MEDITATION: Part II How to create a daily routine Up to 80-90% % of people who start meditation will quit within a year. Why is that? It is multifactorial but can be summarized in 1 word: they quit because being not a priority, a daily routine is impossible. Read previous Dharma talk about meditation hindrances. […]
Proper Concentration Proper concentration, or Samadhi, is the eighth and final step of the Noble Eightfold Path. It belongs to the part of the path that focuses on mental discipline. When we talk about Samadhi, we're talking about a mind that is steady, calm, focused, and collected - not scattered, not dull, not pulled around […]
Why is it so hard to meditate every day? Part I ( Next: part II: How to create a daily routine.) We always make time for zillions of things that we have to do everyday because they are mandatory, such as eating, showering, driving, working, reading, etc. In other words, they are daily priorities. […]
The 4 SEALS Part 1 SUFFERING They are called seals because they are the landmarks of Buddha's 50 years of verbal teaching. SUFFERING, IMPERMANENCE, NO-SELF and NIRVANA. They represent the 4 standing pillars of Zen philosophy & practice. Everything else depends on them.These words seem weird, complex and esoteric but we will see […]
Feeling being a victim : a Zen perspective One of the purposes of Zen practice is to offer an open heart to self and around us. But It is not easy to open up our own hearts, to open to the “I, me, myself, and mine”. The breakdown of any situation where you feel being […]
What is your problem? or dealing with our negativities “Problem” means that you are dwelling on an event, a situation or a person that is perceived negatively meaning generating a negative emotional response such as pain, anger, regret, etc.. Problems are small, gigantic, last a few min., few hours, a few years or forever. […]
What is consciousness? A Zen perspective Historically and still up to now, many of our greatest minds in philosophy, sciences, theology, A.I, have tried to explain the origin and mechanism of human consciousness (see ref.). They end-up with hundreds of different theories and explanations proving that none of them is currently satisfactory. Explaining consciousness through […]
The art of doing nothing Part 2: what to do when getting bored? When boredom strikes: We feel some void and the negative feeling of being uncomfortable, unproductive, useless, impatient, restless or even lazy in the current moment. When there’s nothing stimulating, flashy,, distracting or even work, we experience the urge to seek distractions a.s.a.p. […]
The art of doing nothing: Part 1 what is boredom, and what is triggering it? The negative impacts of being bored: […]
Proper Mindfulness Proper mindfulness, the seventh step of the Noble Eightfold Path, belongs to the category of mental discipline, along with proper effort and proper concentration. In everyday language, mindfulness, as defined by Webster’s dictionary, means “the quality of being mindful, bearing in mind; aware.” In this sense, it refers to attentiveness, keeping something in […]
