Tips on Practice During These Troubling Times
Some people are religious, and I am sure turn to those sources for support and hope. Others are spiritual, and I hope also pursue those sources for emotional stability and closeness to the “their” divine. Other people may be Agnostic or Atheist; I am certain such people also find ways to cope and move on during these very bad times. Let’s take a moment to examine some aspects of using religious belief to deal with “the terrible.” We will end with brief sage advice from Pema Chodron on how to turn your world around.
Religion – Buddhism and Others
Much of this post is based on the work of Jack Miles. Miles is a Pulitzer Prize winner and a religious scholar. Personal understanding of what religion means is at the core of differential practices. We recognize that religion is separate from the typical activities and beliefs of secular experience. In the ancient past, however, such separation between religion and secular life was far less clear; in fact in those times religion entered many aspects of secularism as a norm. In the end, of course, what matters is what is helpful to the individual person. The reinforcement of feeling better is a powerful motivator. So, religious or not it may be important for you to at least visit your spiritual or religious self to find “the way.” Remain there a while until you obtain some of what you need. I am sure your deep and personal beliefs about the Divine will help you in one way of another. Or, perhaps, you simply need more support for the Self and its many adventures.
Now let us consider a few thoughts from Pema Chodron, one of the most popular world leaders in contemporary Buddhism. In this post I will refer to specific steps she recommends (without much detail). If you want to learn more read one of her many books or refer to Prajna/Shambhala publications on this topic. First, for positive emotional transformation to occur we need to know and understand to some degree what our emotions and related experiences are. Furthermore, we need to learn through regular practice how to remain there and not escape from the suffering and pain. Humans desire happiness and dread suffering; however, we will experience both in our lives. There is no escape from suffering, and sometimes
happiness may require some mindful effort and skillful means. Second, we must discover, learn about, and use various tools and processes to engage our emotional lives successfully without increasing fearfulness. This is where daily meditation practice may come in. It is when we have the courage to engage in meditation dealing with our pain an suffering that new, important insights may occur. It also may make us more brave. Third, since bravery and courage are required to do deep work on your emotional realities, we need to remain motivated for the path and our struggles on it. This is very important when we engage in meditation about our most serious personal suffering. If we are serious about our practice, and we continue to do it regardless of the many challenges that exist, then we may experience emotional transformation and positive changes in our mind, body, life. Here is where our spiritual practices may blossom.
For more information refer to Jack Miles book, Religion as We Know It: An Origin Story. See also Pema Chodron’s online teachings, Turn Your World Around. This is a Prajna/Shambhala Publication.
Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC
From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont and the Home of The Monkton Sangha
Author of Mindful Happiness
The Lotus Sutra is one of the most important and sacred of Buddhist sutras. It is often considered a summary of The Buddha’s teaching, presented many years after he began to teach and share his experiences. The version considered here is the Kumarajiva translation, as translated by B. Watson; it may also be known as The Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law. I will not present the many core teaching noted in this sutra; instead I will focus on the end, about How to Practice Meditation. Since this is such an important sutra, you are strongly encouraged to look into the vast content in it on your own. One important thing I will note is that in this sutra The Buddha notes a unified, single path to enlightenment. In the past he noted that monastic practices, forest practices, and bodhisattva practices all held potential for all people to achieve enlightenment or awakening. Experts suspect that The Buddha taught this sutra in the 6th to 5th century BCE. Here, however, he emphasizes the bodhisattva path as the most important single path. Let us move now into the meditation instructions.
authentic entities outside/inside the self. It is more likely that personal experience has conditioned the person to understand these variable processes as quite serious and sometimes dangerous. To maintain a clear boundary, this post is not presenting a way to treat people suffering from any form of identity disorder; rather, this post offer some ideas about how one might go about becoming healthier via less targeted clinical interventions. The remaining part of the post will offer comments and suggestions for personal consideration of the reader. Most content deals with realistic natural phenomena in life. I hope I am making myself clear here. I hope you find the content helpful.
suggest it may be equally effective in all psychological pain. In neuroscience theory yoga nidra may reset your central nervous system, improve coping capacity, and open doorways to spiritual development. In the following yoga nidra meditation I have integrated my own yoga nidra practices with the iRest method presented by 
that when we die the essence but not the ego lives on into new experiences. Karma and re-birth are givens in this spiritual view. Our tissue and bones, all our atoms and molecules of body-mind decompose. Eventually we return to the earth as elements, carbon dioxide, and water. The mind is purely a biologically (bio-chemical) function of existence, of being in this world. It cannot be permanent, so neither can we. The mind is a n integration and response to experiences coming into us from our sense-doors. And the ego, well that goes away along with the rest of us. The confusion that sometimes exists about being alive in this contemporary world versus living on an another or other form/s is challenging to many people. The Buddha did not deny that we exist in this samsaric world; he placed greater emphasis, however, on our spiritual, moral, and ethical development. On his death-bed he reportedly noted to his followers that everything is transient, so personal attachment to anything (people, places, things, experiences) is not recommended. This is not nihilism, nor is it some form of adverse nothingness. He called to his followers to know their own true self, and to follow the dharma in all life’s experiences. If all things are impermanent, then so is our pain and suffering. And yes, so is our joy and happiness. When unhelpful thoughts and emotions dominate, take refuge in The Buddha, The Dharma, and The Sangha. So what does this imply in day-to-day challenges of living? Below I have noted a few Zen Buddhist practices that may be helpful to you – Buddhist or not.