I’m a sucker for synchronicities. My father reminded me this week that when you experience synchronicities “you’re on the beam”, meaning you’re on the right path, doing what is meant for you.
Last newsletter I wrote about my appreciation for beauty. Seeking and enjoying the moments, sights, and experiences that bring me into a state of awe. Thank you to all those who sent me their beauty reports. I felt transported by your descriptions. In these wild times, I think it’s important to seek and appreciate beauty when we can.
I picked up a Krishnamurti reader this week, The Second Penguin Krishnamurti Reader to be accurate. In a chapter titled “The Only Revolution”, it moved between descriptions of India’s landscapes, interactions Krishnamurti had with students or visitors. I realized a few pages in that I was reading his beauty reports! The light on the hills, the sound of birdsong, the smell of the flowers outside his window. Peppered throughout these “reports” were Krishamurti’s thoughts on meditation.
“Meditation is not the pursuit of an invisible path leading to some imagined bliss. The meditative mind is seeing — watching, listening, without the word, without comment, without opinion — attentive to the movement of life in all its relationships throughout the day”.
What I realized is the act of being aware and observing what was around him was a form of meditation for Krishnamurti.
He goes on to say:
“Meditation is the unfolding of the new. The new is beyond and above the repetitious part — and meditation is the ending of this repetition. The death that meditation brings about is the immortality of the new. The new is not within the area of thought, and meditation is the silence of thought.
Meditation is not an achievement, nor is it the capture of a vision, nor the excitement of sensation. It is like the river, not to be tamed, swiftly running and overflowing its banks. It is the music without the sound; it cannot be domesticated and not made use of. It is the silence in which the observer has ceased from the very beginning.”
To add to this – through observation, we become present. When we take the time to truly see what is around us, we shift our focus from the past or future and become acutely aware of what is going on right here and right now.
Why is this important practice?
Through these types of practices, we can appreciate and therefore care for what is around us. We remain curious, without pressing our past experiences or anticipating what is to come. We observe with an open mind and heart, which has a calming and soothing effect on our beings.
During your next sit or before you start your yoga practice, may I offer that you take a few moments to observe what’s around you, the sights – colors & shapes, sounds, smells. Then when you’re ready, close your eyes and envision the space around you in your mind’s eye. And just sit in that image, in this room and quite simply be. If/when your mind wanders, as it may, open your eyes and take the room back into your mind’s eye. Do this for 10 minutes.
As always, if you’re so moved, report back with your findings.
From my heart to yours,
Clara
✨ Currently Diggin’ ✨
The Second Penguin Krishnamurti Reader
The Sudden Weight of Snow – Laisha Rosnau
The Subtle Body by Cyndi Dale
Savasana – music playlist
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