Of Noticing Things

Today while I was sitting in Nyinthun, I noticed something I'd never seen before. In the small shrine room there are actually two shrines, one on the left and one on the right, what I noticed about them today was that the shrine pedestal to my left was orange while the one to my right is white. Never seen that before, I always thought they were the same colour. Even if someone had swapped the pedestal, I'm not sure I would have paid attention to such a thing, something made me Notice.

Nick talked this week about the moment of noticing. That instant where you realize you've gone somewhere and that you're not focusing on the breath. This has started to happen to me in my everyday life. A few weeks ago, I noticed a church on the road I live on. I haven't been in this place a long time, about 5 months now I think, but I'd never seen this church before. I looked up, and said to myself, wow, where did they get this church from?

Sitting meditation has definitely set the stage for me to wake up to the world around me and actually SEE things, things I never noticed before.

I begin to wonder where that moment of waking up occurs. Like Nick said, you can't tell what happened, one second you're off on your story, the next you realize you're not focusing. Something in our bodies is causing that realization to fire. My theory is that we can't find that moment because it isn't a conscious thought which triggers it; it's part of the hardware of our minds. Sitting meditation seems to wake up that interrupt mechanic and pull us out of our stories.

I'm going to continue to sit and I'll let you guys know what else I manage to notice, and maybe, hopefully, learn more about the way my mind works~

Practice to Path

Shastri Carolyn Krusinski was our guest speaker on Tuesday and I have dedicated much thought to the insightful discussion we had with her last week.

What is a practice? How and when does it become a path? Is it something you decide or does it happen naturally? When do you realize it? Do you even? Why does it become a path? Should it? If there is a path, is there an entrance as in this photo? Is is clearly defined or does it take shape as time goes on? Does a path have an end if the beginning is uncertain? Should it?

I thought about meditation and how it started as my practice. I do not consider my first curious venture into the Shambhala center for Under 30 night as the beginning. Rather, it began when I would constantly ask good friends of mine about what Shambhala means to them since they had been practicing and/or been on the path for a few years already. They always graciously indulged me with their thoughts and experiences. As I realized how deeply my friends had felt and how much they have become more aware, outward, and not-at-all somber, unemotional, or withdrawn in a negative way...and that I held such a vested interest in meditation without having tried it yet...I decided to go to the Shambhala center as soon as I could.

I have been meditating semi-regularly for about 7 months, visited a meditation center during this time, and have been more active in the local Shambhala community. Does that mean I am on the path? Frankly, no. I do not feel as though I have a path yet. I DO know that Shambhala or some form of meditation will always be a strong and vibrant part of my life, but what it will become and what it ultimately means for me I do not know just yet. I have not realized how it will be kept close to my heart and mind in the future. Meditation is not something I believe I will deliberately "use" for a particular gain, goal, or purpose. I know that its purpose will take shape on its own in its own way for me. So it will be a natural, constantly changing path. Where it starts? I have no idea! But I can't wait to find out.

Guest Speaker: Shastri Carolyn Krusinski on Tuesday November 16, 2010

Shastri Carolyn Krusinski (pictured on the right) will be teaching at Under 30 on Tuesday November 16.  Please join us!

Shastri Carolyn Lowery Krusinski began her practice in 1978 where she attended the first Shambhala Training Level I offered in Los Angeles and also met The Vidyadhara Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. As a student of Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, she was Warrior of the Center in Boston and teaches throughout the US. She studies traditional Chinese Daoist Arts along with Shambhala Buddhism to bring ancient wisdom to modern life. She is a business executive and coach. Husband Tom and she just celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. They live in Lincoln, MA with their son Paxton.

Carolyn is one of about sixty teachers who have been appointed to the new role of Shastri.  If you are interested in learning more about the new position, you can read more about it from the article on Shambhala.org: Sakyong creates new teaching and mentoring position in Shambhala

We are meditating all the time

Generally, I don't remember the specifics of our Tuesday night discussions.  However, I wanted to try and remember (without taking notes) so that I could write about it.  So I attempted to use a memory technique for remembering shopping lists that I learned in 3rd grade. (I still remember that shopping list!)

One - Bun: A person meditating inside of a hamburger bun.
We are always meditating.  What does that mean?  Can anyone provide an example of when we are not meditating? 

Two - Shoe: One shoe has the laces pulled tight, the other has them hanging out all over the place
When meditating, we want to be "not too tight, not too lose."  This applies to many other aspects of our lives.


Three - Tree: In third grade, we were supposed to remember to buy eggs.  
Try as I might, the concept we were discussing eludes me.


Four - Door: Fire on both sides of the door trying to get through
Don't fight fire with fire.  Trying to approach problems with aggression and tension does not help improve the tension and aggression already present with the problem.

Five - Hive: Bees swarming in and out of a hive like breathing

Six - Sticks: A sailboat with the mast being a giant stick 
Our lives are like a sailboat.  If we leave the sail down and let the boat drive, we may never get to where we want to go.  But put the sail up and you can aim in a particular direction.

Seven - Heaven: Cream Cheese
Again, I don't remember what it was I wanted to remember. 


Eight - Gate: Virtue and Non-Virtue are both trying to get through a gate.  Virtue has a crown (wisdom) and a heart (courage). Non-Virtue is lazy, busy, and all wrapped up in itself.  It might explode.

Grains of Sand

We had a great turn out at this Tuesday evening’s U30 group. The circle was so full, some of us were literally rubbing knees!

At the beginning of the discussion, our fearless leader, Nick, began by asking us about why so many of us ventured through Boston’s cold slick streets to meditate at the Shambhala center. Really, what brought us there? Some of us wanted to practice with a community. A few mentioned they wanted to share their homemade food with others. There was also a desire to rekindle a strong family connection with Buddhism. Others were searching for relaxation, dealing with anxiety, or were simply curious.

Whatever our motivation for going to U30, it certainly takes some courage. We stop, sit quietly, and meditate in a room full of other people we don’t know. That is rare in our society. By being there we offer our presence and support for others in their practice. Many of us speak up and share our internal realizations and experiences with others. At U30, we apply traditional Shambhala teachings to our own lives. We tell personal stories about everything from work, class, interactions with roommates and partners, misadventures on public transportation, and the battle over the dreaded dish pile in the sink. Whether we can relate to each other’s stories or not, sometimes it just means so much for another person to be heard . We become stronger in our practice and a little less fearful each week by doing so. This is what makes U30 so special and we appreciate all who come to be present, real, and mindful meditators.

During the second part of our discussion, Nick brought up a great metaphor for what our minds tend do during meditation practice. Imagine grains of sand swirling around in a glass of water. You keep twirling your finger in the water to churn up its contents because you want to see what’s in the glass: the different colors, shapes, sizes. So many grains, rocks, and pebbles come into view only to get muddled again. But, if you let it alone, the heavier particles will start to fall to the bottom, followed by the lighter sand and silt. Though it may seem settled, if you look closely there may be shiny flecks of minerals still dancing about in the water. After what seems like such a long time, the water is finally crystal clear. If you look at the sand you can finally see individual pieces. Perhaps there are striated bands of sand distinguished by size or color. Naturally, your mind is that swirling glass of sand not allowing anything to settle. You jump from thought to thought, sometimes without rhyme or reason. Through meditation, we begin to slow down and see our thoughts individually for what they are. In our everyday lives, we begin to notice when we are angry, nervous, excited, sad, or stressed without those emotions churning everything up.

I would like to extend the metaphor even further. We are all grains of sand and silt swirling around in this city going this way and that through the water…never stopping...never having a moment of true clarity. When we start meditating, we become the sparkling grains that move slower in the middle of the chaos, eventually escaping the cloud and settle at the bottom together.

Three Misconceptions about Meditation

This week we were fortunate to welcome back Susan Piver to Under 30 Night as our guest speaker. After opening up a discussion on how our practice is going for all of us (even those who started just 30 minutes before), we talked about:

Three Misconceptions about Meditation:

1. It makes you more peaceful. (It can make you more present and aware of your emotions no matter how positive or negative they appear to be.)
   
2. Your mind stops. (Meditation is 20% focus on your breathing, and 80% openness to what may arise internally and/or externally. Thoughts may come to you or noises may interrupt a silence, but the goal is to recognize them, letting them pass while you return to experiencing your breath.)
   
3. It makes you a better person. (It makes you more of who you already are.)

Many of us start meditating with certain goals or expectations in mind. This will only muddle and obscure the power and effect meditation can have on your life. We eventually learn to let go and see where it takes us.

We also discussed the Three Ways People Deal with Stress:

1. Attack and fight it
2. Try to make peace with it
3. Run away and avoid it

What were YOUR misconceptions about meditation before you started...or even right now? How has your opinion of meditation changed since you started?

How do YOU deal with stress? Are your stress management strategies working? How do you know? Do you think you can deal with it in a different way?

Despite the wind and rain, there were many newcomers this week and I hope you all enjoyed the night as much as I did! Hope to see you again on an upcoming Tuesday night.

Guest Speaker: Dan Hirschberg

On September 21st Dan lead a discussion on Buddhism and Emptiness. He talked about how we all make the mistake of considering ourselves to be Singular, Permanent, and Independent. This mistaken perception leads to suffering, which we can overcome by realizing that none of those things are true. This fundamental philosophy is called no-self, since what we think of as "self" really is just a part of everything; not singular, not permanent, and not independent.

Dan Hirschberg is pursuing a PhD in Tibetan Buddhist studies at Harvard and is a student of meditation master Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche.

Guest Speaker: Susan Piver

Join us next week, Tuesday September 28, for a discussion with guest speaker Susan Piver.  Susan Piver is a Shambhala Teacher and best-selling author.  You can find out more about her and her work at her website http://www.susanpiver.com/

Guest Speaker: Charles Styron

On September 7th we had a guest speaker, Charles Styron, who spoke about love and adversity.

This is what Charles has to say about himself:

I first became a student in 1978, attended Vajradhatu Seminary in 1982 and Kalapa Assembly in 1984, and have been teaching (off and on) since the early 80's. I'm a clinical psychologist in private practice as well as a former architect and am a founding board member of The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy. My wife, Nancy, is a practitioner and a psychologist, and we have a 15 1/2 year-old daughter, Charlotte, who has attended numerous dharma programs for teens. Some of my abiding interests are classical piano music, hiking in the mountains, NASCAR, gardening vegetables, reading on a wide range of subjects, and making collages.

Swing Low

In the spirit of this week's discussion of what makes a community, how we find our place within communities, and how we contribute to them, I had encouraged everyone to go check out the installation of this GIANT HAMMOCK in the Rose Kennedy Greenway between Atlantic Ave and Congress St (near South Station). Some of us spoke up about the lack of connection or interaction with our fellow man in today's society. We are less open, energy is bound up inside us...we can feel so lonely surrounded by people. At school, at work, on the bus, along the sidewalk...I feel as though there are few opportunities that really bring us together in creative and curious ways. Plus, I think we could all appreciate a mid-afternoon nap in the late-summer sun while the cool breeze soothes our tense muscles and eases our mind as we sway and sway...
So get down there to literally rub shoulders with strangers before the permit expires on September 4th!

PS- The 4,278 feet of rope is made from recycled bottles!!!