Download Learning by Doing: Simple and Effective Lessons I Learned When Meditating with Monks in Thailand AudioBook Free
"How many hours do you meditate?" the monk asks Gustav. "Five hours. I am finding yoga boring," he confesses. "Accept, accept," the monk says him. I cannot believe he distributed this with the professor. It creates me laugh. I appreciate his credibility. I am somewhat jealous because I don't believe I would ever have the audacity to confess something similar to that. At exactly the same time, I don't find the mediation practice boring. Actually, I think it is anything but boring. It really is challenging to be seated with myself. To deal with my very own insecurities. Never to think. Never to dream. This is the greatest challenge of most. "How is your yoga?" the monk asks me. "It was difficult today. I came across myself worrying about my family today at mediation," I confess. "Have you any idea about the non-self?" he asks. Is that a trick question? I pause to think. He doesn't wait for me to answer. "Non-self is about thinking and worrying about something or someone apart from yourself. You have no control over others or what happens outside of yourself, so it is best if you don't give attention to non-self." He is so right. I cannot control anything outside of myself. Not others' behaviors or thoughts. All I've control over is myself. "Impermanence means things are always changing," he proceeds. "We should allow it. We lose delight when we be concerned about non-self, or dharma. Have you any idea Buddha?" he asks. I am baffled by his question. Do I know Buddha? Not privately! I look at the many Buddha statues prearranged next to him. "Dharma is something all humans have. Dharma is when we have goals or are planning of the things we cannot do. It makes us lose vision of the present point in time. We lose delight. Happiness is now," he proceeds.
