Elizabeth Gilbert's Blog, page 100
January 18, 2014
THE USES (and challenges) OF MEDITATION… So, a month ago, I started meditat…
THE USES (and challenges) OF MEDITATION…
So, a month ago, I started meditating again.
I haven't had a regular meditation practice in years (as many of you know, who have come to my events and asked me for meditation advice, only to see me shuffle and stammer and grin and apologize…)
I'm a disciplined person — why haven't I been able to keep a steady practice of meditation? Especially when I know all its benefits (emotional, physical, spiritual.)
Well, because it's difficult. But I'm not afraid of difficult things, so why haven't I been able to meditate every day. Here comes the truth: Because it's painful.
We all come to meditation in the beginning because we want a calmer mind, a happier life. But when you stop and look closely at the way your mind operates, it can be really scary to see what's going on in there.
The great meditation teacher explains it this way: In our daily lives, our minds are like a pond with a surface rippled and troubled by waves and wind. When we meditate, the waves and the wind die down and the pond becomes calm…and that's when we can finally see under the surface of that clear, smooth water — which is when we can finally see all the industrial waste, dead bodies and twisted monsters who live beneath! And the reason we haven't wanted to look closely is because all of that stuff is really scary. And once you see it, you have to start cleaning it out.
Sometimes it's easier not to look.
This is why meditation surprises us, when we are new to it. We think it will bring us peace, but sometimes it just focuses our attention on stuff we really don't want to see. But ultimately what meditation should do is teach us to practice compassion — for our own intrinsic madness, and also for the madness of others.
Because we all live in a weird pond. As Pema says, "Passion, aggression and ignorance are known to all human beings." And we begin to know ours, we can be more gracious to outer people on account of theirs…and maybe even more forgiving of ourselves, and understanding of the difficult places where we get stuck and lost and scared.
And that understanding, we hope, will make us shed our anger, our fear, our sorrows, our confusion.
So I'm back in the game, you guys. Back in the pond. I've meditated every day for the last month — just 20 minutes a day — and I'm committed to keeping it up for the year.
I would love to hear from any of you today about your meditation practices — or lack of! Share your tips, your fears, your links to great teachings, your experiences.
Let's all go pond-diving together!
ONWARD,
Liz
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SOAT in Argentina…where (fingers crossed!) I think I may be going this year at…
SOAT in Argentina…where (fingers crossed!) I think I may be going this year at last!
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Look what i've got in my hands! lots of love from Argentina xx
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SOAT traveling from the chill of Canada to the paradise of the Dominican Republic!
SOAT traveling from the chill of Canada to the paradise of the Dominican Republic!
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This beautiful book travelled all the way from Canada to Jamaica so that she could be read. It's only fitting, since Eat Pray Love travelled to the Dominican Republic to be read too – back in 2007.
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January 17, 2014
BIG AND HEAVY SALE AT TWO BUTTONS!!!! Dear Ones — Some of you are aware that m…
BIG AND HEAVY SALE AT TWO BUTTONS!!!!
Dear Ones —
Some of you are aware that my husband (you know: Javier Bardem) and I run a shop in Frenchtown NJ called TWO BUTTONS:
Elizabeth Gilbert - The Official Website | ElizabethGilbert.com.
A winsome photo and a touching review of SOAT from a sweet reader…
A winsome photo and a touching review of SOAT from a sweet reader…
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The ending of this book made me very sad; not in the sense that it was a unhappy ending, but that the book was over! I love it more than words can explain! I have never enjoyed reading a book more, thank you so much for being an incredible author! Xx
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Kachina is now making beautiful HAPPINESS JARS to sell on Etsy…how lovely!
Kachina is now making beautiful HAPPINESS JARS to sell on Etsy…how lovely!
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Elizabeth,
You inspired me to add hand painted "happiness jars" to my etsy shop! They've been wildly popular and wanted to share my most recent one with you! This is my 2014 wildflower jar. I have been mostly painting mason jars, but love this apothecary jar which also reminds me of your wonderful SOAT. : ) Blessings and thank you for inspiring me!!
Xo,
Kachina
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SOAT and that face!
SOAT and that face!
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Playing ball with my buddy is just about the only thing that will tear me away from Alma right now! haha
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THE SIGNATURE OF ALL THINGS in Malta…a first! And another place I’ve never bee…
THE SIGNATURE OF ALL THINGS in Malta…a first! And another place I've never been, but would love to visit!
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SOAT – also in MALTA! 
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January 16, 2014
HOW YOUR BODY LANGUAGE AND POSTURE CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE. Guys, watch this TED t…
HOW YOUR BODY LANGUAGE AND POSTURE CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE.
Guys, watch this TED talk by Amy Cuddy if you get the chance — it is both wonderful and amazing.
Some of the transformative information in here about the way we hold and present ourselves seems almost too simple to be believe…but it's all true.
I found her personal story incredibly moving, as well.
You know I love it when people learn to take up every inch of space in this world that they deserve!
So watch and learn, dear ones!
Shoulders back, chin high, arms open wide and ONWARD!
LG
Amy Cuddy: Your body language shapes who you are | Video on TED.com
www.ted.com
Body language affects how others see us, but it may also change how we see ourselves. Social psychologist Amy Cuddy shows how “power posing” — standing in a posture of confidence, even when we don’t feel confident — can affect testosterone and cortisol levels in the brain, and might even have an i…
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