Sublime

Such an insight arose as a result of mindfulness, or of qualities like calm or investigation.

The Eastern idea of practice, on the other hand, is to create the person, or rather to actualize or reveal the complete person who is already there. This is not practice for something, but complete practice, which suffices unto itself. In Zen training they speak of sweeping the floor, or eating, as practice. Walking as practice.”

constricting trance to a more awake, spacious presence that can eventually include all of life. It is from this mindful awareness that you will discover fresh, creative, and more compassionate responses to life’s challenges.

That’s why I love the Tibetan word for meditation: “familiarisation.” It’s not the practice of seeking anything new, it’s the practice of discovering what is already here, beyond the seeking and judging and reacting mind.

This is why the Buddha teaches so strongly about the importance of yoniso manaskara or developing appropriate attention, learning to focus our attention on that which is in alignment with our deepest aspiration. Sometimes we get caught up in and water elements of consciousness that are not helpful for the kind of qualities that we want to manifest

True meditation is nothing but the cultivation of our capacity to deeply listen in this way.** Through listening—not with the ears but with our whole being—we arrive at a quiet inner knowing of what is right for us, which is not obtainable through any amount of thinking or discussing with others (though those activities can sometimes be valuable as