We can only fully embrace peace and freedom when we stop trying to make the surface of the Ocean of Consciousness calm. Only then can we accept that the very nature of the Ocean is change. Meditation exposes waves of distractions; it is how we perceive or interpret them that changes.
Meditation is not Supposed to be Peaceful!
by Keshav | Jul 2, 2020 | Community Insights | 11 comments
Thanks for noticing Diane. The whole site was rewritten more than a year ago.
I just noticed you have a newer Home page write up. I love it.
Meditation is quite a fluid blessing, particularly if I make room for anxiety and doubt to just be.
Betty and Carol – that sure sounds like the "island of safety." The hypothesis of eternal heaven or hell gives me the chills. Boredom is an apt description for the feel of being inflicted by such familiar mental territory.
With regard to birth and death, the idea of existence followed by everlasting nonexistence is silly and nonsensical.
Carol: My main concern about “heaven” has always been that it would become boring! And learning on this planet is expedited by the twists and turns we face, things we label good and bad. Suffering gives us incentive to learn. You could learn intellectually in that “paradise,” but the true learning experience is here. Whenever I question why one would incarnate the answer always comes back. Boredom.
Frank Herbert’s book Dune (new movie coming out this year, maybe) has many themes, but the one driving the entire series is that change is life. The main character, an emperor of the universe, tries to prove it to humanity by “inflicting” 10,000 years of peace and no change. Not only was it not what everyone hoped it would be, but humanity rises in rebellion to reclaim freedom. My experience has been that change can be exciting and interesting. And, since change is inevitable, with acceptance comes peace.
I have been watching myself “Doing” the inside job. It’s as simple as changing a perspective yet why do I torment myself with Wrong view when all that is necessary is to simply reconnect with my heart. Open my heart and the works shifts into awareness and peace.
I noticed that my upper teeth shifting (changing) all on their own after having had to replace two veneers with crowns in the last year and a half. It became very upsetting to me (vanity I guess…..oh well, such as it is) so when it aggravated me to the point of action I went to my new dentist and he said that it could be fixed with aligners – a pretty expensive proposition. There didn't seem to be any choice in the matter if I wanted my teeth to not completely shift into utter ridiculousness, And to not have to keep having new head shots done because of a changing smile.
So I invested and have had the aligner in for just one day so far and I can see and feel them gradually getting back to normal. It is worth it for me. And I am reminded what Keshav has said in the past "we all have what we value." Have a happy and healthy Independence Day. Love you all.
Sometimes I choose (not sure why) to ride the waves in resistance to what is, or more importantly what I am perceiving is, all the time knowing that peace is always here and available. The more I hold on to resistance, the choppier it gets. But sooner or later I open to the invitation to relax and enjoy the ride, to just relax into the moment and enjoy it…this “peace that passeth understanding.” No understanding of anything necessary.
Last night I noticed agitation came up followed by mind saying , “ I like the way this feels”. By enjoying the wave that was passing by, mind was unintentionally providing space to realize peace never disappeared. My interpretation is the only thing that seems to prevent peace and fluidity from being the constant.
I have found that the desire to be calm or experience peace is the very thing that blocks the experience from occurring. Recognizing and accepting that one of the few constants, if not the only constant, in this physical world is that change is constant is what opens the gateway to meditation for me. Embracing change allows the layers of thought, “the waves of distractions” to arise without interpretative resistance. Without putting up a fight against them with a shield of perception, I notice that the ocean does what an ocean does and it is of no matter. Riding the waves as the waves.