The Zen Diarist

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How to live softly with ease and help the planet

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Looking out of the window today at the sky and the trees, the world seems a calm and beautiful place. But picking up a newspaper or turning on the news, the picture is very different. Unless we go around with our eyes and ears closed to the outside world, we all know that there are huge imbalances that urgently need addressing.

Leaving footprints

An old Daoist adage enjoins us to leave no footprints on the Earth. Another saying is to leave only footprints when we die. Either way, as a race, we are stomping around in big boots making an almighty mess. Whatever action we may take as individuals to reduce plastic waste, carbon emissions and so on, the situation can at times seem overwhelming. That is because the root causes of the world’s problems are not so much “out there” but within each and every one of us, in our consciousness. When we have imbalance inside, we create imbalance outside.

Living softly

In our heart of hearts, we know must learn to live more lightly, more softly. It is difficult to do that if we are overstimulated, which most of us are. Subconsciously, we crave space, which is akin to our inner nature. But the tendency is to seek out more and more information – the latest news, weather report, bargains, technology, fashions, miracle food and so on and so on. This creates tension inside us, mentally, energetically and emotionally.

So what can I do?

The most effective thing we can do immediately is simply to stop. Yes, just stop. Try it: stop and breathe. Bathe your body inside and out with your awareness, as though sweeping all tiredness and stale energy away. Let the tension start to flow out of you. When you are ready to move, after a few breaths, move slowly.

Don’t hurry

There’s never a need to rush – we just think there is. Slow down. Let your steps become softer. Make it a habit, and softer living naturally follows. Needs and desires become simpler, less demanding. We connect more to the Earth and our footprints on it automatically become lighter. Yes, it feels good, and it’s really good for the planet, too.

Free guided meditations

Books available here

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Habits – when and how to manage them

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Forming habits, now there’s a thing. Someone told me once that it takes three weeks to form or break a habit. I’m not sure where that came from or whether there is any evidence to support it. Nevertheless, the turn of each new year has features editors of newspapers and magazines publishing articles on the new habits we urgently need to acquire or lose. Is that a habit of theirs they could safely shed, I wonder?

Habits don’t like awareness

We all know that new year resolutions generally fail before the end of January. Except the one not to make any, which I find works well and lasts all year! Old habits die hard, so the adage runs, and in any event it would be silly to suggest that we should have no habits all. Many are very useful, like washing our hands after we have been to the bathroom. If only everyone did. The problem comes when our repetitive thinking and behaviour (which is what habits are) have a negative impact on ourselves and on others. Then there is something we can, and should, do.

Just observe and break the chain

The key to change for the better is not self-flagellation, dieting, running up mountains or taking ice baths, interesting and challenging though such activities may be. Rather it is to become aware of what we are doing and why we are doing it. Simple awareness can work wonders because it is the portal for our innate intelligence. Try it sometimes; better still, often. Before doing anything, pause and observe. Break the chain of one automatic response after another. Starve the habit of oxygen. Those few moments of comparative silence allow something rather good to happen. What it is, though, you must discover for yourself.

Do less to accomplish more – read my book The Art of Not Doing – How to Achieve Inner Peace and a Clear Mind

Free guided meditations

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Being happy: why we should choose to flick the switch

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HappinessBeing happy is really rather good. Have you noticed (well, of course you have) that when we are happy, life seems so much lighter? It is also really rather good to be in the company of people who are lighter in spirit. Lightness can be catching. Unlike winter lurgies, happiness is a wonderful infection to pass on. Feel free to pass on your lightness! Indeed, let’s lift the cloak of gravitas that hangs heavily over so much of life today! We need inspiration, not gloom; but what can we do about it?

Being happy: is it a matter of choice or fortune?

We cannot solve the problems of the world, nor can we necessarily change many of the things that affect us, such as health and living conditions. What we do have control over is how we respond internally . When we are feeling down or serious about life, our internal energy takes a bit of a nosedive. Our emotions are very much affected by our energy or Qi; in turn, our Qi is influenced by our state of mind and our consciousness. This is where choice comes in.

Choose to look on the bright side and sow seeds of happiness

Looking on the bright side is not to be unrealistically optimistic but to realise that good can come out of anything. It really is like turning the light on. I sometimes imagine that there is a switch in the heart energy centre. To throw it from dark mode to light relies simply on intention. The significance of this little mental step is that our energy immediately becomes lighter. Energy follows intent. There is a very deep truth in this. We don’t need to analyse, though; just do it. And who knows? Make it a habit and we could well start off an epidemic.

The Great Little Book of Happiness is filled with tips on what we can do to improve our happiness and sense of wellbeing.

Energy circulation meditation 

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Clarity: why it’s a vital antidote to this mad world

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Clarity? In this crazy world of ours that seems rather remote, doesn’t it? Yet the parlous state of affairs we humans find ourselves in is down to one thing: our collective consciousness.

Loss of clarity is down to inner pollution

The natural quality of consciousness is pure but, like water or air, it can easily become polluted. Everything we think, say or do arises from it and contributes to the collective pool of humanity. As individuals, we cannot change the world, perhaps, but we can take care of our own consciousness. If life seems a bit of a jumble at times, it’s because we have a muddled state of mind. So what can we do?

Fulfilment and peace come through clarity

We have to restore clarity. Once we take a step in that direction, our lives immediately start to become a little more orderly and more pleasant. Well begun is half done, as the saying goes. A peaceful and clearer mind then actually becomes quite an attractive proposition. We find we don’t need to keep looking for things to do.

Stop looking

Constantly needing to be occupied is just habit. In fact, it is far better to identify what we don’t need to do. Doing less actually often does accomplish more. Seeking recognition or approval in any form is pointless. Yet so much energy is wasted on posting mundane activity on social media and wanting to be liked. It all just adds to the clutter, as do all those inspiring quotes and negative political messages. Let’s just enjoy some clarity instead. That will certainly help us, and it may go towards helping the world.

From the book The Art of Not Doing

Free guided meditations

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Thinking too much? Why it can make you ill

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Thinking too much
“Hmm… I should have thought of that.”

Thinking is a good thing, of course. If we didn’t think, we would get nothing done. There would never be any brilliant new ideas and there would be no education. Life would be a series of responses to basic needs and not much else. The ability to assess, calculate and learn is a staggering faculty that we take for granted. It is one of many aspects of a miraculous state called consciousness, though certainly not the only one. Thinking intelligently is a great gift, but most of us – and I most certainly include myself in this – suffer from unintelligent thinking. It is this that has the potential to make us ill.

Thinking without thinking

More than ever, there is a pressure in society to have an opinion on just about anything at all. It is so important, that corporations spend billions of pounds every year on ensuring that we do. Addiction to social media guarantees that at any given moment millions of people are expressing their opinions on this that or the other. Click Like if you agree. (No, please don’t – that was a joke.) The end result is that our minds are constantly active on things that don’t really matter. So how can this affect our health?

Too much focus can easily create tension

Energy flow

For good health, we need vitality. For that, our energy needs to flow easily through the body. When the flow of energy is blocked or restricted for any length of time, discomfort can build up, eventually leading to illness. We know if we are too sedentary or eat unwisely, there can be a negative impact on the body. But probably we don’t consider the effects on the body of our thinking.

Awareness, not thinking

The fact is that all our mental responses affect our energy circulation in some way. In short, too much thinking creates tension that interrupts the free flow of energy. Yet the nature of consciousness is not to be in a constant state of activity – it is to be aware. It really does pay to stop sometimes. Stop thinking and just be aware. It’s a treat for the body and a boon for the mind. Oddly, it’s great for our health, too.

How we can reduce unnecessary thinking is explored in my third book The Art of Not Doing. Available in print and on Kindle.

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