Being equanimous in the midst of small things: a balanced way with the small things at first.
Training the mind to be equanimous in the face of the 8 worldly winds...we can train the mind.
The Zen farmer story: --> Bad luck, Good luck? who knows? said the farmer
Foundation for equanimity is 'wisdom'...seeing what causes clinging...letting go of clinging...then we will naturally find ease...we will find our way to equanimity, find our way to ease
3 marks of existence: anicca, impermanence, dukkha: unsatisfactoriness, and anatta: non-self
Impermanence - all conditions of our lives come and go..empires come and go
- Seeing these truths on personal, and celestial levels...helps bring us to Equanimity
- Holding on to things, we suffer...nothing can be held on to. nothing can provide 'satisfactoriness'
- don't cling ...if so, we suffer. like water we can't hold on to anything
- we can find ease knowing that everything comes and goes.
- enjoy life without clinging.. 'welcoming the guests'... no matter the guest
- Blake's 'Eternity' poem ...he who binds to himself as a joy as it flies, does the winged life destroy, but he who kisses the joy as it flies lives in eternity's sunrise.
- Enjoy what we can ...being in a fluid relationship with life...we can be happy. amidst the ups and downs.
- Anicca: we are always changing...the way we live our lives is always changing.
Near enemy of lovingkindness: is attachment, love w/ a clinging quality
Near enemy of Equanimity: is indifference...a pushing away of suffering, of life.. aka 'spiritual bypassing' ..avoiding painful feelings, wounds we haven't addressed. we can use meditation as a route to spiritual bypassing.
** We will enjoy not a deep calm from meditation if we are not opening to our suffering. The invitation is to let everything in ** ...Equanimity is fully opening to our experience. Expand the window of tolerance....opening to all our experience but not clinging.
TS Eliott: 'Ash Wednesday': Teach us to care and not to care, teach us to sit still. ie,'Not caring' means to find a way to process our experience without the holding, the clinging.
Resting in the middleness, seeing the balance...the successes, the failures. all 8 winds will arise in our minds. How do I deal w/ the ups and downs...Can I find peace in the midst of it all? This is a quality I can devleop. We can train our minds in this way. It's not a 'one and done' ...we have to practice.
PRACTICE with whatever is present, s/ judgement, w/ acceptance. Including pain, physical
Focus our attention on equanimity: breathing in, calming the body, breathing out, calming the mind...may I be balanced, may I be at peace. Inviting that quality of peace of calm of steadiness, of balance...amidst the ups/downs, arising/passing of everything...emotions, breath, thoughts all come and go. all in its own time...let it come, let it be, let it go. when it's ready to go.
Wumen-
10,000 flowers in Spring
Ten thousand flowers in Spring,
the Moon in autumn
English version by Stephen Mitchell
Original Language Chinese
Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn,
a cool breeze in summer, snow in winter.
If your mind isn't clouded by unnecessary things,
this is the best season of your life.
