Stillness: How to find it?

Let’s continue our discussion on becoming comfortable with stillness. Last week we talked about what stillness looks and feels like in our bodies and our minds. This week, we are going to ask the question how do I find (reconnect to) stillness? When I asked myself this question, two things came to mind- observing my body’s posture (how I hold my body) & my monkey mind (where does my mind go when I’m not paying attention).

The yoga practice is a great way to connect to your physical body and notice how you’re holding it. Our bodies can unknowingly take on and hold on to unknown stressors. So when we intentionally can put ourselves in physical postures that are relaxing, it gives us the ability to connect with that inner stillness. I’m reading The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying interpreted by Sogyal Rinpoche. This quote hit home for me-

“The masters say, ‘If you create an auspicious condition in your body and your environment, then meditation and realization will automatically arise.’ [To] talk about posture is not esoteric pedantry; the whole point of assuming a correct posture is to create a more inspiring environment for meditation. There is a connection between the posture of the body and the attitude of the mind. Mind and body are interrelated, and meditation arises naturally once your posture and attitude are inspired.” ~ Sogyal Rinpoche

So watch your body this week and notice if you can relax a little bit more into it. Release some tension and tightness throughout the day. This might translate to a release of tense or tight mental states so you can find or reclaim the sense of stillness. Also, watch the patterns and habits your mind goes into. This can help bring you back to stillness. Try not to get caught in the monkey mind that will take you off into very stressful and irritated states if not checked. Allow yourself to be the watcher of thoughts. This is a great quote-

“Be the silent watcher of your thoughts and behavior. You are beneath the thinker. You are the stillness beneath the mental noise. You are the love and joy beneath the pain.” ~ Eckart Tolle

We naturally want to go back to a state of harmony if we allow ourselves not to get caught in the tensions of our body and agitated states of mind. This is a practice we work on everyday. Some days it’s easier, some not so much… let the challenging days pass and focus on the days when stillness and peace comes more easily.

Tune in next week to continue our discussion and ask the question- “what challenges the stillness we have?”

With deep love and gratitude