Nothing To It: Ten Ways to Be at Home with Yourself

The Buddha teaches that change requires insight, and insight cannot begin until we stop and focus our attention on what is happening right in front of us. This stopping, or shamatha, allows us to rest the body and the mind.

The intelligent practitioner knows how to regulate and master his or her breath, body, and mind, in order to enhance the power of concentration before proceeding in the work of observation to shed light. Meditation practice is nourishing for body and mind, and can also expand our vision. Expanded vision enables us to go beyond passionate attachment

Although this practice can be used anywhere, at any time, it is especially useful when we’re in a state of anxiety and don’t know what to do. When we practice, we are transported to the calmest, most stable place we can go. The island of self is mindfulness, our awakened nature, the foundation of stability and calm that resides in us and shines lig

The most important skill I’ve learned in my monastic life is to renew myself in every moment. This may take only a mindful breath, a mindful step, a smile, or a pause to look at a flower or the sky. Then I can be solid, spontaneous, and present for myself and for the blue sky, so that I can be that way for others and their difficulties.