On Monday, Marie will facilitate. She shares:
As I was buffeted about by the wild winds of this week's storm, I noticed how this extreme weather helped to "bring me home". On Friday, I spent several hours in a technology shop helping my mother choose a computer. When we emerged from the depths of the mall, the driving rain felt wonderful - not exactly comfortable - but wonderful nonetheless. Why? Because it brought my mind back to my body. It woke up my senses, which, in turn, helped to connect my body and my mind (interestingly, the experience of being insulated inside a mall for hours, coupled with my intense focus on "getting the job done, and done well" had short circuited this connection.) While we'd had a "successful" shopping trip, in terms of the outcome, we were both completely fried. Later, I wondered: if I had remembered to come back to my breath whilst I was inside the shop, would I have felt as depleted?
"In breathing and sitting, there is no breather or sitter. There is just the breathing, there is just the sitting." "When you say 'The wind blows', it is very funny. If it does not blow, how can it be the wind? It is like saying 'The rain is raining.' If it is not raining, how can it be rain? The same is true for thinking. The thinker and the thought-they are not separate things; they are one."
(Dharma Talk by Thich Nhat Hanh in Estes Park, August 2011)
Thay tells us, your "breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts. Whenever your mind becomes scattered, use your breath as the means to take hold of your mind again." I have found this to be true, and my practice helps me to remember to use my breath as an anchor and to strengthen this connection. While this usually works when I'm meditating and when I notice that I'm agitated/delighted, I can lose this connection when my critical thinking fires up. Lying in bed that night, listening to the wind and rain, I realized that the sounds of nature are, for me, another bell of mindfulness: they help me to come back to my breath and create a bridge between my body and my mind.
What brings your mind home to your body? How has this changed over time?Please join us on Monday night, when we will share our experiences and learn from each other:
What connects our minds with our bodies?
When and how do we access this and how does it feel?
In the interim, you might enjoy this guided meditation on bringing our minds and bodies together as one:
Warmly,
Marie
Please note that this week it is a Newcomers Week.