Mindfulness
Quotes from Bhante Henepola Gunaratana
Be gentle with yourself. Be kind to yourself. You may not be perfect, but you are all you've got to work with. The process of becoming who you will be begins first with the total acceptance of who you are.
~*~
There is a difference between watching the mind and controlling the mind. Watching the mind with a gentle, open attitude allows the mind to settle down and come to rest. Trying to control the mind, or trying to control the way that one's spiritual practice will unfold, just stirs up more agitation and suffering.
~*~
Meditation is running into reality. It does not insulate you from the pain of life. It allows you to delve so deeply into life and all its aspects that you pierce the pain barrier and go beyond suffering.
~*~
Don't cling to anything and don't reject anything. Let come what comes, and accommodate yourself to that, whatever it is. If good mental images arise, that is fine. If bad mental images arise, that is fine, too. Look on all of it as equal, and make yourself comfortable with whatever happens. Don't fight with what you experience, just observe it all mindfully.
~*~
In meditation, don't expect anything. Just sit back and see what happens. Treat the whole thing as an experiment. Take an active interest in the test itself, but don't get distracted by your expectations about the results. For that matter, don't be anxious for any result whatsoever.
---Bhante Henepola Gunaratana---
~*~
There is a difference between watching the mind and controlling the mind. Watching the mind with a gentle, open attitude allows the mind to settle down and come to rest. Trying to control the mind, or trying to control the way that one's spiritual practice will unfold, just stirs up more agitation and suffering.
~*~
Meditation is running into reality. It does not insulate you from the pain of life. It allows you to delve so deeply into life and all its aspects that you pierce the pain barrier and go beyond suffering.
~*~
Don't cling to anything and don't reject anything. Let come what comes, and accommodate yourself to that, whatever it is. If good mental images arise, that is fine. If bad mental images arise, that is fine, too. Look on all of it as equal, and make yourself comfortable with whatever happens. Don't fight with what you experience, just observe it all mindfully.
~*~
In meditation, don't expect anything. Just sit back and see what happens. Treat the whole thing as an experiment. Take an active interest in the test itself, but don't get distracted by your expectations about the results. For that matter, don't be anxious for any result whatsoever.
---Bhante Henepola Gunaratana---
This is a practical manual and guide to Vipassana meditation for meditators at all levels. From answering the basic question “Why Meditate?” through practical considerations like overcoming problems often encountered, to making meditation part of one’s daily life, Bhante G is there with sage advice at every step of the way. The revised and expanded edition has an added chapter on metta, loving friendliness.
Wisdom Publications, Boston. 2002.
Wisdom Publications, Boston. 2002.
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