Seven Factors Of Awakening

Hello everyone, I wrote an article about Seven Factors of Awakening to better understand the factors for myself and to share with others. Upon reflecting and writing about them I have learned more about how I relate to these factors in my everyday life. Seven Factors of Awakenings are one of the categories of spiritual qualities frequently mentioned by the Buddha. They are 1. Mindfulness; 2. Investigation of the nature of reality; 3. Energy; 4. Joy or rapture; 5. Relaxation or tranquility, and 6. Consciousness

Transcript

Hello everyone,

My name is Mir Musa.

I wrote an article about the seven factors of awakening to better understand these factors for myself and to share with others.

Upon selecting and writing about them,

I have learned more about how I relate to these factors in my everyday life.

Seven factors of awakenings are one of the categories of spiritual qualities frequently mentioned by the Buddha.

I wished to better understand these truths for myself and to share my understandings of these truths with intention that you will find them to be useful in your journey towards awakening.

Awakening to what,

Some may wonder.

To wake up to the truth of who and what we are and understanding them intuitively,

That we are all part of the interconnected universe.

Just as a drop of water from the ocean is part of the entire ocean,

Water can be separated in a cup or a container and will still be known as ocean water.

The same principles applies to us.

We all are contained in a body as well as part of the entire universe.

Although I may feel separate within my thinking and narrating mind,

Practicing how to let go of my self-centeredness can help reduce the suffering that arises from thinking I'm separate from the rest of the world.

With better understanding of these principles,

I can live more awake during my life experience in human form.

The seven factors towards Awakenings are Mindfulness,

Investigation of the Nature of Reality,

Energy,

Joy or Rapture,

Relaxation or Tranquility,

Concentration and Equanimity.

I will speak a little about each of these factors and how they play an important part in my life.

First is Mindfulness,

Which means to maintain awareness of reality.

In my understanding,

Along with my meditation practice,

Mindfulness is to simply become aware of my thoughts during the day and evenings.

Which thoughts are most dominant and if they are helpful or unhelpful?

Am I caught up in mind-wandering or distractions or am I keeping focus on the tasks or goals I wish to accomplish for the day and towards my future goals?

When my mind is calm,

I am more aware of the incoming thoughts that can compete with intention I have in mind.

With mindfulness,

I can recognize them easily before those thoughts become priority and I get distracted.

With mindfulness,

I can conserve my mental energy to accomplish the task at hand and therefore I move towards progressing rather than regressing and receive grace rather than harm.

Keeping a mindful journal practice helps to strength my state of awareness.

I keep a daily journal where I set my intentions for the day along with what I am grateful for and a to-do list.

On the days I notice I did not keep my intentions towards behaviors I need to improve on,

I make a note and give priorities towards those behaviors I need to watch out for because as I notice myself acting on those behaviors,

I create more sufferings for myself and others indirectly.

Mindfulness is a muscle that needs our practice and support in order for it to develop.

The strength we gain from it helps us live a more conscious and uncomplicated life.

The second factor towards awakening is investigation of the nature of reality.

We can also call it to see things as they really are.

Seeing with a wise and compassionate mind that is free from mental fabrication.

In order for me to see the nature of reality,

I look at what is arising from a view of emptiness with an understanding that all matter in the universe is in constant flux including our minds and they are always changing in each moment and all matter is interdependent and interconnected.

Facing life circumstances with this view,

I am less attached to thinking that how I perceive the world is the absolute truth.

Therefore,

I can stay humble and experience life with curiosity.

I bring curiosity towards any given projects that I start as a way to stay engaged to the act of paying attention.

I say to myself,

I don't know where this may lead but I can enjoy the process as I try something new and learn from taking the first step.

Staying curious keeps us engaged and helps us not give up when doubt arises.

By being aware of what is causing distractions and doubt,

We can let go with the power of an introspective mind.

I ask myself,

What is the state of my mind in this moment?

Is it impatient?

Is it moving from one thought to another like a monkey?

Is it attached to an idea?

Is it feeling anxious or restless?

With a mind that is aware of its various states,

We can bring back our focus back towards anything we are engaged in at any given moment.

We can see the changing nature of reality as it presents itself.

The more we investigate and stay curious towards the nature of reality,

The more present we become and this can lead to a state of flow while staying engaged in our activity.

The author Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi writes about the state of flow in his book,

Flow,

The Psychology of Optimal Experience.

According to him,

There are eight characteristics of flow.

The eight characteristics of flow are complete concentration on the task,

Keeping clarity of goals and reward in mind and receiving immediate feedback,

Transformation of time,

Beating up or slowing down,

The experience in itself as a reward,

Effortlessness and ease,

A balance between challenge and skills,

Actions and awareness are merged so that you no longer feel self-conscious.

There is a feeling of control over the task.

I have experienced this mind state a few times when I am painting or writing.

It is a wonderful state to be in.

As an example,

In the activity of painting,

I gain faith about which colors to use and which strokes to make on the canvas when the work needs more colors and when it is enough.

Because my main interest is only to start and enjoy the process,

I don't worry about how it will turn out.

And during writing,

I became better at gaining access to whatever words I need for the sentence to make sense.

I find connections to words that support the subject matter.

The more we can experience flow in our activities,

The easier for us to remember how to return to this state of consciousness.

With an engaged and curious mind,

Each of us can understand our physical and mental realities as they present themselves.

Therefore,

We become less attached to delusions.

For me,

The less I am seeing or acting with a deluded view,

The more I am experiencing my true nature.

The third factor towards awakening is energy,

Defined as determination and effort.

Energy plays a big part of my conscious and aware sleep.

We have a limited resource of energy throughout our day.

At night,

When I go to sleep,

I recharge my physical and mental energy to function effectively for the following day.

My daily yoga and meditation practice helps me to produce mental clarity and energetic mind that keeps me focused on the tasks I give myself each day.

These include exercising,

Meditating,

Writing,

Work,

Cooking,

Painting,

Learning,

So forth and so on.

Having a clear focus and faith towards the task in hand,

I spend less mental and physical energy on what I want to accomplish that day.

Even writing my relationship with the 7 factors,

I needed the mental clarity and energy to write.

The intention makes it easier for me to stay focused,

And this creates an energetic loop which feeds the mind with energy to continue.

To revive mental energy,

I often get up to move around and take deep breaths.

This gives me more mental energy to carry on for longer periods of time.

There are various ways to keep the energy going throughout the day.

Here are 9 suggestions.

Social Stress Stress-induced emotions consume huge amounts of energy.

Lighten your load.

One of the main reasons for fatigue is overwork.

Exercise Exercise almost guarantees that you'll sleep more soundly.

Strive for 8 hours of sleep.

Figure out the right amount of sleep you need for yourself and keep that routine.

Only eat foods that give you energy,

And let go of those that make you feel tired.

Avoid smoking and other recreational drugs.

Use caffeine to your advantage.

I prefer green tea over coffee.

Limit alcohol.

Drink responsibly.

Keep aware of negative thoughts.

Let them go as soon as you are aware of them.

The fourth factor towards awakening is Joy or Rapture.

Joy comes from having a calm and grounded mind state.

I noticed that after an hour of meditation in the morning,

I naturally feel more joyful and a sense of ease arises in the mind and body.

This joy and happiness comes from within and without the need for external circumstances or validations from the world around me.

When my mind is less calm,

I tend to experience stress or anxiety because the mind system is moving from one place to another and it does not focus on one thing at a time.

With mindfulness,

I can notice these states and remind myself what it felt like when the mind state was calm and joyful.

I can return to a more tranquil state as needed with the practice of meditation and relaxation.

When I feel more joyful and content,

My perceptions towards the world around me become cheerful and this increases the compassion and understanding in my interaction with others around me.

A joyful mind is less agitated when dealing with the world's circumstances and will ensure we continue to be present in our living experience.

During our meditation,

We can consciously look for what is pleasant,

For example,

The coolness of the breath when breathing in and any joyful tingling sensations in our body.

When we start to notice there are joyful sensations and moments of pleasure within the body,

The mind becomes familiar with sensations that feels joyful and adds to the sensory experience.

In an outer sense,

When I interact with the world around me,

I can keep aware of anything that feels joyful and appreciate them with gratitude.

Gratitude has the power to bring us the energy of abundance,

Which attracts more joyful experiences to keep us in blissful mind state.

Here are some other suggestions to cultivate joy.

Make time for joyful activities.

Make a list of anything wholesome that brings you joy and calendar those activities in your schedule.

Go outside.

Go outside for a walk or a bike ride if you are indoors for too long.

Fresh air from outside always elevates my mood.

Talk to friends.

Schedule to speak to a friend if they are available.

Clean.

Clean your room and or do your laundry.

A more tidy space and having clean clothes to wear is a mood lifter.

If you think your mood is in constant ups and down,

Seek therapy help.

There are many affordable ones if you search on the internet.

For me personally,

Working with a therapist has reduced my stress and I feel more joyful.

Meditate daily first thing in the morning.

I have noticed when I meditate early in the day,

I stay more focused and feel joyful while staying engaged in any activity.

Learn to say no.

It is better to say no to things we don't wish to do in order to focus wholeheartedly on the things we wish to accomplish.

The wholesome activities gives us purpose.

Living a life with purpose makes us joyful.

The fifth factor towards awakening is relaxation or tranquility of body and mind.

With my practice of daily yoga and meditation,

I intend to cultivate a calm mind and body as well as resting the mind from a state of busyness.

Relaxation of the mind leads to a calm state of being and when I am calm,

I make better decisions that are not based on feelings of restlessness and discontentment.

I have noticed when I set an intention to move forward with my day from a place of contentment,

I can progress towards the project I am working on or enjoying something relaxing like reading a book or painting.

Relaxation helps me become better at being mindful about the movements of the mind.

Just as we can observe the bottom of a lake when the water is calm and clear,

The same way we can observe the state of our mind with clarity when we cultivate a tranquil mind with our meditation practice.

With a daily practice of relaxation,

These pleasant states gain strength and we enjoy these states longer throughout the day.

When we notice we are not feeling relaxed,

We can return to a tranquil state through awareness of our breathing.

I have noticed when I am restless,

My breath becomes shorter and uneven.

When I am feeling tranquil,

I can notice that my breath sensations are long and even.

With deepening of awareness,

I can return to a relaxed and energetic state of mind which keeps me focused on my present activity.

The sixth factor towards awakening is concentration,

Which means a calm one-pointed state of mind.

Concentration is a calm one-pointed mind state focusing our attention on sound,

Sensations of the body,

Smell,

Sight,

And the state of our mind.

It is a space where I can keep my focus on anything I set my attention towards and at the same time be aware of everything else around me.

In order to deepen my concentration,

I need to become aware of everything around me that caused my mind to get distracted.

I can learn to recognize them for what they are and gently return to the object of my attention without judgment towards whatever is arising in my consciousness.

My daily practice of meditation and mindfulness results in deeper concentration.

In my experience,

I have learned there are many benefits of concentration development.

Here are 10 benefits of concentration from one Buddhist scripture.

Impulsive and flighty behavior will gradually disappear.

The activities of the sixth sense organs will become orderly.

The suffering of illness decreases and your face becomes smoother.

The power of memory improves.

The power of endurance grows.

Attachments disappear.

Irrational states of mind change into virtuous state of mind.

Your self nature's light of wisdom will shine.

You will be pleased with ultimate bliss.

You will gain freedom in birth and death.

My understanding of the 10th benefit is this.

Everything in the universe is in constant flux which means all that arise will also pass away.

Keeping this in mind,

We know birth and death is a process of change.

The seventh factor towards awakening is equanimity.

To accept reality as it is without craving or aversion.

For this understanding,

I wish to share an inside experience that gave me clarity.

On February 3rd,

2021,

I decided to participate on a 10-day silent retreat from home.

My plan was simple.

I will keep a vow of silence,

Get up early to practice my daily yoga and meditation,

Cook for a few days at a time,

Incorporate walking meditation in the afternoon and evening sitting meditation before bed,

Listen to spiritual lectures while I paint as a calming and joyful activity and head to bed early.

Towards the end of the retreat,

I had two inside experiences and the second one relates to understanding of what it means to be equanimous with mindfulness in everyday life.

One morning during a silent meditation,

I set intention to calm the mind and body with close attention to the breath sensations while keeping aware of sound sensations,

Thoughts and smell.

I also intended to move as little as possible during the hour-long sit.

As I continued to sit,

I recognized within the body there are sensations of pain and discomfort.

Sometimes they feel like tightness or pleasure in the joint areas.

Aside from discomfort,

I can sense there are subtle energy that feels pleasant and joyful like the breath sensations at the tip of my nostrils or areas of the body as the mind settles down.

These energetic sensations pass through the body during incoming and outgoing breath while leaving a remnant of joy,

Lightheartedness and contentment.

All these are happening on their own and I can sense them with awareness for what they are.

Sensations of tightness,

Discomfort,

Pressure and joyful energies arise and pass on their own.

I can see they are impermanent and not self.

They are part of the cause and effect which is coming and going as life energy moves within my body.

My aversion to discomforts cause my body to move slightly,

Shift and readjust in order to feel better while my attachment to joyful sensations wishes for those feelings to last longer.

At that moment,

I can see the truth which is these sensations arise and pass on their own and I can witness with awareness that this is what is unfolding from moment to moment.

Recognizing the way things are lets me understand there is a state beyond aversions to discomfort and attachment to pleasure.

Non-attachment to both is a more pleasant mind state which doesn't lead to one extreme or the other.

Seeing this within my body as part of the macro universe,

I can see this in my life experience.

For example,

How much I dislike something that is not supporting how I wish for things to happen and my wanting that which gives me more pleasure and missing it when I don't get what I want.

As I continue my practice with awareness and mindfulness,

I can see that there will always be experiences in life that are uncomfortable and there will be moments of joy which will bring me pleasure.

With equanimity,

I can observe them for what they are with acceptance.

In that sense,

Being equanimous is an antidote to my grasping mind.

I feel as though by being aware of my aversions and cravings,

I can choose to look at these phenomena with compassion and curiosity,

Even welcome them without any judgment.

I can recognize that this is a lifelong practice.

I can forgive myself when I fall into my delusions and return to a tranquil state with my daily practice of meditation and mindfulness.

I hope you found the talk to be beneficial towards your own awakening.

My sincere wish is for all of us to be fully awake within this lifetime.

Thank you for listening.

Reviews

Thank you so much for your genuine share and for what I’ve experienced to be a unique take on the awakening factors