I tried to meditate - it’s not working!
A man once asked the divine grace:
- I can not stop my mind from thinking bad things, terrible things! I am free, yet a prisoner in my own mind. I feel lost, what can I do? Please, tell me what to do.
With the voice and heart of loving kindness, the divine grace said to the man:
- You cannot stop your mind from thinking! This is the minds duty, to think. But you can change yourself!
- How I can change myself? What should I do? Oh, divine grace, please, tell me, and I will do it!
- Do you see this seed? The divine grace said.
Take this seed and plant it. Take good care of the seed until you will see the seed grown into a beautiful plant, with flowers.
The man took the seed and planted it with care, just as the divine grace said, and then waited a little bit. But then he started to loose his patience and dug the seed to see what is wrong. Nothing was wrong, so he planted the seed again. This happened again after few more days, when the man lost his patience again. And dug the seed out. The seed was doing just fine.
And this kept on going, until one day when the man, completely lost, seeing that the seed is not sprouting, went to the divine grace and said:
- It is not working!
- And how it can work, said the divine grace, when you dug the seed out at least 3 times a week? You don’t give it time to grow!
- You must invite patience to come with you in this journey that can take a long time.
- Just be patient! Water it, take care of it, but let it grow!
The practice of meditation it is exactly like this seed!
I’ve heard some people telling me that they tried to meditate, but it didn’t work.
Why , I asked them?
Because, just like in this story, there is a very dangerous belief that when we sit in meditation, we stop our mind from thinking or that we will sit and will see only happy thoughts, rainbows, unicorns. Just like this, overnight!
But this is not what meditation is!
Meditation is a practice!
A constant practice of repetition!
A lifetime of practice!
Of simply sitting, relaxed but alert, allowing what is present in that moment, to be! Without the need to change it, grasp it, or hate it!
But since our brains are wired to chase continuously after instant gratification, the so called cheap thrills, it’s hard to develop the practice! It’s challenging to keep on doing something, day after day, and to see no results or barely some results!
But remember that when you were a child and started to crawl and to become curious of walking, you fall, many, many times. Yet, every time, you stood back up and try. Again and agin, until your bones, your muscles, you central nervous system, all of it, was ready to finally start on walking.
You had that patience then, and that resourceful patience it’s still there, inside of you! Sometimes you just need a bigger torch, a light, to see where the patience is hiding.
A meditation teacher, a guide, an instructor, is that torch!
If you want to start a practice of meditation and see your world transformed, I am here to shine the light of wisdom and loving kindness, so that you can find your way back home to patience, stillness and bliss!
Please feel free to contact me should you have questions about the practice of mediation or how we can work together!
May we all experience PEACE!
photo shot at Aro Ha