A Guided Meditation on the Body, Space & Awareness
how to meditate art of living
Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche Welcome! I’m very happy to share with you some meditation instructions. It is very simple: Please keep your spine straight. Just straight,
but don’t worry too much about perfection. I have to stay there, perfectly! Just keep straight. And please close your eyes. Just close your eyes like you’re sleeping. You don’t have to close them too tightly,
or in any special way. And relax your muscles in your body. Relax the muscles in your head, forehead, face, ears, cheeks, throat, upper body, arms and hands, lower body, legs and feet. Just totally relax, yet with your spine straight. And bend your neck forward a little bit. It’s almost like
the weight of your head rests on your neck. You can effortlessly rest. Each part of the body rests on the one below. And in this way, you feel like you’re resting but there’s also some strength, so you can find balance. All the parts of your body are resting, one on top of the other. But, at the same time, there’s a strength within you. Your spine is straight. Sometimes you feel a little bit of gravity. And sometimes you feel some sensations. Just let it be. Whatever feeling is in your body, just be aware and let it be. When I was young, my father used to tell me, “Let your body be on the cushion, and let your mind be in the body.” This way, you join body and mind together. Your mind comes into the body. Just be aware of your body, and be aware of any sensation or feelings in your body. Pleasant feelings, joy, bliss, or unpleasant feelings, tightness, pain, or neutral feelings, maybe tingling, or no feeling. So, with any type of feeling, just be aware and let it be. OK, for a few seconds, just be aware and relaxed. OK. Now, you can expand your awareness beyond your body, to what surrounds you. Maybe there are some sounds, or some smells, or some sensations, like your room temperature is a little bit too hot or cold, or some noise, like people chatting, or a car, a train, or airplanes moving around, or your neighbors making noise. Anything. Just be aware. Just know. Just recognize there are sounds. And your awareness becomes more open, and vaster. Stay there and be aware of any phenomena for a few seconds. Now, you can expand your awareness beyond your immediate surrounding. Feel the space around you, above you, and be aware of that space. Further, deeper. All the phenomena are occurring in the space, changing in the space, dissolving back into the space. Like clouds, they come into the space, remain in the space, and dissolve into the space. And, now,
you can expand your awareness even more. Go beyond the clouds, into space, which is boundless. Space, which is open in all directions, everywhere. Be there. Don’t worry, you’re not going to get lost. Stay there for few seconds. OK, now, please slowly open your eyes, and be present here. And rest your mind, also —
not only the body. How do you rest your mind? For example: If you like to do physical exercise, like jogging in the garden or park, or hiking in the hills or mountains, maybe for a few minutes or hours… let’s say one hour… After you finish your jog, you may use a nice seat or a rock, or a grass field. Sit on the grass field and, with a big sigh, “Ahh,” just rest. You don’t have to meditate, just let your mind rest as it is and the body, also. Just rest… for a few seconds. Maybe you feel like, “Oh, there are so many thoughts, so many emotions occurring in my mind. What should I do with those emotions, those thoughts?” Same. Same as before, you just be aware. If there are thoughts and emotions, you’re just aware of thoughts and emotions, what I call “blah blah blah,” just look at the “blah blah blah,” be aware, and let it be. Same as when you’re aware of your body, aware of sounds and sensations, now it’s the same:
Just be aware of thoughts and emotions. Let them come, and let them go. But, if you cannot be aware of them, it’s also fine. You’re in a non-conceptual state of mind, but not too long — only for a few seconds. Again, when you see thoughts and emotions, or forms, sounds, smells — anything, just be aware… for a few seconds. If anything occurs in your mind, in your body, in your perceptions, just be aware, and let it be. OK. Now, you can apply this awareness, this openness, this awareness with any situation in your life, with any activities in your daily life. Short time, many times, everywhere, anytime. Seven days a week, 365 a year. In this way, you can fill your mind with joyful, peaceful experiences, and you will develop
So now we have three choices, so I will give you a lot of choice and ask you to raise your hand so you can get a little bit exercise with your hand also so three choice: the first is practiced meditation first, we practice together, second maybe I will tell you my story how I learned meditation, third how to meditate. So, which one first? Practice first raise your hand, ok. My story about how to learn meditation, mmm… how to meditate? Hmm many of you don’t like to meditate ok I think my story about how to learn meditation so When I was young, around seven, eight years old, I had the panic panic attack so I was looking for solution and then my father was a great meditation teacher so I thought “maybe I should learn meditation for my father” but first I thought “oh, maybe I’m too young to learn meditation” so I discussed with my mom “should I ask? to teach my father to me meditation technique or not?” and my mom says “yeah! good idea” but I still thought “oh, maybe I’m too young, my father say oh you’re too young, or maybe you´re stupid, you know, I will not teach you meditation” so, I was afraid so then one day my father said “hmm you want to learn meditation, right?” I said “yes, who told you?” and my father said “your mom did” so, my mom asked my father on behalf of me without my permission so but he was so happy, he said “Wow good you’re very young But are you interested to learn meditation? so You can ask me any question and I will teach you meditation”. So, the first I learned meditation, which is breathing meditation, watch breath, one of my first meditation training but what I found is very boring I sit there and watch breath breathing in what time? Oh no All my friends are playing down there, you know, and I can hear their voice laughing but I was sit there I thought it’s already 15 minutes but I did 5 minutes only so I like the idea of meditation, but I don’t like the practice of meditation feeling very bored. So when I meditate It is a I have good feeling after that it helps for my panic but then I cannot meditate too long so my meditation is on and off, and my panic also up and down, up and down, up and down, like stock market. So when my panic comes I try to meditate so what I do is so when the panic comes I said “Hello panic, get out, I’m meditating” Breathing in and panic become stronger, sometime louder so then I was little bit disappointed, you know, I thought “meditation it helped helps my panic but actually not”, then I went back to my father and I told all this my experience about the meditation, with my father, and my father said “don’t say get out to panic. So you have to welcome the panic”. For the meditation, panic doesn’t become obstacle for meditation, so panic it’s ok, not panic it´s ok I thought “Wow, interesting”. So then I change my style, a style of meditation a little bit so what I did is I begin to say welcome to my panic so when when panic comes I was meditating and I said “hello panic, welcome” much better so I was very happy so that eventually what I did is “hello, panic welcome ” So my motivation is to become same thing again. So I learned meditation when I was 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 so when I was 13 years old in India a place called Sherab Ling Monastery so There they’re going to start traditional three-year retreat for three years so I asked His Eminence Saljey Rinpoche one of my important teacher to have permission to enter three-year retreat but I’m I was a little bit afraid maybe he said “no”, because I’m too young and I asked my father to ask Saljey Rinpoche, so that Saljey Rinpoche accepted. Then I can able to join the retreat. So, the main point is If I can able to go into retreat, then my laziness will not come, because I have this laziness always with me, you know, so then I entered the three-year retreat. First, one month, wonderful, no lazy, I was so happy. One month and one week, lazy begin to come up. After two months later, oh lazy is all over the place. So, back to back to before my habit is become less. Although we have sessions, but inside session, first a little bit and slowly So not only that: now my laziness and my panic they too become good friend, and now my panic become worse then I thought “what should I do? I still have two more years to go that’s the first year, you know, beginning of first year, so I have two years and nine months. So I thought “what should I do?” then I remember the teachings from my father, and all the other teachers, they told me that “don’t fight with the panic, make friends, and panic become support for your meditation, panic become your teacher, panic cannot become obstacle for meditation”. Why? The essence of meditation is awareness, an awareness Is like space and the panic is like cloud, cloud, or the weather, weather In the space. So I heard of that three, four weeks before, there’s no storm right? here so, very cold snow storm wind and now today wonderful weather, right? I brought good weather No, no, no, so the small storm can change the nature of space or not? cannot change, right? The space cannot change by good weather, bad weather, blue sky with sun shining or tornado. Sometimes it’s not storm This cannot change the nature of space, space always free always present pure, always pure. So the awareness is just like that. And this awareness is behind of all the thought, emotion, perception, feeling, so of course, behind our panic or so, panic is just like snow storm. Five or six weeks before, we have snow storm, right? weeks before we have snow storm, right? So I remember all these teachings, so then I decided to to say “welcome Really welcome” from my heart to my panic. I thought “Ok, now from now on I’m going to learn how to live it my panic. Not try to get it up, not try to block not try to fight”. So I sat in my room, because I cannot join guru practice we have everyday, two hours of group practice, morning one hour, evening or something like that. So when I join group practice my panic become worse, so I stay alone in my room and really welcome my panic staying awareness After few days later Me and my panic become very good friend I’m I’m feeling kind of like exciting when the panic comes The symptom is there You know from here heart beats faster. Boom and then tight here get dizzy sweating and Feeling of like When you’re in the aeroplane, then the aeroplane face Facing the turbulence like this whew like that right feeling like that, but but it doesn’t bother me normally When the before panic is almost going to start I feel panic or panic No, it’s a coming again. What shall i do. meditate…. breathing… It doesn’t work Now, …Halo, Okay, Come , come, come Try it and Oh interesting. awareness still there, continue awareness..ok So very interesting feeling then Then I can able to join guru practice There was wonderful And after few weeks later Me and my panic become good friend Then something happens Something bad habits. Should I tell you bad news? Not a happy ending It’s okay bad ending No problem. So the very bad ending is after few weeks later Panic says goodbye Me and my panic become very good friend now When panic doesn’t have good heart, super bye, you know and panic gone So I miss my panic Panic become my teacher, my friend my support for my meditation So I learn a lot from my panic actually today. I’m here maybe because of my panic And I really believe this meditation Technic changed my life. So I believe that can sense other if it was a life So this life I’ve been teaching meditation all the time not higher I have passion okay, so now my story about how to learn meditations finish so now to choice How to meditate first or practice first How to first, raise your hand Hmm, practice or you don’t like to practice Okay, so how to meditate first so as I told you the essence of meditation is awareness, right So, do you know awareness So how many of you know awareness raise your hand And how many of you don’t know awareness raise your hand Okay, and how many of you maybe I know, maybe I don’t know, raise your hand Okay Actually, I Think you all know awareness Should I give you an exam or not? Yes, so those who says I know awareness, of course, you know, so you pass And Those who says I don’t know awareness Do you know you don’t know awareness or no? Those who range those who raise your hand saying that I don’t know when it’s right So, do you know that you don’t know awareness? Yeah, that’s obvious So if you know you do more awareness and that is the awareness So those who says I don’t know awareness meaning, you know events so you also pass and Those who says maybe I know maybe I don’t know, right? Not sure Do you know you’re not sure? Do you know you’re not sure so there’s also events So you also pass so actually all of your pass so Congratulation So now No …Awareness essence of meditation. What is the essence of meditation? Awareness and you know awareness, right? Those who know awareness, you know awareness. Those who don’t know awareness. You also know awareness Those are those who not sure, you know awareness so as I mentioned before Awareness it’s like space isn’t it the space? Cannot be changed by cloud beautiful cloud ugly cloud dark Bright, it doesn’t change. It’s always there So now you prove that The awareness is always there whether you know, whether you don’t know whether your doubt Whether you’re not sure It doesn’t change the awareness So awareness always present always there and always pure So therefore for the meditation It doesn’t matter good feeling like blue sky with sun shining or it doesn’t make obscured by bad feeling like snowstorm or Doesn’t change like mist temperature laid out So they all line awareness Okay okay, so Now the problem is we have one big problem So the problem is Should I tell you the problem or You you want to find problem by yourself or should I tell you if you find by yourself is better actually Quite difficult, but it will stays with you But if I tell you you understand then after a while you forget So which one better you want to find by yourself? What should I tell you? So if I tell you raise your hand, okay You want to find by yourself raise your head Okay more want to find by yourself? Okay good So for that I will give you five minutes of discussion time. No, no no, no So the discussion topic is Essence of meditation. What is the essence of meditation? Awareness, so what is awareness just Like space right for the experiential voice awareness meaning knowing You knows what you’re thinking what you’re feeling what you are doing What are you seeing What you’re hearing, so just knowing no pure noise So there’s awareness So you all have awareness all the time? Before you learn meditation you have awareness, right? so the essence of meditation is awareness and awareness is with you all the time So now the big problem is then why you have to come here to learn meditation? Yeah, that’s the discussion topic You have awareness all the time Then why I have to learn this awareness. I’m in the meditation meditation is the essence of Awareness then awareness will to me all the times there. What’s the point? So what things change after learning meditation ? i have awareness all the time. So what meditation makes something change right so that’s the discussion topic and you have to discuss this for five minutes and You can start to two people three people doesn’t matter. Okay, you can talk to strangers. No problem. Don’t be shy Okay, oh Can you hear me? so, how was the discussion Got the answer? More confused ? or Good Not many people more confused. Mm-hmm …normally more confused better Anyone want to share your answer? and How many of you got the answer Anyone want to share your discussion anybody yes. Yes Microphone Thank you Yes, okay so You spoke about awareness of awareness and awareness of unawareness Some of us are aware that we’re unaware and others are aware that we’re aware and if we’re aware that we’re aware We’re also aware that we run away Is that confused enough for you? and so for myself, I I like to be aware of my awareness and an awareness as much as I can and I I want you to teach me how to be more aware you dont need more aware because you have awareness all the time well when my mind wanders I’m aware of where my mind is wandering, but I’m not aware that I’m here. i want to be here all the time Is that a tall order, okay. Okay good next Thank you, thank you so here Yeah. Hello over there so what we were discussing actually four years ago before my daughter was born I was Meditating and I found my awareness was really like seeing the clouds Coming staying and going now. My daughter is two and a half years old I have a very busy busy life. I found like my awareness like shooting star all right is and That’s where I am now, all right, maybe I’m just attached to that Being aware and I try to find some answer how how to continue Thank you somebody yeah Ah good one Coming I mean he’s running Very fast Okay, the first lady there and then the second lady there Well to put simply to beware without fixation so we’re we’re of space-like Awareness rather than the wine has been constantly trapped in the clouds. So you you’re saying that normally we have fixed Maybe a fixation but now we need to learn without fixation awareness. That’s right So when this gets whatever there’s cloud it tends to get caught up in the cloud so to be aware of the space like Okay clouds is the content of awareness I Think Meditation is for you know? We’re already quite aware of certain things to varying degrees or aware about we’re unaware and for me. I find that it’s about Accepting why I’m aware of so sometimes those two things can be at conflict. But if I meditate they become more together Okay, yeah We were discussing how awareness is a mix between physical sensations and mental thoughts so is a Unity rather than a separation and so many people are aware of what they’re thinking but they are disassociating with what they’re feeling and this is I think the real Way to us X sort of a different platform where you’re aware of both your thoughts and your sensations and the fact that Because these has evolved the the sort of Thinking part has evolved a lot more than the feeling part Especially in the world that we’re living in that we’re constantly thinking but really the feeling part is the most primordial part of our beings so to really Be aware we ought to be in a place where we have a Sort of awareness of both our physical sensations as well as our thoughts Okay, so up there and then here So It’s thinking why do we why do we meditate we already have the awareness before after during? But we suffer So I think it’s something to do with suffering and trying to find the cause of suffering or the root of suffering because it’s it’s there now in our awareness and I think Suffering is something we want to deal with so Meditation whatever it is is targeted at that. Okay, okay Yeah. Oh Yeah, sorry already, okay, so I came here because I Am seeing awareness as a state of mind to reach and Like looking for ways to how to not to see it as a state of mind to reach Rather not to see it as an achievement, but naturalize it That a clarification? Yeah So one microphone, please come down one microphone here. Yeah Is it To realize for yourself Well along the lines of the fool who persists in his foolish shall become wise and it’s to sort of run yourself out of steam Chasing something that is always like beating a drum in virtue in search of a future If so, you can come back and just know the thing for the first time basically to exhaust yourself All right, or to exhaust the seeker. Mm-hmm So you all , these questions. This is is the purpose of it simply of meditation. I will not give any answer. Okay? Questions in later Yeah When we were talking about this, so the problem is perhaps the conceptual mind that we Kind of in the school taught to kind of label things and give you know abstract you know the things we aware into concepts Labeling them and then those are very useful in our daily function to achieve things to solve problems But that also make our mind kind of lose touch of the reality and So I think so. We thought that’s a problem why we already have awareness still come here to learn so Last one It seemed that the only time I ever Achieved a very deep peace in meditation was through going straight through the middle of some very painful Things so and I didn’t be able to do that at will so I don’t have great meditation But you need to look for one big pin pudding No, I just don’t know how to work with them properly anyway the other thing that struck me very much when we were talking about awareness is I work with some people who have suffered very greatly cuz I’m a counselor and great traumas and they’d their awareness they could have well with all of us if it can happen to anyone the awareness splits off from the presence to such an extent that It really goes somewhere else sometimes people don’t remember What they experienced it’s like having two or three personalities So this is called dissociation and it seems like the opposite it’s like When something is so painful, we can’t keep our awareness with it so that’s a theme of Staying with containing the pain the suffering seems to be as something’s on my mind. Okay? Okay, good. Thank you for all of you so So there’s many people give wonderful answer so the answer is about We have awareness but then we don’t know how to keep awareness but here or we don’t know how to make with be with non-judgmental awareness We have too much in the head cannot be in the feeling So and so on right so now how How can we do that awareness without judgment awareness connected with the feeling and awareness without the Loss into the cloud Right how we can do that so if we say normally I need awareness don’t loss Be peace No Don’t follow thought in emotion, it doesn’t work This is become similar my meditation first my first meditation But I say hallo panic get out I’m meditating. Oh It’s coming coming at me. No, Good no Good, you keep quiet. And the panic become louder So the most important point is We all have awareness Doesn’t matter your panic or not panic awareness always there even while you have panic awareness Very pressing and free. Why are you having panic and Before you learn not only that before when you learn meditation you have awareness, right? When you never heard of meditation still you have awareness awareness born with it since childhood But the problem is no no, I will tell you them. Yeah Should I tell you This is a big secret, you know So you need to promise that you will never tell anyone Promise promise Yes, you can It’s in my books, you know Okay, the secret is You all are very Secret Okay a secret actually there’s no secret Okay, I will tell you a secret We Though we have awareness, but we are not recognized our own awareness. So that’s that’s the secret so There’s no problem that whether we have this awareness or not There’s no problem. It’s just like space Whether we have space or not, there’s another issue But the issue is We don’t know space and we are lost with a cloud loss with thought and emotion So now how to be with space first. We have to recognize awareness and That is it to maintain there is a cognition and there’s the meditation technique So we’re alone eyes, but we forget we lost But again, come back pocket come back. Okay, so if you continue to maintain the recognition of awareness, that’s the The result of meditation Then your mind become Completely free the freedom what we call liberation Tribal mine walkable mind mind become more calm peaceful Not just peaceful and calm not just peaceful and calm become walkable. So all these quality comes just release awareness and maintain that recognition so once you recognize and try to maintain the awareness that maintained the recognition then you will have a lot of discovery within yourself Wow One moment for you. Cool One moment. Aha moment aha Each time there’s aha The awareness will open up Now our awareness narrow small and it’s become less higher baby, baby easy to cry Like something slightly wrong not happy slightly, right? Oh, you’re almost like Explorer Oh Sometime you become frozen or you almost become melt little bit hot Maybe outside don’t see people don’t see you but inside you’re maybe crying aside Inside crying so Now our mind is like that so what I call monkey mind But as you connect with your own awareness Nobody’s awareness is your awareness and you have this you have it it’s with you. So once you’re Recognizable open up and Then you don’t need to blocked or in emotion. Not necessary Even you achieve thoughtless or a more emotionless meditation. It is not a good meditation You may become little bit like a zombie Maybe happy zombie. No So not not use Not not too much use of it So therefore what we call the real meditation you don’t need to meditate You just connect with your own awareness. Okay So how to do them? So that we have to practice step by step so first We cannot really connect with the big awareness. So we have to connect with piece of awareness So for there now, we will do meditation practice. Okay. So now how to practice meditation First, please raise your hand like this, so Do you know your raising hand Yes, so there’s awareness So knows that your just be to be aware of that you’re raising hand, okay is there any sensation in your hand What kind of sensation? Cooling sensation raise your hand right in I’m sorry left hand Okay You know, there’s cooling sensation, right? So there’s awareness or warm or heat sensation raise your left hand Okay be aware of that so that is also awareness and How many of you there’s no particular sensation in your hand, raise your hand Okay, if there’s no sensation Just know that there’s no sensation and that is also meditation Okay so now how many of you having pain around here Please yet Okay, do you know pain So that’s the meditation also You’re aware of the pain be aware of pain No need to look for Pleasant unpleasant It’s also here Pain is unpleasant feeling so just be aware of that pain. Okay? So now put your hand down Feeling relaxed Pleasant feeling, right You know that pleasant feeling there’s also awareness so now in the awareness Warm is ok, Cool is ok, No sensation also ok, pain is ok relaxation also ok. All these are in the awareness right? so you just need to keep connecting with awareness and done Doesn’t matter what kind of sensation pleasing, unpleasing, neutral positive , negative virtual, neutral, It doesn’t matter any kind of sensation. Just what do you have to do just to be aware of it, so That’s the meditation, understand ? Ok, now we will do some more meditation exercise. So hold your hand like this: Any sensation ? Maybe there is sensation. Maybe there’s no sensation. So be aware of whatever there in your hand, ok? Join both of your hand be aware of tactile And now rub What do you feel? Warm, right? so, faster Now heat, we’ll aware of heat ok What do you feel? tingling, right? Be aware of tingling and cooling also Ok, now left hand put down, and keep your spine straight and And Bring your hand close to your forehead Almost touch to your forehead the hairs are touching It’s almost touching, feeling of tingling or itchy Something like that, right? So Now, please close your eyes and Please be aware of any sensation in your forehead You know your right hand also put down continue close your eyes And continue to be aware of any sensation in your forehead Pleasant sensation unpleasant sensation neutral Even there’s no sensation. It doesn’t matter. Whatever there in your forehead To be aware of it And now please move from your forehead to top of your head And release muscles on the top of your head and Be aware of any sensation on the top of your head Now from top of the head to the back of the head Relax your pick up head Be aware of sensation Now please be aware of your face, entire face, relax muscles in your face cheeks, chin, ear now And to be aware of any sensation in your face Relax your name to be aware of any sensation in your neck Relax your shoulder right and left and be aware of any sensation in your shoulders Relax your back from upper back to lower back And to be aware of any sensation in your back Relax your chest and stomach To get to be aware of sensations in your chest and stomach Relax your arms right and left and be aware of any sensation in your arms Relax your legs right and left legs and be aware of any sensation in your legs Now please relax entire your body be aware of Sensation in your body from head to feet And If you cannot relax, no problem just be aware that you cannot relax So, you know you cannot relax that means you are relaxing So relax is allowed not relaxed is allowed Pleasant sensation is allowed no Pleasant sensation is allowed tightness allowed and Openness is also allowed everything is allowed Don’t worry there that there’s Mistake or Maybe you don’t know how to do If you feel that your mistake The mistake is in the Venice So awareness is beyond mistake. It’s always free It’s genuine. It is pure Just like space So be yourself, don’t worry You don’t have to pretend to be somebody or someone just Be yourself be free You want to cry you can cry you want to laugh you can laugh If you cannot find awareness Then that is also awareness awareness cannot find awareness So There’s no Need to worry that Whether you’re doing right or wrong Right is in awareness brown is also in awareness So be free And be yourself Now, please open your eyes and Rest your mind just in bear awareness Oh, okay. How is it Easy or not easy easy raise your hand Not easy raise your hand, so if you feel not easy, you know, it’s not easy. So there’s awareness And how many of you confuse Raise your hand Do you know in your configs? If you can if you know you’re confused there’s also awareness you’re connecting with others so you allow to be confused and confuse confusion become object Oh awareness just Like cloud another cloud So Thought emotion sensation perception everything can be in the wareness So therefore of course panic is one of them painting is like horican orchid, right? So hurricane come from space stay in the space, this is all back into the space Hurricane is changing by space cannot change So panic come from the rareness stay in awareness dissolve into awareness, but awareness doesn’t change depending centric Right So Next time if you feel panic bring awareness to the body and special for the sensation so for the panic the sensation of You know how to describe Similar Great So I don’t have to tell you And when you feel angry go back to the sensation body sensation When you feel worried back to the body when you feel the fresh scent and when you feel pleasant, so Aware a pleasant so what happens by awareness if you connect with awareness again and again automatically negative emotion will purify it and Your what we call we all have this basic goodness our Innate goodness basically will manifest So if you connect more with awareness compassion will manifest clarity will manifest joyful non-conceptual mind Although creativity your inner talent talents also will increase Just aware. Be aware The practices look like boring Right. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah They are What again be real? Today Isabella tomorrow also be over Next Monday. Oh, I Come here to learn meditation for feeling to help happiness. But this teacher Technique We are there how can this be aware and the happiness connection? You know, I Cannot find connection between happiness and be aware Many people ask me a question I come here To learn meditation to be happy But you teach me boring stuff Which is what’s your breath Be aware of your breath and the Sensation sometimes there’s not good sensation, you know So a Key point is for example When you see the river That means you’re out of river Isn’t it? If you if you have fallen into the river carry by river, can you see river? You cannot see it you Kind of feel like you’re falling But you cannot see the river, right But when you see river that means you’re out of river So When you see the panic You not become under control by a name But panic still might be there the symptoms do there so When you see the river, you don’t have the block the river Isn’t it? Let’s give a continued But for you, okay. Hmm doesn’t matter river is calm or clear clean or dirty and recall Turbulence it doesn’t matter but if you fall in the river come realize it better Daddy and Travelens, you know not so good and special a river has balls, you know Our very own boulders boulders danger and if you ever become waterfowl You die, right? So normally these negative emotions Has a lot of influence for us Positive emotion is the better. Peace is good Panics no good because we are lost with it we have won with it we have won with this emotion We are we are lost in the river carry by river. So what erful is not a good idea But if you seeing the river That means you’re out of River. So then what erful is great, right? Many people, you know take time off as boss to see their waterfall, right? Spend a lot of money To see the order what for? So you can see another wonderful Without spending too much money or free, you know So three inner waterfall wonderful in hmm So if you see the television you are not in the television Some like that So then slowly slowly you can find this awareness everywhere we thought with feeling with the emotion with sensation and You can see all this are coming in awareness stain awareness dissolve into awareness Awareness the basis always there and awareness the free Just like space so Therefore So therefore as I told you before the meditation actually we don’t have to meditate just recognized awareness and Maintain that recognition with object now first object is the body special this sensation Many of you will know this miss understand about meditation some people think meditation meaning thing of nothing right consultation In Asia many people think meditation is like Breathing Keep quiet I’m meditating So so if Todd comes Become big problem, you know and you’re telling yourself chanting And in the rest Should I tell you No problem meditation like this Please So looking for peace and peace you will say I’m busy you Need to make a point minimum Feasible not come or some some people they realize Yeah, so maybe I will teach you one very special meditation What is the special food in England Pasta fish and chips Any good vegetarian dishes But Chips cheese and beans Chips cheese beans Mmm, so I will teach you There is special meditation and this meditation called chips cheese beans Okay so 301 to learn Chips she’s been this meditation quite long Chips and beans, okay chips and beans meditation so for the chips and beans meditation There’s one rule The one rule is you’re not allowed thing of this. She’s Chips and beans not allowed thing You can pick up anything else fish and chips Also, okay you can think You can think about pizza humble Salad potato Whatever you want and you can even think about your past history future plan Every anything is okay except cheese beans chips she’s chips beans Can nothing not allowed okay for one minute if you think of one second you will launch this meditation So we be prepared, so please keep your spine straight Please close your eyes Now relax your body And be aware of sensation in your body from head to feet Laughing you can watch the feeling of laughter Okay now the main part of meditation so I will say 1 2 3 So when you hear 3 not chips cheese beans 1 Two three matchups cheese beans We thing of this one second you lost meditation, okay, she’s chip-ins one second you lost meditation Don’t say that don’t think about cheese cheese beans, okay? Okay done no, I just relax Okay, how is it easy or not easy easy raise your hand Not easy raise your hand Big problem Yeah actually is not easy when you say don’t think our mind will think So when you say no cheese chips beans then we will think about cheese chips beans and many many different kind of cheese chips Beans will come and they become more clear more fancy loud Right. So when you meditate you when you say chanting concentration, peace Doesn’t work So many people looking for I’m meditating and I need non judgement state So don’t judge. Oh just come in on us. This is a meditation not judge Not judge So then just will come oh, I need to connect with heart no head one two three Then how to say oh I’m busy, you know, you have to make appointment then I will see whether come or not So for the event, it’s not it Everything is allowed in the wareness. So it’s not it is the real not judgement You don’t have to meditate just is allowed, right? So then it’s not judging That’s okay not judges. Okay hat is okay hediye, so Everything’s okay. So then there is the freedom There’s non-judgmental and that is really connected with the developer of heart. The awareness is the deeper level of the heart so Then meditation has become very easy right so now I will teach you one meditation technique so sometimes we need to We need option because although meditation is very easy, but after some time we feel bought Again the sensation yesterday also sensation today gosh sensation again, I like the idea of meditation, but I don’t like the practice of meditation so If you felt like that then need to change it’s a technique need to change so another training is sound meditation So how many of you want to learn sound meditation raise your hand? Mmm, good for the sound meditation. There are two steps One how to listen to sound second sound meditation, okay So first how to listen to sound So, can you hear everybody if you can hear this sound raise your hand Mmm now you know how to listen So the first step is finished And Should I teach you second step Second step has the one big secret so Should I tell you the secret the secret is The secret is sound meditation is already done Finish You understand or not? How many of you not understand the secret raise your hand meaning Meaning is I ask you can you hear the sound you say? Yes So that is the sound meditation You are there oh so right The ear and mine both listen to the sound. That is the sound meditation Only the object is different The essen is same the awareness the awareness It’s just awareness is the one but when you Use awareness with the body or sensation. Then it become awareness of the body awareness of sensation Now you’re using sound and it becomes sound meditation and it it can be visual object can be smell test Sensation even thought any emotion also but thought emotion if you are new to meditation You have to wait for a while first you have to do this space this foundation meditation like Feeling sensation sound this one first. Okay. So now we’re going to practice this sound meditation together So please keep your spine straight you can if you have back pain you can use chair like me as Long as if you can keep your spine straight little bit straight, you know, don’t worry little bit like this The river like there the river like that. No problem So just a little bit relatively keep your spine straight Loosely they are loosely loosely keep your spine straight and Close your eyes So first relax your body and Relax meaning not release is also allowed And be aware of sensation sensation from head to feet Now please listen to the sound Okay now finish how is it So some meditations better or the meditation with the sensation fits better Sound better rescue him Okay body sensation dress your head Okay, so is it depends on the personality? So if you feel body is more easy. You have to begin with the body a Sensation in the body if you feel sounding some more easy, you need to begin with sound force. But even you feel sounds good now tomorrow Okay next day, so so nice day, gosh sound So you will feel you will feel bored and then back to the body you feel all nice. I thought mmm I have particular connection with Sun not the body, but it Sound is a better You will feel like that out of after few days later. So there’s normal so you need to change Different training although there’s many different training, but actually only one right What is the one? Awareness. So another important thing is awareness is important, but When you listen to sound you are not particularly thinking about awareness, right? and not need also because you Already recognize awareness. I told you Event is important The recognition of awareness important I already introduced you of Venice so that view stays back of your head back of your mind behind your heart the view and Then the motivation that you want to meditate with the sound that that’s the meditate that’s the motivation So this view and meditation change The quality of the lesson listen to the sound automatically So you didn’t have to worry look for master rest awareness. I can hear sound but awareness we’re Not necessary to look something extra Yeah, but then there’s later the Awareness without object or something like this step by step. You can practice in the future Okay, so I think we finished today here the talk What time no, yeah so actually I Came to London My book publisher asked me to come here To say something about the book But unfortunately book is not ready yet and Even title isn’t already But book writing is finished It’s about the Bardo part Oh dead end time This will be the number fourth number of number fourth book fourth book fourth book Sorry about my English, you know Do you understand my English? Coach, thank you. So Next year will come out so the title not sure now so in the book There’s a lot of story about while I’m going to retreat The first month I almost died there was a foot poison and So I had this wonderful experience So it’s a really related with the Bardo type talked about this in the book and Next year It will come out. I think so tomorrow. I’m going to meet with a my publishers publishers here No Okay, so tomorrow Yeah, so now the session for Q&A You’re going to reach for someone Directly Basically you can either use the mic to ask questions or if you prefer to Write your questions down and give them to the volunteers. You can do it that way and the volunteers will bring them down to us So if anybody wants to kick off Okay first here Yeah, I don’t think you’re in poacher. I Was wondering when that when attending to the feeling in the body regarding a sensation Sometimes a feeling can be so strong that it overwhelms you and then even if it’s anger or something There’s no way to stop it What is the difference between Being aware of it or Being stuck being aware of being stuck to it. Mm-hmm. Okay, so although as I mentioned before Awareness is always there never change but for the practical level We are not connected with the awareness at the beginning. Although we have or we are not connect with our own awareness so We need to practice step-by-step step-by-ste step-by-step So at the beginning when we have strong emotion Then we cannot aware we feel overwhelmed That’s okay completely. So what we call there are four techniques kind of like four Four ways not for ways for For approach maybe So the first is I already mentioned back to the sensation there’s the emotion meditation also, but now sensation back to the before the emotion meditation be aware of sensation is important without aware of sensation you cannot practice emotional meditation so sensation Be aware of sensation now. It’s very important. So That’s the first one what we call watch so there’s four is watch Try something different Step back take a break for things So watch, you already know. Second. If the emotions becomes overwhelming, the sensation through stone, huh? Empty Pain hurt and blessing cannot breathe Feeling like I’m going to die now. There’s many feeling so then you can stop Then try something different number two turn focus on sensation listen to sound to change your focus Okay when you listen to sound feels better Come back again. Okay Hold on. Okay. Stop listen to a song or watch your breath or even in the sensation in the body don’t watch the pain area watch the numb area numb meaning maybe in the knees or hand or and the the neutral sensation neutral Pad part of the body where there’s a neutral sensation you can aware of that. So this is the try something different number three step back meaning when I practice Meditation with my panic what I did is pay panic get out I’m watching you, right? so that motivation or that aberration fear fear or panic Sometimes what I call panic a panic it’s stronger than panic and These are the behind Supporting the panic stay in the behind of the panic. So don’t watch panic watch the fear of any aversion or the resistance or the belief There’s some background belief So let’s step back Number three and sometimes even you do that doesn’t work then check a brick Most easy one, you know, you don’t know how to do that, right? We should take a break sometime Do some physical exercise and special physical exercise is really good if you have a stone painting or depression or unhappy or too much emotion up and down do physical exercise and Read booze or sleep or sometimes tire exhausted sleep. So take a break so the four things but There’s the one thing which is sometime what we call energy movement So and there’s a movement is after some time When you meditate after some time, then you feel something on your head the heat comes heat Moving opening closing or from your spine this tingling Something like going up and down or from your stomach. There’s one Feeling comes sometimes there’s a vibration in the body sometime pressure from forehead throat heart center strong pressure So they had a sign of energy movement. So and as a movement has four things the physical sensation which is I just told you and Number the second is sensory perception see something colors shapes visions or hear some sound Music messages smell test So these are five sensitive perception and number Three is the sense of energy Positive energy here negative in here this Teacher has blessing good Energy that teacher has bad energy giving me obstacle Someone is you know controlling me or spying on me or giving blessing on me something like And the last one is emotion up and down so this Is not a bad, it’s good what we call transformation or prana Bindu Nadi meaning prana many energy bindhu meaning like cells nadia meaning nerves So these are transforming when you meditate So the for the for the process then we have this energy movement So energy movement can be sometimes strong emotion comes filling up when you meditate Sometime good sometime more angry. I have a meditation to get dizzy, you know, I Suppose meditation is a benefit for me, but it may close for me, you know So but it’s a good sign. You have to recognize this energy movement. That’s really important If you don’t recognize this energy movement, if you feel like something wrong with me or or I’m enlightened I’m special I’m crazy. Then. It’s become problem. So actually, it’s not problem Next If you could go back in time and speak to the eight year old you that was just beginning to learn to meditate and You could give them one piece of advice about meditation What would you tell your younger younger self? except the panic Someone there, no, okay. Well there Thank you and Butchie Well, I started meditation several years ago and in 2014 I attended this 10-day Vipassana ten Davey passion a retreat and for me, it was really like a door opened and and it was really for me changed my life and Then my daughter came and my life become very chaotic now I felt as I said, you know the awareness is like it it’s just I wonder if I have this attachment to you know, the experience I had before I Wonder how should I proceed? Thank you. Don’t try to bring the past experience again so experience sometimes wonderful next day gone and Then some people they really like that wonderful experience So we try to bring back that experience. So don’t try to bring that experience. You continue to be aware that Experien may not come again, but come in a different form different experience so That’s really important. And another important is maybe you can meditate while you are having problem with your daughter You need to build up this habit habit so maybe You need to choose one particular event maybe whenever you are having Lunch or dinner or whenever you are having something with your daughter that time remember in meditation particular time Today also try to remember you will fail next day. You will fail fail is good if you feel more that’s better So you’re Chinese so in Chinese what you call failure is the mother of success, right Oh, yeah, sister. Bye Survive Thank you, so Try again. Try again. Then you will build a new habit. So once you success with that particular one event Then is equal to other habit also So you everybody can build a habit new habit so you can meditate everywhere any time under any circumstances Eight years eight or nine years before I came to UK and I own the television and I saw the advertisement about mobile mobile phone company and They said you can use this Brain or company everywhere any times even in the mountain? You know, so I thought this is very good advertisement for meditation. I Changed a little bit You can meditate everywhere anytime even in the city So while you’re driving so in London a lot of one-way, right? So you go. Oh another one way. Oh, yeah. No no way So you have a lot of time Or traffic jam is the best Time for meditation, you know, you have to be in the gym for one hour So you will have good meditation session one hour So whenever travel gem meditate or you go to your home whenever you’re open refrigerator awareness refrigerator refrigerator I’m going to turn it – Something like that so you need to build up habit meditate everywhere anytime. Hmm How do you practice detachment detachment so this practice you allowed to have attachment and when you feel attachment watch the sensation in the body, I mean to people and Materialistic things and just everything else in general not meditation Attachment about something or detachment. Yes how do work with attachment right so When you attach up the the people or money or whatever idea the sensation comes in the body Chips beans So there sensation so we have to watch the sensation in the body So beer just just use the sensation as object of the awareness Your mind sure mine. You don’t have to say not husband. No attachment If you said no, it does not touch. It does involve much Some now attachment becomes stronger But if you really lost with it, you mind. Oh Then you will you will see them Like this, you know Try this. Everybody try this little bit like this cross your okay collapse one eye Okay, now look at this thumb So this is the object of your attachment. Okay. So now look at the tongue look at them. Bring close to your eyes close close close Clothes loss Now whole world becomes. Um You’re gonna see only time so there’s the attachment It’s really small right That’s the not only with them the Things even idea Anything so once we go in there and then we make it bigger And then we see the opposite. Oh, if I don’t have this big problem. Yeah, I have this the wonderful Oh, I wish I hit him more. What should I do? You know? so We have to know this is a crazy hour of mine. We make mountain out of more More here, so The perception how create this attachment So first is a view second for the meditation just watch the sensation. You don’t have to say yes or no Yes, what’s what it’s just watching it. Aha. It will helps number three Bring that inhabit the view and awareness into everyday habit So then you don’t have to do anything without attachment. It will liberate by yourself This question Somebody yeah, yeah Is it not? Meditation awareness and sleep have become best friends. I tend to fall asleep Every time I meditate how do I stop falling asleep during meditation? So that’s good if you Especially in a night if you cannot sleep then just meditate You can combine Meditation and sleep together so how to do that when you meditate then the sleepiness will come, you know sleepiness Feeling little bit like drowsy drunk Unclear like that kind of feeling right so watch that feeling We are aware of feeling of sleepiness Let’s see, maybe I will have the sleepiness If you realize then Silla business will come No liver Vasilievich, so just feel this luminous Good morning So when you just relax then the feeling of sleepy Drowsy unclear just being with a feel it just feel it. Feel it continue to be aware of it If you are lucky the moment of you fall into sleep If you still maintain that awareness, then the slip will catch the awareness Then all the slip become meditation So you sleep one hour, you’re meditating one hour but But you maintain the awarenes and a silicone and the moment of sleep if you mind go to the chips beans No cheese chips beans so then is normal sleep but but still benefit because at the beginning you are with awareness and Special if you practice the awareness When your mind going to the sleep? That really affect the subconscious mind the unconscious mind. So it is the That meditation is really benefit for you We all have awareness from childhood but it’s very difficult to teach awareness or mindfulness to a child How can we at least start teaching them from young age? Yeah, so for the child you have to know how to approach them not like how to say giving order it doesn’t walk and Then if you give too much order then they billable resist it next time when they hear meditation, ah Then no good, so you have to make it something like a reward fun Playful and don’t meditate too long for Chaya only few Few minutes maybe us them for example in the bell So when the Bell sound going higher and higher us Kid, raise your hand raise him and then lower the volume of sound and then let And awareness the body maybe put something Object let keep lying down and put something on the belly and feel it that object maybe dinosaur or something so Feel something like that As a cancer patient, could you give me any suggestions or advice from the Buddhist field? How to chant every day or Sutra to do every day. Yeah, so if you have diseases you need to change the motivation, so The view and Motivation these two are the really important factor. So the motivation to Want to heal the disease? and the view is the Awareness is a boon disease so try to understand that and just whatever your the Feeling that the sickness which part a body you can scan awareness So when you move your awareness with the With the meditation with your body, so there’s What we call Pranab into nadi they all are moving so the oxygen the blood the this the scannable a sense of healing also comes so it it will helps and special if you Want to do any mantra we use normally put a medicine mantra one hunter called IATA um, they can typically Mohab behind the other some of that I saw so you can look in the internet you can find So you can chain that one. Okay. Thank you thank you very much for all of you coming and This time Oh For this time Santa and all the Supporters volunteers Can you stand up all the volunteers no, no volunteers all the volunteers And This time the Jumeirah butcher is presence here and thank you very much for buses coming. Thank you