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Psychology tells us that those who avoid looking inward and getting to know themselves lead unhealed, often unconscious lives, and are more easily led astray by lies and manipulations of leaders whose agendas seem to lend broader meaning to their own misunderstood feelings. Sounds dangerous.
My suggestion is to follow the sage advice of centuries of meditation masters: just sit.
Sit in meditation. For several minutes a day, sit in silence and notice the thoughts and feelings that automatically come up, and gently let them go. Each time you’re whisked away by the vagaries of the mind, come back to the breath as your steadying object. Repeating this will, over time, train and calm the mind, and develop self-control and equanimity.
This sort of mindfulness meditation also emphasizes the impermanence of our thoughts and feelings. You may notice the intense frustration you felt toward your mother last week is nowhere to be found; your particular worries over your children have taken a new shape.
For expert meditation instruction, see the teachings of inspiring American Buddhist teachers Jack Kornfield and Sharon Salzberg. (See jackkornfield.org and sharonsalzberg.com.)
Before you head into the rest of your day, I invite you to be still and quiet for a few moments. Take some breaths and cultivate steadiness of mind. Trust your true nature beneath the waves of automatic thought and reactive feeling. Let the choices you make for the rest of your day flow from equanimity and thoughtfulness, and endeavor to respond to others with intelligence and compassion.
BIO: Sarah Jane Shangraw is a registered yoga teacher and science book editor. She practices vipassana and metta—two forms of early Buddhist meditation—and teaches yoga in the Boston area. She is interested in the intersection of yoga and health, and in particular the benefits of yoga for people with chronic conditions. She spends as much time as possible in the company of good friends, caring for those in her life who are facing health challenges, and traveling.
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