Even in these days of COVID-19, our lives remain busy. We’re used to being busy, so if we don’t have a lot to do, we create something to fill our time. We keep busy all day, and before we know it the day has passed, and we did not take the time to meditate. Then we feel guilty, because we didn’t “get to it.”
You might look at life as being like a rock garden. We place certain large rocks in the garden that create the structure of our lives. The larger rocks are our main tasks – work, kids, housekeeping, preparing meals, shopping – anything that’s important to us. Then we fill in the spaces with smaller rocks, those things that are less important.
What if meditation were the biggest rock? We could place that meditation rock at the beginning of the day, the place where we first enter our rock garden. We can take the time to meditate, ground, and center before moving into the rest of the day. Once we have meditated, all the other rocks will fall into place. They will make more sense in the landscape of our life.
Meditation activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which turns on our creative juices. It centers and energizes us, helps us focus, connects the two hemispheres of the brain for better mental clarity, and so much more.
To take it a step further, you could create a Zen rock garden, either physically – in your yard or in miniature inside your home – or you could merely create this garden in your mind’s eye. The number of rocks you will need depends on your intention.
What is the intention for your life?
In Zen philosophy, it is thought that one can glimpse of the meaning of life in a grain of sand. Zen is about rediscovering one’s true nature. In doing so, we do not forget our lives, but we see them in a new way, one in which all things are possible.
Cultivating a Zen garden results in a harmonious arrangement of rocks and raked gravel or sand, a simple design that reduces the complexities of the day and helps you nurture inner calm and gain perspective. Like the design of a Zen garden, we strip our lives to the bare bones, so we can connect to our deepest nature, our Buddha nature.
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