Feeling down, ‘The Blues’, bad mood, pissed off at everything & everyone, stuck with yourself for another day, etc, etc. Oh yeah, ain’t it fun being a human being? Of the billions of us on planet earth at the moment, there is probably not anyone who has not experienced one variety or another of feeling sad, mad or just plain hopeless. For some, it’s a lifelong, chronic challenge.This comes in being human. But the central problem is not the dark feelings themselves, it is our identification with them. We assume, mostly unconsciously, that we are our thoughts and feelings.
True meditation is the investigation of this assumption. From personal experience, I can vouch for the fact that it’s not an easy inquiry to come face to face with our demons. We do everything we can to avoid it. Oddly enough, the way out of the darkness is to meet it directly and realize that it is a product of the mind…a movie, if you will, in our head, that runs on a loop. This seeing begins with the simple act of observation and attention to what is happening in the body/mind, moment to moment.
It takes courage and patience but, in the end, we discover that beyond the idea of who we are is a spacious, indestructible love for all and everything. The dark clouds may return but they no longer have an imagined host to attach to. They come and go, like clouds in the sky and we can return to effortless being and happiness in just being alive.
Thank you Mike. You know this is something I have a hard time with.
Feeling down, ‘The Blues’, bad mood, pissed off at everything & everyone, stuck with yourself for another day, etc, etc. Oh yeah, ain’t it fun being a human being? Of the billions of us on planet earth at the moment, there is probably not anyone who has not experienced one variety or another of feeling sad, mad or just plain hopeless. For some, it’s a lifelong, chronic challenge.This comes in being human. But the central problem is not the dark feelings themselves, it is our identification with them. We assume, mostly unconsciously, that we are our thoughts and feelings.
True meditation is the investigation of this assumption. From personal experience, I can vouch for the fact that it’s not an easy inquiry to come face to face with our demons. We do everything we can to avoid it. Oddly enough, the way out of the darkness is to meet it directly and realize that it is a product of the mind…a movie, if you will, in our head, that runs on a loop. This seeing begins with the simple act of observation and attention to what is happening in the body/mind, moment to moment.
It takes courage and patience but, in the end, we discover that beyond the idea of who we are is a spacious, indestructible love for all and everything. The dark clouds may return but they no longer have an imagined host to attach to. They come and go, like clouds in the sky and we can return to effortless being and happiness in just being alive.
Right on the money, Mike. Thank you for addressing what we are living. Jan