When swimming in a creek a few weeks ago with friends we noticed something subtle yet fascinating. The surface water felt cool and fresh, yet when we dipped our hands deeper, the water became warmer & slightly salty, as if we had crossed an invisible boundary within the same body of water.
Read More“Of course, you can’t force your mind to be silent. That would be like trying to smooth ripples in water with a flatiron. Water becomes clear and calm only when left alone.” - Alan Watts
There is something deeply comforting in this image, because so much of modern life trains us to manage, improve, and optimise every aspect of our experience, including the movements of the mind. We subtly approach meditation with the same habit, assuming that calm will arrive through effort, discipline, or control. Yet the metaphor of water reminds us that clarity is revealed through allowing.
Read MoreMeditation Is Not Hard
One of the biggest myths about meditation is that it’s hard. That you have to concentrate, control your thoughts, or ‘empty the mind.’ Not true. In Vedic meditation, we don’t fight the mind—we work with it. No effort, no struggle. You’re given a mantra, a specific sound, and that’s what does the heavy lifting. It naturally guides your mind into a state of deep rest. No forcing, no trying—just an easy, automatic process.
Read MoreReleasing the clenched fist
Only four or so decades ago, it was popular for wealthy travellers to leave India with a pet monkey. Monkey catchers would dig a small pit, pop in some fruits and nuts and covered it with a heavy slab that had a tiny hole, big enough to fit a monkey’s arm. The monkey would come along, stick their hand in, grasp a delicious snack only to realise that their fist would not fit through the tiny hole. In would swoop the monkey catcher and voila! Another monkey to be sold. Had the monkey simply let go of the food before the monkey catcher swooped in, it would be free.
Read MoreLockdown has brought about another test of our resilience. Does the uncertainty of it all makes us question how little we control externally or, is it highlighting our capacity to change and expand our internal narrative and personal agency?
Is your locus of control focused externally, believing that everything is happening to you? Do you often internalise things as devastating, shocking and/or have feelings of helplessness?
Or is your locus of control focused internally, embracing challenges as opportunities for growth and understanding your power in making things happen?
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