Since most mental activity is not real thinking, it is the same with most talking not being real communication. My best relationship was one in which we were mostly silent together. Too many words expressed can be like shovels digging a hole in which to bury a relationship. Mental masturbation can become word masturbation which can build up into verbal abuse - offensive and reactive defensiveness,
My most creative thoughts have popped up in meditation and in the mindfulness stage created by meditation and other creative pursuits such as art and crafts. So I recommend, instead of talking it out, to mutually do silent activities either together or by oneself. Giving space is a natural outcome of the "silent times."
Solitude is a joyous thing. It affords us the opportunity to be free of the outer distractions that prevent our focus on the universe within. Time and time again we think that we must actively seek peace when in reality, all we need to do is be alone and quiet our minds to allow an experience of peace. It is within us all the time and all we just need to make the choice to accept it. It is our source and we are always connected to that source. All we have to do is get out of our own way and experience it. ~Dean A. Banks, D.D.
Dear Jeanne,
I am pleased to let you know how glad I am that Jeanne & I will be doing a ten dayer of silence and meditation in August. Can you let us know how Vipassana Meditation has helped your relationship with your husband?
Hello Ron,
We would no longer have a relationship... were it not for vipassana. Too much damage was done... without the need for a total change. Vipassana provided the forum for that necessary change. It also has made everything more interesting... including our relationship.
I like your thoughts about space and silence... and wholly agree about the benefits of silence and space.
Best,
Jeanne
ni Zucchini May 17 at 6:28pm Report
Hi Jeanne,
That is wonderful! ...your 1st vipassana course. I was so nervous when I did my 1st... I think I somehow sensed that something very powerful was about to happen to me... but I really didn't have anything to compare it to.
Both HubB and I said after we broke silence on day 10, that this is what we had been looking for all our lives. We were in our late 40's and had basically given up the quest... believing that it really was just 'chop wood, carry water'... and white knuckle it till the end.
We were reborn. When I read the articles that state that mindfulness meditation actually changes the brain... I believe it. The experiences I've had since I've become a vipassana practitioner have been amazing. I'd always had 'paranormal' stuff in my life... but the whole tone and flavor changed. No longer was I plagued by darker forces, worries, fears... and even psychosomatic pain that had been with me for years.
The experience of doing ten days is like a formula that has been refined over years of many meditators trying different ways, until it was found to be the most optimal experience for a beginner. It is an amazing experience... one that I am thrilled to observe and share with others who complete a course. Some experienced practitioners don't like to do courses with new students... but I love to hear their revelations on day 10 - the day we break silence. I also like the retreats with only experienced meditators - because it is so concentrated immediately... whereas it takes days with the new students... they are so agitated - it is such a difficult and demanding experience. Everyone says its the hardest thing they've ever done... and only 10% of of ppl who've done a course, do a second. Congrats to Capt Ron for going again - this time as an 'old student.'
I look forward to hearing about your revelations,Jeanne .
Scarcely Even the Needs for Words:
There is but One Life, One Body of Love, and all are part of it, one Perfect Being. As I look at Nature I see how every part melts into another in great transmutation-one part could not exist without the others. In human nature the fusion of love and thought makes us One. In the true meeting of hearts and minds there is scarcely even the needs for words. I know that in the One Mind there cannot be misunderstanding, in the One Love all are included. Ernest Holmes
And when there are words: "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord..." -Psalm 19:24
And when one acts:
Karma is not "fate". Fate is something out of our control - our "preordained decree of providence." Karma literally means "action". Our own actions are the causes of whatever we experience - "cause and effect."
Everything we encounter in life is the result of our own actions. Consequently we can become master of our fate by becoming master of our own actions. Each of us is responsible for the actions that give rise to our suffering. Each of us has the means to end the suffering in our actions. The Buddha said:
You are your own master,
You make your own future.
There are three types of actions - physical, vocal & mental. According to Buddha's "Dharmma" - the law of nature, the mental is the most important. Both physical and vocal assume totally different significance according to the intention with which it is done.
Physical action could be as opposite as a surgeon cutting with great compassion to a murderer cutting out of hatred. Vocal action could be as opposite as verbal abuse done out of hatred to words used to express love. It is the intention of our actions that determine the result.
It is the mental intentions of our actions which is the real karma, the cause which will give results in future. Understanding this truth the Buddha announced,
Mind precedes all phenomena,
mind matters most, everything is mind-made.
If with an impure mind
you speak or act,
then suffering follows you
as the cartwheel follows the foot of the draft animal.
If with a pure mind
you speak or act,
then happiness follows you
as a shadow that never departs.
(Paraphrased from William Harts: THE ART OF LIVING, VIPASSANA MEDITATION as taught by S.N. GOENKA)
"Wakan Tanka, Great Mystery, teach me how to trust my heart, my mind, my intuition, my inner knowing, the senses of my body, the blessings of my spirit. Teach me to trust these things so that I may enter my Sacred Space and love beyond my fear, and thus Walk in balance with the passing of each glorious Sun." - Lakota Prayer
Expressing the Love Song of Joy:
I tune out all dull, negative ideas, and tune in with the Sunshine of Life, with brightness and laughter, with the joyous Presence which is Life Itself.
I know that all the form around me is the Garment of God. I know that the Presence of that is manifested in my life & mind is God expressing Itself within the Garment of Form. As I feel this Presence more & more I hear the Song of Joy deep within. Always when I hear the song of Life pouring through my consciousness. I have only to listen, for it is always there.
With this knowledge, this assurance that the Loving Presence is always (ALL WAYS) here-"closer to me than my very breath, nearer than my hands and feet"-I have nothing to fear. I feel this loving protection around me, and I know that it is a bulwark of strength. I know that It is not only a Song of Joy, but a Song of Love and Protection.
Knowing this, that I am the very Essence of God, Joy wells up within my heart, and Life sings through me in radiant ecstasy. Ernest Holmes (paraphrased)
"Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord..." -Psalm 19:24
"In the midst of movement & chaos, keep stillness inside of you." ~Deepak Chopra~
Are you two independent people together or co-dependent?
Then Almitra spoke again and said, And what of Marriage, master?
Then he answered saying:
You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness,
And let the winds of heavens dance between you.
Love one anothe, but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores
of your souls.
Fill each others cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not
from the same piece.
Sing and dance together, and be joyous,
And let each one of you be alone.
Even as the strings of a lute are alone
though they quiver with the same music.
Give your hearts, but not into each other's
keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain
your hearts.
And stand together, yet not too near
together.
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow
in each other's shadow.
Kahil Gibran - THE PROPHET
“The law of attraction is this: You don’t attract what you want. You attract what you are. You have to just be. You have to let go. You have to allow. You have to be free & make this your consciousness. Basically, what you would see is a frequency (of energy) that manifests itself through the process of giving, of allowing, of offering & of serving. It asks nothing back.” ~Dr. Wayne Dyer
No comments:
Post a Comment