Why practice?
An essay by Maggie Stevens.
People give many responses to the question,
Why do you meditate?
Answers include to find inner peace,
To become enlightened,
To become one with the universe,
To stop thinking.
My own definition isn't lofty.
I find that meditation helps settle me.
The definition of settle includes adopting a more steady or secure lifestyle,
Beginning to feel comfort in a new situation,
And gradually sinking to the bottom.
When we sit to meditate,
We can settle into the body and begin to feel comfortable with what we find in the present moment.
We can check in with our body,
Mind,
And heart,
And ask,
What's present?
Being in the present moment shouldn't be that difficult.
Others in the animal kingdom do it all the time,
And trees,
Why they're veritable masters.
We want our minds,
And by extension our bodies or hearts,
To be different.
We want to feel and think and be something else.
But minds think,
And we want them to stop it.
Interestingly,
We do not insist that our lungs stop breathing,
Or that our stomachs stop digesting,
Or our heart stops pumping,
The suffering doesn't lie in our thoughts,
But the issue is rather our feelings and reactions to our thoughts.
We either want to cling to thoughts,
Memories,
And plans we like,
Or we spend our time pushing them away in aversion.
Ajahn Chah,
The Thai Buddhist teacher,
Calls this activity the backwash of our day.
Meditation is simply settling into the body and being open to whatever shows up.
Additionally,
The benefits of meditation occur not just in the present moment,
But also over the long term.
Research shows that even after a short duration of practice sessions,
We can find physical,
Emotional,
And psychological benefits.
Practice helps our mind develop habits that are less reactive.
We can see our top 10 worries or jealousies arise and pass away without giving them a lot of energy.
Oh,
You again.
We don't push them away or get ensnared in their drama.
We simply let them arise and pass on their own.
We learn to be less reactive.
Oh,
This is just me wanting my own way again.
We begin to see the patterns and how they show up in our bodies and in our emotions.
Rather than spending energy caught up in those thoughts,
We can instead direct the mind and its energies towards kindness,
Generosity,
Gratitude,
And joy.
We can become more skillful.
As these new skills and mental formations develop,
We become more pleasant to be around for ourselves and others.
We can become gentler.
We develop acceptance of shortcomings and sorrows,
Our own and others.
We can dedicate these newfound energies to positive changes in our habits,
In family dynamics,
Or social ills.
We begin to notice that other people like us do not want to suffer and do wish to be happy.
Like us,
They may use unskillful means to reach that end.
Our practice leads us to compassion,
Recognizing that we all suffer.
We can benefit from meditation whether we're a newbie or an avid.
We can benefit by sitting five minutes every day or by going on week-long retreats.
We can benefit by walking or sitting meditation.
We can benefit from using guided meditations or open awareness attending to the present moment.
The specifics aren't as important as the consistency and commitment to the practice.
As my friend in a 12-step program advises,
Try it for six weeks,
And if you don't see a change,
We will gladly refund your misery.
