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April 21 - August 10, 2020
waiting for something to happen,
is a mind that is looking to the future, as opposed to a mind resting in the present.
It’s actually very rare that the body and mind are together at the same place and the same time.
The idea is not to try and stop the thoughts, but rather to step back and just allow them to come and go
with your full awareness.
clear enough in your own mind that you’re able to continue experiencing each moment, one after the next, with your full awareness.
the thicker the region, the lower the pain sensitivity. This potential for change in the brain is known as neuroplasticity.
mindfulness simply means to be present, undistracted, in the moment, as
opposed to lost in thought and caught up in the emotions.
without trying to ignore or resist thoughts, they were naturally decreasing on their own as I focused my mind elsewhere.
when we’re caught up in all the thoughts that we get stressed.
the mind can only be in one place at one time. Sure, sometimes it moves so quickly from one thing to the next that it gives the impression of being in more than one place at one time, but that’s just an illusion.
how wonderful my new life would be, always living in the present, never distracted by thinking.
it’s best to think of insight as drips of water filling a bucket, rather than any great thunderbolt that might transform your life instantaneously.
Awareness can be applied to every little thing you do
the difference between having a stable, calm and focused mind, or a mind that feels out of control.
what this does is to give you back the choice of how you live your life. Rather than being swept away by undermining or unproductive thoughts and emotions,
We’re often so distracted by our own thoughts that we don’t even really hear what the other person is saying.
apply the intention of awareness.
the beauty of mindfulness is that you don’t need to take extra time out of your day to practise it.
All it means is training your mind to be present with the action, rather than
being lost in thought ...
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training the mind, but in the form of mindfulness, applying awareness to the chores of everyday life.
The point of training the mind is to become more aware.
In the absence of awareness, the realm of thought takes over.
Swept away by memories of the past and plans for the future. So preoccupied with thinking that we’re completely unaware of what’s actually taking place right now, oblivious to life unfolding around us.
The present moment just feels so ordinary that we take it for granted, and yet that’s what makes it so extraordinary –
to examine the workings of the mind in a very detailed way.
I’d lost all sense of awareness.
might not even be hungry, we mindlessly follow every impulse that arises.
we’ll remain lost in the world of thought.
Meditation simply helps you be more mindful in everyday life, no matter how busy you are, or how many people you’re with.
Don’t worry too much if there are external sounds that are out of your control as
you can build these into the exercise,
having a broader sense of mindfulness around food,
It can sometimes feel as though we’re so busy remembering, planning and analysing life, that we forget to experience life
as it actually is, rather than how we think it should be.
balance of focus and relaxation
simply notice as they come and go, how one thing is constantly being replaced by the next.
The body and mind are not separate. When we have presence of mind we have presence of body, when we possess mental focus we possess physical focus, and
when we have an ease of mind we have an ease of body.
There’s no question that in terms of learning how to be mindful while exercising, it’s much easier to do it with a form of exercise that has a repetitive nature and in which you are not directly competing with anyone else.
you can even take a couple of minutes to sit down and allow the mind to rest before you begin.
If you do this each time you may start to notice a pattern that will help you to respond more skilfully.
Before you leave, take a good few deep breaths. This will help you to focus and give you a greater sense of being grounded.
You may well find that in the process of awareness, the tension naturally releases itself anyway.
idea of gentle curiosity,
One of the so-called problems of being more aware is that you become aware of not only the pleasant sensations, but also the unpleasant ones. However, used in the right way even the unpleasant sensations can be put to good effect. Rather than try to ‘get away’ from physical discomfort, see what happens when you rest your attention with the feeling. Try doing it as if you and the pain are not really separate, so less of ‘me and my pain’ and more of the simple, direct experience of ‘pain’. The results might surprise you.
building in regular checks to see if you’re present throughout the run.
The more I was able to simply watch the thoughts, to be aware of them as they passed through the mind, the more the mind seemed to quieten. As the mind settled down, so the body began to feel less agitated.
