This is a practice to cultivate mental and emotional balance,
Clarity,
Objectivity.
Not cold detachment from people and situations in your life,
But rather detachment from the illusions that keep you separate.
When projections are cleared away,
When the scales fall from your eyes,
Then real intimacy becomes possible.
Intimacy with all of life.
Normally we live within concentric circles of attachment.
The people we hold dearest to us,
Then people we have some affection for but may not know very well,
And then people we feel neutral about or even dislike.
Equanimity dissolves the circles and frees your goodwill to extend out to everyone.
We'll start by finding equilibrium in posture and breath,
Followed by a guided visualization to expand awareness and restore balance.
We'll end with a prayer from the Christian mystic Teresa of Avila.
So begin by finding a posture that's comfortable in which you feel equilibrium side to side front to back.
Find some physical balance.
Let balance in the body bring balance to the mind.
Bring your attention to your breath.
Notice how each breath arises and passes away,
The way each day arises and passes away,
The way even mountains and galaxies ultimately arise and pass away.
If you feel any aversion,
Pleasant sensations or unpleasant,
Just notice and let them go.
Steady your ship.
We'll begin with three rounds of box breathing,
A type of breathing used by emergency room technicians and EMTs to find balance and calm in any situation.
We will inhale for five,
Hold our breath full for five,
Exhale for five and hold empty for five.
And we will do this three times.
I'll count with you.
If my pacing feels off,
Just go at your own pace.
Point is to relax and find balance in your breath.
Begin with a deep inhalation.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Hold one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Exhale completely one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five and hold empty one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five.
Inhale fully one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Hold full one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Exhale completely one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Hold empty one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five.
Last cycle.
Inhale fully one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Hold full one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Exhale completely one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five and hold empty one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five.
Then let your breath relax to its own natural rhythm.
Bring balance in the breath,
Bring balance to the body and balance in the body,
Bring balance to the mind.
Let yourself feel an inner sense of balance and ease.
And feel the benefit of a mind that has balance and equanimity,
What a gift it is to yourself and to those around you.
Now call to mind a person in your life who is neither a friend nor an enemy,
Someone you feel neutral about.
And take a moment to attend to them in your mind.
To attend is to give your attention.
Your attention is a great gift.
So notice this person in your mind's eye,
Noticing that they like you simply want to be happy,
To be free of pain,
To be free of worry.
Notice how like you,
This person experiences themselves as the center of their universe,
The kind of collective hallucination we all share that each of us is somehow the center of everything.
Let yourself feel compassion for this person and shift your focus to view the world from their eyes.
Take a moment to be in their locus of consciousness,
Wherever they are right now.
Take a step in their shoes,
Feel their thoughts.
Regardless of their flaws or their virtues,
Notice how they too simply want to be happy.
Even though this person is not close to the center of your universe,
Feel how their well-being is as important as yours,
As important as anyone's.
And from their point of view,
Look back at yourself.
Maybe they feel neutral towards you.
Maybe they have affection for you.
Maybe they dislike you.
It doesn't matter.
Just notice.
Notice how this person,
Like everyone,
Experiences themselves as the center.
Now call to mind someone you love dearly,
Someone you feel is crucial to your happiness,
And in the same way,
Attend to them.
Give them your attention.
Notice that they,
Like you,
Simply want to be happy,
To be free of pain,
Free of worry.
Take a moment to shift your focus to view the world from their eyes.
Be in their locus of consciousness,
Wherever they are right now.
Take a step in their shoes.
Feel their thoughts.
Feel how they too experience themselves as the center of their universe,
How they have their own hopes,
Desires,
And fears.
And from their point of view,
Look back at yourself.
Notice how this person,
Your loved one,
Cannot give you happiness that you don't already have within you.
They cannot be your source of enlightenment,
And you cannot be the source of theirs.
They have their own journey that you must radically trust.
You can love them deeply and offer them help,
But in the end,
Like you,
They must learn for themselves.
They must be the source of their own awakening.
See how their happiness or their suffering depends on their thoughts and their actions and not your wishes for them.
See how your happiness or your suffering depends on your thoughts and actions and not their wishes for you.
Now allow your consciousness to expand farther outside your window to whatever is there,
Trees,
Birds,
The people on the street.
Feel how each being is its own locus of consciousness,
A point of perception that is part of the whole being we call Earth,
And how you are an integral part of that symphony,
A single beautiful note.
So the next time you feel unbalanced or thrown by life's unexpected circumstances or by your own thoughts,
Let yourself feel balance in your body,
Right to left,
Front to back.
Invite balance into your breath.
Invite balance into your mind.
Let yourself feel into the tapestry of the whole,
All the centers of consciousness that are part of this planet.
Whatever challenge is at hand for you,
Respond to it with that sense of balance and connectedness to the whole.
In any challenging moments in life,
You can call to mind this prayer from the mystic Teresa of Avila.
If the word God doesn't work for you,
You can replace it with interconnectedness.
I'll read the prayer twice,
Once with a literal translation and again with interconnectedness.
Let nothing disturb you.
Let nothing cause you fear.
All things pass.
God does not move from you.
Patience obtains all.
Whoever has God lacks nothing.
God alone suffices.
Let nothing disturb you.
Let nothing cause you fear.
All things pass.
Our interconnectedness never leaves you.
Patience obtains all.
Whoever remembers this connection lacks nothing.
Our connection alone suffices.
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be balanced and at peace.
May all beings be free.
