All Good Things Come From Stillness
By Joseph Cornell
Stillness Intensifies Perception
The Buddhist monk, Godo Nakanishi, once spent several days sitting quietly on a snow-covered mountain. The birds living there noticed him, but fear of humans kept them a safe distance away.
As the monk continued to meditate, he became more and more absorbed in the inner silence. Gradually, because of the wonderful peace Godo emanated, the wild birds lost their fear and accepted his presence. A few birds, apparently attracted to the serene monk, landed and perched on his motionless body.
The greater one’s calmness, the greater the harmony one feels with his environment.
As you read the following visualization, notice how calmness intensifies perception. Read each paragraph, then close your eyes and see its imagery in your mind:
When the lake was disturbed by restless winds, it couldn’t reflect the mountains clearly. When the lake became calm, however, mountains, rocks, trees, and sky were perfectly mirrored on the lake’s surface.
So too does the human mind, when perfectly calm, flawlessly reflect one’s higher reality.
The Wandering Mind
Unfortunately, the human is seldom quiet. Psychologists have said that people generate about three hundred self-talk thoughts a minute.
Two Harvard researchers, Matthew A. Killingsworth and Daniel T. Gilbert, in 2010 discovered that 47 percent of the time adults think about something other than what they’re doing.
I once demonstrated this phenomenon to a group of twenty-five educators in Canberra, Australia. I asked each one to focus on a beautiful tree as long as he was able to, and to raise his hand when his attention wandered from the tree to other thoughts.
After six seconds, every hand was raised. The educators were amazed to see how restless their minds were.
When the mind wanders away from the present moment, one cannot expect to feel the deep rapport he desires with other people or with nature.
A Lake Is Like the Mind
A saint once asked his disciple to meditate whenever he saw an expanse of water so that he would be reminded of the vastness of his soul.
To practice A Lake Is Like the Mind exercise, find a tranquil pool of water in a stream or pond. The pool should ideally be small enough to give you a feeling of intimacy and serenity.
The pool of water should be at least eight inches deep. Collect six stones each about the size of a duck’s egg. If the pool is tiny, gather proportionally smaller stones.
A lake surface—like the human mind—is always changing. Sometimes the lake is calm and serene; other times a breeze, falling leaf, or splashing fish might ruffle its surface. In every case, the lake’s placidity is disturbed by something external to itself.
The mind is strengthened by meditation so that passing phenomena don’t disturb it, just as the lake’s deeper water remains unruffled no matter what happens on the surface.
To begin the exercise, find a comfortable place to sit that overlooks the water. Place your six stones beside you and gaze at the water, letting its placidity calm you. Do your best to stay in the present moment.
Every time you notice you’ve become distracted and are no longer grounded in the here and now, cast a stone in the water.
Carefully observe each stone’s splash and the ensuing ripples spreading outward—how the water (representing your mind) and no longer mirror-like.
Note the impact inattentive thoughts have on one’s awareness.
It is normal to have thoughts during meditation. The trick is to let the thoughts pass by without seeing and embellishing them.
When the stone’s ripples start to dissipate, feel yourself letting go of all thoughts, and delight in the joyful serenity that comes with living in the present.
Keep gazing at the water until you have thrown all the stones.
Peace and awareness require stillness of mind, just as the surface of a lake must be completely calm to perfectly reflect the sky. Only in stillness can you discover the hidden depths of your spiritual nature.
Excerpted from The Sky and Earth Touched Me by Joseph Bharat Cornell. To purchase The Sky and Earth Touched Me, please click here:
https://www.crystalclarity.com/product.php?code=BTSETM
By Joseph Cornell
Stillness Intensifies Perception
The Buddhist monk, Godo Nakanishi, once spent several days sitting quietly on a snow-covered mountain. The birds living there noticed him, but fear of humans kept them a safe distance away.
As the monk continued to meditate, he became more and more absorbed in the inner silence. Gradually, because of the wonderful peace Godo emanated, the wild birds lost their fear and accepted his presence. A few birds, apparently attracted to the serene monk, landed and perched on his motionless body.
The greater one’s calmness, the greater the harmony one feels with his environment.
As you read the following visualization, notice how calmness intensifies perception. Read each paragraph, then close your eyes and see its imagery in your mind:
- Imagine your mind as a pristine lake—encircled by mountains. See how the lake’s surface reflects its surrounding environment—the mountains, trees, and sky.
- Now picture your thoughts as restless winds that ripple the lake’s surface. These winds prevent you from seeing a clear reflection of the mountains.
- As your thoughts slow down and the breezes cease—once again you see the image of the mountains reflected perfectly in the lake of your mind.
When the lake was disturbed by restless winds, it couldn’t reflect the mountains clearly. When the lake became calm, however, mountains, rocks, trees, and sky were perfectly mirrored on the lake’s surface.
So too does the human mind, when perfectly calm, flawlessly reflect one’s higher reality.
The Wandering Mind
Unfortunately, the human is seldom quiet. Psychologists have said that people generate about three hundred self-talk thoughts a minute.
Two Harvard researchers, Matthew A. Killingsworth and Daniel T. Gilbert, in 2010 discovered that 47 percent of the time adults think about something other than what they’re doing.
I once demonstrated this phenomenon to a group of twenty-five educators in Canberra, Australia. I asked each one to focus on a beautiful tree as long as he was able to, and to raise his hand when his attention wandered from the tree to other thoughts.
After six seconds, every hand was raised. The educators were amazed to see how restless their minds were.
When the mind wanders away from the present moment, one cannot expect to feel the deep rapport he desires with other people or with nature.
A Lake Is Like the Mind
A saint once asked his disciple to meditate whenever he saw an expanse of water so that he would be reminded of the vastness of his soul.
To practice A Lake Is Like the Mind exercise, find a tranquil pool of water in a stream or pond. The pool should ideally be small enough to give you a feeling of intimacy and serenity.
The pool of water should be at least eight inches deep. Collect six stones each about the size of a duck’s egg. If the pool is tiny, gather proportionally smaller stones.
A lake surface—like the human mind—is always changing. Sometimes the lake is calm and serene; other times a breeze, falling leaf, or splashing fish might ruffle its surface. In every case, the lake’s placidity is disturbed by something external to itself.
The mind is strengthened by meditation so that passing phenomena don’t disturb it, just as the lake’s deeper water remains unruffled no matter what happens on the surface.
To begin the exercise, find a comfortable place to sit that overlooks the water. Place your six stones beside you and gaze at the water, letting its placidity calm you. Do your best to stay in the present moment.
Every time you notice you’ve become distracted and are no longer grounded in the here and now, cast a stone in the water.
Carefully observe each stone’s splash and the ensuing ripples spreading outward—how the water (representing your mind) and no longer mirror-like.
Note the impact inattentive thoughts have on one’s awareness.
It is normal to have thoughts during meditation. The trick is to let the thoughts pass by without seeing and embellishing them.
When the stone’s ripples start to dissipate, feel yourself letting go of all thoughts, and delight in the joyful serenity that comes with living in the present.
Keep gazing at the water until you have thrown all the stones.
Peace and awareness require stillness of mind, just as the surface of a lake must be completely calm to perfectly reflect the sky. Only in stillness can you discover the hidden depths of your spiritual nature.
Excerpted from The Sky and Earth Touched Me by Joseph Bharat Cornell. To purchase The Sky and Earth Touched Me, please click here:
https://www.crystalclarity.com/product.php?code=BTSETM
NEW BOOK by Joseph Cornell
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