Mindfulness (And a Lil Siddhartha) Flashcards
Ways to find balance and peace, vs frustration.
All things change, things shouldn’t be a certain way. Find playfulness.
How did Siddhartha engage in life and business when he first came to Kamala and Kamaswami?
He treated it as a game. He learned the rules, and played, but winning and losing were equally satisfying.
What could Siddhartha do?
Think, wait and fast.
What happens if you take game seriously?
Desire status via job prestige, money, possessions. Leads to fear of not having those things.
What is Vipassana?
Observing your thoughts and emotions as they are, without judgement.
How does mindfulness help with negative emotions?
Choose how long to be with that emotion.
What is dual mindfulness?
Ability to concentrate, and be fully aware of what’s entering awareness, without judgement, or pushing away, but still aware of one’s self.
What is a singular mindfulness?
When the self drops away, and all that’s left is mindfulness, awareness of what’s entering via thoughts or perceptions.
What are thoughts?
Thoughts are the output of our minds algorithm. Animals have thoughts, but that doesn’t mean they’re conscious. It’s just like a sound entering our perception. We’re not our thoughts.
What does suffering trigger through mindfulness practice?
The ability to step back, observe and let it go.
How does consciousness relate to the self?
Through mindfulness, we can see that consciousness is free from the self. That we are not bound by our thoughts, emotions and perceptions.
The self is not an object, it is a
Continuous process, a flow of experience. We tend towards patterns, but we are not locked into any action.
How do we balance accepting the world as it is, and working to improve?
Accept this moment without suffering, while planning to improve and make ourselves and the world a better place.
