Discipline

Santa Monica

Awakening first requires intention.  We start by having a desire for a different way of living, a different way of being.  We are dissatisfied with our life circumstances.  We believe there must be something more.  Perhaps we have experienced glimpses of a more peaceful and connected way of life.  We yearn for more.

Once we have the intention to awaken, we need to know how to do so.  There are infinite available tools to awaken:  books, websites, teachers, nature itself.  If we ask, all of the necessary tools will be presented to us.  Once we ask, the response will be instantaneous.  All we have to do is be open to the answers.  They may come in unexpected and surprising ways.  Best not to have any expectations.

Discipline does not seem like a necessary trait for awakening.  However, the pull of unconscious thinking and shared belief systems is extremely strong.  Without the discipline to use the available tools and shift our awareness in every moment from thought to presence, we are lost.

We also need courage.  It takes courage to examine deeply buried thoughts, and to surrender our beliefs.  We may become estranged from family members, lose friends, and be ostracized by the groups who we no longer share belief systems with.

Intention, tools, courage, discipline.  Awakening can happen in a flash of insight or take a lifetime.  It is, of course, up to us.  If we embrace the uncertainty and mystery of Life with an open heart, this very moment can be a new beginning.  We could live with passion and adventure, and fulfill our life's purpose.

Let's have the discipline to stay in Presence.

Mindfulness Part 2

Coromandel, New Zealand

Every moment we are presented with a choice.  We can act, think and believe as we have in the past.  No judgment.  If we are happy with our lives, we can proceed in the same manner.

However, if we are dissatisfied with how things are, or believe that life can offer us so much more, we can shift our attention away from unconscious thinking and bring it to the activity that we are currently engaged in.

We can feel the ground beneath our feet as we walk, listening to the sound of the wind in the trees.  We can truly listen to what our beloved is saying to us without judgment or agenda.  We can hear the sound of children playing and feel the cool breeze on our face.  We can go deep within and touch the hand of God.

Let's be mindful of everything we do.

Mindfulness

Alpacas, New Zealand

If our attention is on the past or future, we are obviously not paying attention to what we are doing in the present.  It is like we are zombies, spaced out and acting in accordance with our programming.  We are conditioned from birth and our conditioning continues in the present.  We are barely alive.

Life can be a beautiful unfolding, moving from one miracle to the next if only we allow it to.  All that we have to do is put our attention on what we are doing.  If we are walking, let's walk.  If we are talking, let's talk.  If we are listening, let's listen.  If we are being, let's be.

We can shift our attention away from our compulsive thinking and into the present by being aware of our senses.  When we wash our hands, are we feeling the cool water flow over our skin or are we thinking about things in the past or the future?  When we are listening to a friend, are we really hearing him or her or are we thinking about what we want to say?  When we look at a tree or a bird, do we even see it?

It is not meditating.  It is paying attention to what we are doing: walking, seeing, breathing, feeling.  It is not passive.  It is allowing life to be just as it is.  It will unfold for us in ways beyond what we can imagine.  Life becomes the greatest adventure we can contemplate.  All that we have to do is allow it to.

Let's live mindfully.

Peace

Kamakura, Japan

We desperately yearn for peace in our lives, but we will not take the simple steps necessary to obtain it.

It is as if we were lying in an orchard, yet were starving because we cannot see all the food around us.  We are often agitated, angry, panicked, lost, anxious, envious, and frustrated.  We are at peace rarely, and it is always short-lived.  We go through our lives like programmed zombies, not knowing that there is a better way to live.  It is unconscious thought which causes our agitated states of mind.

We can be peaceful in an instant.  This very instant, if we choose.  All it takes is our intention and a choice.  Right now we can turn our awareness (i.e., our attention without judgment) away from thought and toward the present moment.  In the state of being, our peace resides.  It only takes a moment.

Let's choose peace now.

Gratitude

Waiheke Island, New Zealand 

Gratitude is more than the key to abundance.  It is the key to a life of peace and harmony.

If we believe that life is a series of random events, it will appear as if we are the victims of random acts of good or bad fortune.  Worse, if we believe that life is out to get us and constantly puts obstacles in our way, we will experience a life of hardship and misery.

If we are grateful for everything that occurs, and treat everything as if it was a gift, designed specifically to enhance our fulfillment and awakening, we will experience grace and mystery, and miracles will begin to permeate our lives.  The more gratitude we feel, the more miracles we will experience.

Let's be grateful.

Faith

Hole in the Rock, Bay of Islands, New Zealand

It can be frightening to leave behind everything that we believe and who we think we are to bring our awareness to the Great Unknown.  What's the worst that could happen?  Our belief systems will still be waiting for us if we wish to return.

The worst thing is that we may be forced to face painful unacknowledged thoughts.  We pushed them down intentionally or unintentionally deep into our subconscious so we did not have to face them.  Despite our intentions, our unacknowledged thoughts wreak havoc on our lives and influence everything we think, do or say.

It takes courage to look at our thoughts as they arise in our consciousness.  When we start peeling back the layers of our thoughts and beliefs, we are often left with the most frightening core belief:  that we are unloved and unloveable.  This is the biggest lie of all.

Within us is a love beyond which we can imagine.  It takes faith and courage to know that when we jump off the cliff, we will not fall into the abyss, but into the waiting arms of pure Love, Joy and Peace.

Let's have the courage and faith to face the Great Mystery.  Let's turn our attention from thought to presence.

Freedom

Coromandel, New Zealand

It seems obvious.  If we have a choice between freedom and prison, of course we would choose freedom.  However, we seldom do.

The reason why we do not choose freedom is because we do not believe that we have a choice.  We believe that we are who we think we are.  We believe our thoughts are true.  We believe our thoughts define who we are.  We are not our thoughts and we can opt for freedom at any moment, even this one.

How can I be so sure that we have a choice?  Can I prove it?  Yes I can.  Let's bring our attention to the present moment for the next ten seconds.

Did we have a glimpse of freedom?

We can have peace and freedom always because it is our natural state of being.  All that we have to do is to turn our attention away from unconscious thinking and towards the present moment.  Every moment is a new opportunity to be free.

Turning away from thought can be frightening because it is all we know.  However, we are not alone.  The moment we turn our attention in the direction of Freedom, Freedom will turn in our direction.  When we stretch out our hand in innocence, a hand will be there to hold us.

Let's choose freedom.