“To diminish the suffering of pain, we need to make a crucial distinction between the pain of pain, and the pain we create by our thoughts about the pain. Fear, anger, guilt, loneliness and helplessness are all mental and emotional responses that can intensify pain.”
- Howard Cutler
Week Two:
This week we begin to explore Mindfulness of Body - touching into our senses as a way to connect to present moment experience. Building upon mindfulness of breath, our “attunement” becomes stronger and we begin to experience the beauty of full bodily presence. We start to notice the difference between “direct experience” and the stories we tell ourselves about our experiences (i.e. the commentator, the soundtrack)
Week #2 - January 9, 2022
This Week’s Home Practice
Daily Sit: Continue your daily formal meditation practice. This week, I invite you to experiment with a different posture once or twice. You could try a standing meditation or a walking meditation. Feel free to use the mindfulness of breath meditations or just practice silence and turning toward the myriad of physical sensations within your body. There is also a Body Scan meditation provided that reinforces what we practiced in class. Practice discerning between “Direct experience” and the commentator.
Informal Activity: Continue your daily mindful activity if that feels supportive. Another informal practice to connect with your experience is called Grounding with your 5 Senses.
Supplemental Resources
Formal Practice: Walking Meditation Instructions by Tara Brach
Poetry: Your True Home by Jane O’Shea
Poetry: Enough by David Whyte
Poetry: Why I Wake Early by Mary Oliver
Poetry: Dreaming the Real by Linda France