down,

The tension in your face,

Neck,

And shoulders relaxing.

Breathe gently here,

Allowing your whole body to soften.

Notice what changes in your body.

Notice if there's any part that's still resisting.

Allow yourself to de-armor,

Knowing that you're in a safe space.

You can allow yourself to relax,

More and more,

Softening with each breath.

Notice the changes happening in your body.

Notice what this experience is like,

How it contrasts to how you were feeling just a few minutes ago.

If there's still tension,

Still some part of your body that's holding on,

That's okay.

Just let that be there.

Allow yourself to just exist in this moment as you are,

Without trying to change anything at all.

This is what equanimity is truly about.

Not so much being relaxed as it is being totally okay with whatever is happening,

Even if that experience is uncomfortable.

We are letting go of the desire for our experience to be anything else.

We are wholeheartedly accepting this moment as it is.

What's it like to just exist without needing anything to be different?

Without trying to negotiate our experience?

How much can you embrace your experience?

Embrace whatever sensations are arising in your body.

Even embrace whatever thoughts come up,

Regardless of what they are.

This is equanimity,

Being totally okay with our experience,

Even if it isn't what we wanted or intended.

It's easier to be a quantumist in a comfortable and soothing environment.

But the real transformative power of equanimity comes from practicing it in the face of discomfort.

So we are now going to switch things up.

We're going to imagine ourselves in a slightly less comfortable environment and do our best to practice equanimity.

Imagine yourself on a crowded bus.

There's no room to sit,

So you're standing.

Notice what happens in your body when you bring this image to mind.

In this uncomfortable environment,

Your body becomes defensive.

There's usually a contraction in certain muscles.

Notice where you're feeling that contraction or tension.

Notice where you feel any sort of restlessness or energetic activation.

Now do your best to stay in this imagined environment,

But be relaxed and equanimous.

Do your best to relax and soften any tension in your body.

And any tension that's left,

Any energetic activation that's still there,

That's okay.

Just accept that.

Welcome that experience too.

When we practice equanimity,

We are doing our best to be relaxed.

And whatever parts of us won't relax,

We accept them wholeheartedly.

Can you remain on this crowded bus and accept your experience fully,

Welcoming each sensation,

Even if it's uncomfortable?

What happens in your body when you employ this attitude,

When you welcome even the uncomfortable sensations?

Equanimity takes practice,

So don't worry if it's not working for you.

Just do your best.

Stay with the intention of just letting everything be as it is,

Of accepting your experience fully and radically.

Can you get a taste of equanimity?

How your experience changes when you just allow everything to be just as it is?

Just as it is,

Welcoming each sensation,

Each thought,

Each moment in its entirety.

Can you think of some area in your life where you'd benefit from practicing equanimity?

Maybe it's on the bus like we're practicing now,

Or maybe there's some other unavoidable experience that you dread.

Can you see how dreading an experience just makes it more difficult?

And welcoming the experience,

Even if you don't like it,

Begins to soften it and make it more tolerable.

Now,

Equanimity doesn't mean you need to give up the idea of changing anything,

Of taking action.

You can still dislike things.

You can still work to change things.

But fighting against these experiences internally just stresses us further,

Creates more inner conflict,

And wastes energy.

Actually better equipped to act and make change when we are less stressed.

So we accept our experience as it is,

Even if we don't like it,

And free up energy to take action and make change where possible and appropriate.

Now there's one exception with this practice,

And that's with more severe feelings that can become overwhelming when we welcome them and open to them.

If welcoming an experience brings up too much distress and starts to feel overwhelming,

We instead work to ground and calm,

And go back to practicing equanimity with less intense feelings.

As we practice equanimity within our window of tolerance,

That is,

The feelings we feel safe to be with,

That don't make us overwhelmed,

We begin to strengthen our equanimity,

And eventually,

One day,

We can revisit what was once overwhelming and find the experience is now tolerable.

There's no rush though.

Just practice at whatever pace suits you.

Start by practicing in just one area of your life that feels safe,

And then,

Bit by bit,

Expand out to other areas.

And just doing one final check-in,

Notice the experience you're having in your body.

Can you be with it more fully?

Can you welcome every sensation?

Just allowing your experience to be as it is,

Noticing if there's any subtle resistance,

And seeing how much you can soften,

How much you can simply accept this moment in its entirety,

And just continuing to breathe gently,

Continuing to bring your experience more and more into acceptance.

Thank you for your practice.

Reviews

🙏🙏🙏

Beautiful visualization. You have a knack for inducing serenity.

Lovely practice!❣️felt really nice. Coming back to this one! 🙏✨☺️

Very revealing of y state of mind and really helped relaxation

Excellent meditation! Being able to sit with discomfort is a skill I'm definitely ready to cultivate, and I'll be returning to this regularly!

Thank you for offering this better understanding of equanimity. I feel more equipped to accept where I am in each moment. 🙏

The content is good and well presented. The background sound distracted me.

This was terrific and so helpful. It was exactly what I needed today. Thank you so much, Jude. 🙏🏻💚

This is another amazing journey into a layered practice. Jude allows us to be where we are but always look to a place farther away.