Anxious Buddha

lobster

I'm always nervous, who knows what lurks behind the next door? How can we nervous people who are about to destroy the earth of greed, sit still, and watch our nervousness? We need patience and courage to look at ourselves. And from there choose the right path. Buddhists want to float to another place free from suffering, who knows where this is?

Good question.
How can we still @Shoshin gibbering chimp, @lobster crazyiness, the fragility of our emotions/body/mind/karma etc

Everyone has their cross vajra to bare.

So it is important to understand ones anger, logic, artistic licence, knowledge pride, empathy, lack of feeling etc. What are we really like? A simple overriding quality, a mixture?

Let us take anxiety/nervous energy. What will stabilise it? Here are a few suggestions:

• a physical practice, martial arts worked for me
• hypnosis, see youtube
• diet and supplements, regular b vitamin complex worked for me
• mantra, can be very calming
  https://oneminddharma.com/meditation-for-anxiety/

In the Tantric tradition that I was indoctrinated empowered with, the healthy use or sadhana is based around the utilisation of a quality ...

adamcrossley

I understand the picture, but... it’s horrible.

Where was your initial quote from?

lobster

@adamcrossley
It was from this thread
http://newbuddhist.com/discussion/25999/nervous-energy

Kundo

@adamcrossley said:
I understand the picture, but... it’s horrible.

Why is it horrible? I personally find it illuminating, but that’s just me.
????

federica

@adamcrossley said:
I understand the picture, but... it’s horrible.

I think it's more a case of understanding its significance and intended meaning, rather than seeing it just as an image...

Jeroen

Is that supposed to be the birth of the Buddha? I vaguely recall he was supposed to have come from his mother’s side, but then that appears to be the front of a man’s chest.

federica

The jewel is in the Lotus.
The Buddha is within us.

We just need to bloom to expose the Jewel.
We just need to reveal the Buddha Within.

adamcrossley

Yeah, as I say, I understand it. It’s just the actual image makes my tummy feel weird.

I’m generally a squeamish person.

federica

@adamcrossley said:
Yeah, as I say, I understand it. It’s just the actual image makes my tummy feel weird.

I’m generally a squeamish person.

(so you're not a paramedic then.... )

Vastmind

I’m currently experiencing anxiety and worry due to the government shutdown. (For any newbies, I work for the Feds)...anyway, I’m currently just learning to sit with it. If I notice my monkey mind going off, I start to verbally talk through it with myself. Some short as Mantras, and other times a full day of conversations, haha. It does help to be busy moving during the day. Cleaning and de cluttering spaces has made me feel like I’m accomplishing something and gets the physical energy out. I’ve also learned that I need to have more money in savings, so I’m more prepared next time. Just trying to stay in gratitude and reassure myself that impermanence can be a beautiful thing.

Shoshin

How can we still @Shoshin gibbering chimp,

Good luck with that

Mind you ...monkey mind is a useful tool/friend, if given the right task to perform...

Shoshin

It would seem that unbeknown to the unsuspecting mind one is in the habit of feeding monkey mind junk food/thoughts.... for example..

"I'm anxious and I ought not be anxious, but because I'm anxious ...I'm anxious because I'm anxious" one is continually growing, harvesting and eating the crap crop...

for when one put this self under siege, it will suffer . It will be so hungry and thirsty that it will eat its own dung and drink its own urine. AKA junk food...

Trying not to be anxiety when one 'is' anxious...is only feeding the anxiety...

In the long run and I do mean long run...being mindful seems to be the only sure fire way of overcoming an overthinking/overactive mind...it like a preemptive strike destroying the crop before it comes to harvest...

When one is not feeling anxious, practice mindfulness, ( not only cushion time) for example when one is cooking, cleaning, watching TV, going out for a walk or drive...tune into the present with a breath or two, explore what's going on inside, and after a while it should (with the right effort) become the norm...

At first monkey mind will put up a fight, ( hey it's been in control ( or should this be uncontrolled) for so long ...this is to be expected) but after awhile it will admit defeat and come to the party...

(Well breathing for most of us is a natural process...not much thought goes into it) ...However if one becomes more aware of the breath this will take the attention away from the thoughts and onto what is actually felt

Like most things it is easier said than done...but not impossible if one puts one's mind to it....

Shoshin

@lobster said:

>

This reminds me of this ...

Perhaps there's a connection.... .:)

lobster

@Vastmind said:
Just trying to stay in gratitude and reassure myself that impermanence can be a beautiful thing.

In the higher abstractions of dharma practice, Nothing to be grateful for, beatified or beautified. However for us dharma mackerel and other fishy types still swimming with the schools, always move to the greater and lesser good according to capacity ...

Cue the D Day for far shore advice ...