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How much do you think is knowing of the body important?
misecmisc1
I am a HinduIndia Veteran
hi all,
we are in our body - this is ok, but regarding how the breath is flowing in our body, where is the tension in our body, how the breath as energy is flowing throughout our nervous system - how much do you think being in your body/knowing your body as it is functioning currently is important in your practice? any suggestions/inputs/ideas in this area please. thanks in advance.
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Comments
For me it is fundamental. Breath indicates the state my mind is in, especially if it is in a state. Tension in the body is related directly to mind tension.
Know thyself. Know thy Body.
I agree with @lobster. Very important to me for many reasons. Your body is the house of everything else (at least for now), knowing what it is doing and why has a big impact on the rest. Can't really have a gourmet kitchen if your walls and roof are caving in!
On a Buddhist level, it keeps that connection between mind and body strong. I find it invaluable for my meditation and for absorbing what I learn/teachings.
On a practical level I just find it fascinating. We can get in touch with our bodies to a degree we can have more control over what our cells are doing even. I keep a big journal where I keep track of everything, just because I like making connections between what I eat, how I sleep, the weather, even the moon phase, and what my body and mind are doing in connection with them. It's quite interesting.
Mindfulness of the body seems to be foundational in terms of the four frames of reference, an effective way of re-establishing mindfulness. Bodily sensation in particular, including the breath.
When my mind is with the body I feel more grounded and at ease. When my mind is not with the body usually it means that it's either wandering around, not focused, or not relaxed.
Bodily sensations are good meditation objects as they are arising and passing away. I.e. Impermance within this body that i perceive as 'I'. It shows I have no control over what is happening to it.
' ... how much do you think being in your body/knowing your body as it is functioning currently is important in your practice? any suggestions/inputs/ideas in this area..'
What about you @misemisc1? What are your own ideas about this? Your practice?
I think taking care of the mind/body team comes under the heading of self-care. How important is that?
Hmm. There are a lot of formidable practitioners before me who have declared it using such descriptors as fundamental, invaluable, and foundational. Usually I find that if people I respect have found a truth different than mine, then it is worth a second look. This response is coming before I do that. My internet service is terminal at the moment and would like to weigh in before it flat lines. FWIW, my internet service will be reincarnated within a couple of weeks.
Anyway, everything is my practice. Or at least I try to make it so. I awoke this morning late for our new job and the wife is out of town. It was only thirty minutes after I awoke that I remembered that my start time was self-imposed - I needed to be there by 8am this one day only...but I had planned on being there at 5am to save myself working in the heat which can be detrimental to my health.
I haven't heard the alarm to wake me since my wife left a week ago. Not once. I have left the phone on the bed so that I could talk to her in the morning before she started work for the day and I haven't heard it ring once. I've never miss calls from her due to sleeping...but I've missed every one this week. I've never been late due to oversleeping - even if the power goes off. I've woken up late every day this week. So, to be frank, I was angry with myself and frustrated beyond belief when I woke up. It doesn't help that I have a number of chronic pain conditions that hurt the worst first thing in the morning lowering my frustration level significantly.
And so, I immediately called the wife to let her know I was up and asked her to call work and let them know to save me a few seconds. My wife doesn't do well when she hears panic in my voice and I try to keep it to a minimum. I did poorly this morning. So, out the door I ran, stopping only to beat myself up...but within three miles, I stopped the mental pummeling.
I am not irresponsible. Therefore, anything I do that appears to be irresponsible must have a different reason behind it. You know, like my health. This job is so important to us, and it is my wife's dream job. I was so afraid that I may have jeopardized it for her. (I didn't) I was very afraid. Then there was the panic and anger at myself that she heard in my voice over the phone. I know that is hard for her - and I still did it. It was my best. My best stunk this morning. But now its stinking up the rest of the day. I am not a jerk (not my word but it's a family forum). My anger and frustration was out of my love for her. I thought I hurt her by getting up late. Then I realized, if I don't let this go, my attitude will not improve - that'll hurt her. Screw the heat, that was the hardest thing I did today - turning absolute frustrated fury and fear into acceptance and peace.
Boy that was long winded...and I didn't even make my point. Here it is:
When I notice my mind has gone off half-cocked, I don't pay attention to my body. There is only my mind.
When I am working with a horse, I don't pay attention to my body. There is only the horse.
When I am cleaning the stall, I don't pay attention to my body. There is only the stall.
That isn't to say that the mice running across the gaps in the boards don't get noticed, or the birds swooping down to steal a piece of grain from the horseless stall doesn't get noticed. That isn't to say that I am oblivious to the shooting pain moving up my spine either. But my attention gets brought back immediately to the task at hand.
Life is my practice. Sometimes I screw up. That is my practice too.
Holy lobsters! I was paying attention to this post and didn't pay attention to the clock. Gotta run, have fun.
Great Question!!
mindfulness of the body is the first of the "Four Foundations of Mindfulness" and I highly recommend you listen to or watch or if possible attend a talk on these because knowing them is truly enlightening
It's not difficult even, it just takes a lot of ... how would you say... checking-in.
Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche with some indispensable advice on body wakefulness:
Body awareness or mindful contemplation of the body is amazing because you connect more clearly with true information. You know, karma is like feedback loops and although there is "instant-karma" there is also the slow-grow jungle and being aware of your body is such an invaluable resource in coming to know Reality with a capital R.
The body is always with you during your life, so it's a great entranceway into gnosis.
Also, contemplating your body and feeling its sensations and activities is very healthy, and based on my preliminary research it looks like it accelerates and intensifies the growth and connective density of cortical mass (the base of your brain) to the point that you actually get smarter, your body gets healthier and faster at ameliorating/healing itself, and your ability to focus and gather your mind greatly improves. The reason being: your mind and your body are not separate, and although many of us spend most of our lives lost in thought, we can regain our sense of connection and inherit what is rightfully ours as human beings in a realm graced by a Buddha.
Reclaim your grace!
Also, although I have yet to listen to them (but am so delighted to find !) Amma Thanasanti Bhikkuni has some talks from a series "Class on Three Levels of Meditation"
http://dharmaseed.org/teacher/12/?page=3
Particularly, a guided body meditation which can be found at the following link.
http://dharmaseed.org/teacher/12/talk/25850/
My teacher taught me the importance of "occupying" my body.
I can travel outside, maybe to the future, or to places of dreams - or I can travel inside, maybe to past or my unconscious. If I forget to practice mindfulness, I can get stuck in these places.
When I begin the process of meditation (sitting, standing, doing dishes, whatever) I start to come back in - slowly my physical body is occupied more and more by my consciousness. I reclaim my space. I feel confident, at home, and relaxed, because I am, I am here, and this body is mine.
Buddhist enlightenment can be very head based. In other words we can open the height of mental knowing and still be trapped in a body of experience, words or other arisings ...
The poet Basho said: "Forget yourself. Become one with the universe and your music. Let it flow through you. No matter how perfect technically, if your expression is not natural and unselfconscious, your music won't affect others emotionally but will merely be your subjective counterfeit."
http://www.spiritual-minds.com/stories/zen.htm
Knowing the body is absolutely fundamental for we are strongly programmed to assume that the body is what we are or if not that, it is what we possessed.
I agree with all the above, knowing the body is really important. Before thoughts about things even occur, perception has already taken place.
You could be thinking of work tomorrow but the body/perception is allowing you to walk while your thinking about all sorts of things.
The pressure and right angles your muscles exert are all taking place. To be aware of this to be aware of the wonder the human body really is. Best auto pilot system in the world!