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Energy: how to improve it for personal and spiritual development

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fiery energy

Energy matters almost as much as our thoughts.

In our quest for peace, clarity and enlightenment, we cannot afford to ignore the energy factor. If the energy of the body is free, the body is aligned and the nervous system is in good condition, our consciousness becomes clearer and more at ease.

Energy and posture

Many teachings on meditation stress the importance of keeping the body in good condition. Maintaining a straight back when sitting for meditation is an example of posture being important. We know from our own experience that if we do things that are not good for the body – maybe overworking, eating late or getting insufficient sleep – we can feel pretty rubbish. Unwittingly, we cloud our consciousness and stir it up.

Winds that change us

This is partly to do with the nervous system and the brain but is also due to the fact that what we call the mind is a play of energy. The Tibetan tradition refers to such movements as winds. This term which helps us to understand that if there is movement in one place, there is an effect in another. There are winds or subtle energy movements both in the body and in the mind. Movement in one causes movement in the other.

Presence, energy and breath

What does this have to do with mindfulness and presence? Two things:

Firstly, by practising mindfulness and continually bringing ourselves back to the breath and to the present moment, the mind becomes calmer. As a result, the energy of the body changes so that we actually begin to feel better. The winds within the body flow more easily and there is less tension and less stress.

Better sleep and improved health

Sleep improves as we become more settled within ourselves. We focus more clearly and our actions during the day are more effective. As the body becomes more comfortable, health tends to be better. With the improved sense of well-being, the body becomes a more supportive vehicle for our consciousness. We work with the mind, which improves the body, and the body, in turn, supports the mind and consciousness. We have more physical and mental energy.

Being fully present

energy listeningThe second point is that with energy comes presence. We can only be fully present if we gather our energy. If someone is speaking to us, we can only listen properly if we offer the speaker our full presence. That means we are focused but also relaxed and receptive. Our consciousness is clear, we are connecting with the other person and with what they are wanting to communicate to us.

The same principle applies to absolutely everything we do. We have to give our full presence to it, not by throwing every last drop of energy we have at the task in hand but by being relaxed and applying ourselves in a balanced way.

Mindfulness is balance, and vice versa

So balanced energy, a balanced life and presence all arise naturally from the practice of mindfulness. Then we hit the vital point by sowing the seeds for a happy, purpose-filled life.

From The Art of Not Doing

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Breathe! How to make yourself come alive

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Breathe in, knowing you are breathing in. Breathe out, knowing you are breathing out.

This injunction, said to come from the lips of the Buddha, is the instant recipe for bringing us, the mind and the body, together. It’s so simple. We know our minds are full of senseless chatter and we know, too, that we waste extraordinary amounts of energy chasing after rainbows – the gewgaws of modern existence. Yet we can cure much of that – all we need to do is stop and be still.

Breathe or not to breathe consciously

It’s funny, isn’t it? On the one hand, we can live without food for long periods and can even manage without water for a considerable time. There may be discomfort but there’s nothing life-threatening about short periods of hunger or thirst. On the other, breath is so vital that the absence of it can very quickly lead to unconsciousness, and possibly death.

In spite of that, we let our breathing take place in the background. “Breathing in, I didn’t notice. Breathing out, I didn’t notice that, either.” It’s an automatic process. So why should we bother to pay any special attention to it?

There are two main reasons:

  1. Being aware of the breath is good for your body and vitality
  2. Your mind becomes clearer and stronger

Conscious breathing strengthens the body

Few people breathe well. Most breathe in a fairly shallow way, where the air circulation is mainly in the top of theBreathe lung capacity lungs. As we age, there is a tendency for lung capacity to reduce year on year, unless we do a lot of cardiovascular training or practise an art such as yoga, pranayama, qigong or tai chi. Reduced lung capacity is often associated with weakening of the body and poor health.

When we breathe consciously, there is a natural deepening of the breath. It isn’t necessary to do deep breathing exercises as such (although they can be enormously beneficial) – just bringing the awareness onto the inhalation has an effect.

…and calms the mind

How we feel from moment to moment hinges largely on the state of our mind. If the mind is erratic or cloudy, we don’t normally feel brilliant. But when the mind is calm, our window onto the world is clearer. Inside, we are more settled.

When we breathe consciously, the mind is naturally more peaceful. It can take a while, but it happens. This is particularly so on the out-breath. The inhalation calms the body, the exhalation calms the mind.

Body and mind at home together

Much of our chasing about in daily life is a wonderful way of avoiding who we are. The body may be here but the mind is not at home. To reverse this, we simply have to stop for a few moments. Notice the breath. Breathe and enjoy the feeling. Enjoy being with yourself. A few breaths will work wonders – and then we can carry on.

Over time, we may notice that during activity, we are conscious of the breath most of the time. That’s a longer project. Every now and again throughout the day, with awareness we just stop and breathe. Then we become present in our body and we are at home.

Doing too much? Take a look at The Art of Not Doing

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  4. Rest: how to get what you really need

Rest: how to get what you really need

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Rest is not something we talk about very much, is it? We just keep on keeping on, like the rabbit in the Duracell advertisement. Rest, after all, is for wimps, the aged and the infirm. Real men and women keep going. The secret of success, whatever that is, is to push yourself and then push some more. Or at least, that’s the message that often comes across for aspiring high-achievers. So we become a little conditioned to the idea that rest is for the idle. Feeling guilty if we are doing nothing is the usual result.

Even nature has a rest

The trouble is, we lose touch with our own natural cycles. From where I’m writing this, I can see trees. Lots of rest treetrees. The funny thing about the majority of these trees is that at this time of year, they take some time off. And they don’t seem to have any emotional hang-ups about stopping and having a break. The leaves change colour and fall to the ground. There is much beauty in this and nobody has a go at the trees for being lazy.

Less than an hour’s walk from here are oak trees that are hundreds of years old. Centuries of growth and rest have ensured these mighty trees continue to flourish. There is enormous power in knowing how to be still, and nature knows this very well.

Cycles of activity and rest

Because our minds are so busy and our emotional side so complex, it is easy to lose touch with our natural stillness. Natural patterns of life fade and lose priority. But everything in nature has a cycle of activity and rest.

Our bodies require rest as well as exercise, and our minds do, too. For sure, we can keep going when we are tired. Most of us have to. But we also need to listen to what our body (including the brain) is telling us. If we ignore fatigue, nothing works as well as it should. A motor car might run without servicing and maintenance for a long time. For reasons of economy, many car owners run their vehicles in this way. It can be done. But eventually, things wear out. The car breaks down.

Isn’t sleep enough? Meditation can supercharge you

If we enjoy good quality sleep at night, we get several hours of rest. But sleep isn’t always enough in this noisy and hectic world of ours.

We can also experience a better quality of profound rest consciously from a short but regular meditation. It may be a simple one, such as sitting quietly observing the flow of the breath. Or we may use a mantra or visualisation. Whatever meditation we do, it will give our minds and bodies the nourishment of very deep rest. This is not instead of sleep but a natural adjunct to living a full life. Many people find that meditation improves sleep as well as our waking hours.

rest mindfulBut I don’t have the time to do that

Meditation changes the quality of life but for some people it seems too far a leap. The usual reason is being too busy. (Refer to the first paragraph!) For those who are too busy, there is an easy practice that anyone can do, whether they meditate or not. Stop. Stop what you are doing for a minute or less. Turn the computer screen off. Put your pen or book down. Whatever it is you are doing, take a break for a few conscious breaths. Notice the breath as you breathe in and as you breathe out. Do it once, then a second and third time. Maybe once more for luck. It’s important that you stop to do this and breathe. That’s all. And it works.

More like this in The Art of Not Doing – How to Achieve Inner Peace and a Clear Mind

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Stillness: why it is vital for your health

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Stillness is with us all the time. It is not a product of meditation or Stillness Tibetanything else. We may practise meditation, yoga, or taiji, or lose ourselves in art, music or gardening. If we are lucky, we may experience some stillness. But these disciplines and pursuits are not responsible for that – they simply lead us back to our natural quietness. The quietness never leaves us. We just choose not to remain with it.

Stillness for health and wellbeing

Activity can be addictive. It is so much easier to distract ourselves by being constantly busy than to be still. When we are still, we have to face ourselves. That can be uncomfortable so we have become very adept at avoidance. If we can’t find something to do, we look for entertainment of some sort. Even the small pleasure of a cup of tea or coffee with a friend seems to require an examination of smartphones these days.

This can cause problems for our sense of wellbeing because the mind never rests. Some agitation is always there and the body constantly responds to our fluctuations in mood. Breathing, heart rate and blood pressure alter as our thoughts and emotions vacillate.

Unnecessarily, we wear ourselves out. Sleep patterns are less natural and fail to refresh us fully. Many modern diseases result from stress but we still keep piling it on. If this sounds a little bit grim, it is. But we can reverse the process.

Stillness is more than doing nothing – it’s an art

If we try to sit and do nothing, the mind will wander. From sheer habit, the mind grasps at some things and rejects others. The winds – the subtle energies of the body – reflect the chaotic patterns of thought. Emotions and feelings rise and fall. If we’re tired, we may drift off into sleep. Stillness, however, eludes us. Either the mind is too busy or it descends into fog.

Teachings abound on methods of training an erratic mind to come to a state of clarity and stillness. The modern way seems to be to keep going from one set of teaching or guidance to another. This is no good. Acquiring a skill takes time. It requires patience. The mind needs plain food, not an elaborate buffet that we keep picking at until we have too much.

Stick to one path

Find a way that suits you and stick to it. And keep on sticking to it. Don’t veer off course. We may be tempted to try something else. Someone may offer this teaching or that. When that happens, look at the mind that is thinking that way and don’t move. Gradually you will learn the art and become fully acquainted with your own innate stillness. And you will know that happiness and wellbeing are present here and now.

More on finding the path to stillness can be found in The Art of Not Doing

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Compassion: 4 reasons it’s good for you

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The incredible, dynamic nature of compassion

Compassion is extraordinary. The transforming effect it can have is so powerful that it can change an individual for the better for the rest of his or her life.

Compassion has the power to change because it is dynamic. It releases something within us and unleashes energy that alters our perceptions and the way we think. It breaks down blockages of energy in our system and brings a sense of fulfilment that nothing else quite equals. We sometimes talk about the amazing energy of love; compassion takes that a step further.

Why wise compassion brings joy and completeness

In essence, we are not separate from anything or anyone else. At the deepest level, there is no “else”. As we move a little closer to realising thatcompassion globe in life, barriers and prejudices in our thinking and in our communications begin to dissolve. As they do, we feel more complete.

What is compassion? It is a loving, deep awareness of the needs of others. More than that, it is coupled with a spontaneous desire to remove others’ suffering. It is an attitude of total selflessness, yet it brings immense benefits.

Four reasons we need compassion

  1. Compassion liberates us. It gives us freedom because we have to let go of self-interest. In energy terms, that means we let go of all clinging or grasping and as we do that our energy channels become more open. We release mental and emotional tension and consequently physical tension, too. We feel freer in ourselves because we focus less on our own problems or what we perceive as our problems. As we do that, they fall into perspective and shrink in importance.
  2. Compassion helps us in our relationships because we become less concerned with what we want out of them. The same principle applies whether it is a close, personal relationship or a business one, for example. Outwardly, our behaviour may not change very much. The important thing is our attitude. Our view of the relationship will be easier and often the other person will sense we are easier with them. Sometimes we may see a difficult relationship in a different light. For example, we may have been straining to be liked and discover we can let go.
  3. Compassion can benefit our health. Both physical and mental health will tend to improve as we let go and start to give of ourselves more easily. The brain produces more endorphins and so we feel happier. As a result, the immune system tends to be stronger and the quality of life improves. The prospects of life being shortened by stress are much reduced. We could say, therefore, that compassion is good for health, for quality of life and for longevity!
  4. Compassion develops the heart energy centre. The heart centre or chakra unfolds as we develop our spiritual qualities. As it does so, energy to the other chakras in a very natural and safe way. Those who try to “open their chakras” by artificial means are often beingcompassion heart circle misled by those who really ought to know better. Artificially trying to force our energy centres to open rarely works satisfactorily. It is always safe to work with the heart centre by developing the qualities of love and compassion. The results are strong and stable.

Compassion needs wisdom, too

These wonderful results come from wise compassion. Being compassionate does not mean being soft or being a do-gooder. A truly compassionate person is strong, stronger than most in fact, and is not easily manipulated. The compassionate person can say no when necessary. He or she doesn’t have a hidden agenda which demands that they need to please the other person. True compassion requires honesty and truthfulness. That doesn’t mean we have to be blunt. If to tell someone the truth is going to them pain, the compassionate person will strive to reduce that hurt to a minimum and will know not to say anything at all if it isn’t necessary.

To know which is right takes wisdom and wisdom comes from being in touch with our own nature. This doesn’t happen overnight. Developing true wisdom and compassion is a task for life. But every step on the way brings us closer to completeness and being a better, and more useful, human being.

From The Secret Power of Compassion, chapter 7 of The Great Little Book of Happiness

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