The Good Life

"But I'll tell you what hermits realize. If you go off into a far, far forest and get very quiet, you'll come to understand that you're connected with everything."- Alan Watts

Alan Watts, one of the great pioneers of western meditation practice taught realization of the natural state of pure awareness and the deep sensation of interconnection with all life.

In the early sutras they called this state Dhyana which is a state of full-body awareness in which the meditator is fully open to experiencing the changing flow of experience in the present moment.

Though this state of open awareness is our birthright and probably the true nature of lived experience, the demands of survival and social pressure have made us focus and train other priorities that can get in the way of this experience.This is especially true in the modern day world of speed, future orientation, and multitasking.

The difficulty of open awareness for a modern meditator is partly that our social conditions demand both constant consideration of the future, and rumination on the past. This is of course why people become monks, or hermits, or go on retreat in forests.

For the rest of us though, we have the challenge of participating in a way of living that is antithetical to living in the present moment, while attempting to do so ourselves.

This problem of managing an engaged practice has been a long interest of mine.
Watching a video last night on Alan Watts was very helpful because by getting another clear perspective on the end state I was able to consider it's relationship to the conditions that prevent us from being free to experience it...much less live it.

There are three snares of the mind that prevent us from being free to experience the present moment; anticipation, rumination, and ideation.

Anticipation is the particular vice of our high paced, forward-looking society. It is also based on ( and triggers) an anxiety/preparedness response in the the body. This places our minds and energy in a constant future orientation, thinking about, planning, and feeling future events.
Diffusing this pattern requires that we first practice Mindfulness of our thoughts, and feelings/physical sensations.
Whenever a thought of future anticipation arises (if it is not relevant to planning) we return our minds to the physical experience of the present moment. (this is pretty much what the Buddha recommended)

Similarly, the feeling/sensation of anticipation can be noticed arising in the body. For me this is a feeling of tightening, hyper alert rigidity and sometimes a sensation of leaning forward.

As with thoughts we can turn our minds to the living experience of the moment and we can also physically let go by releasing our muscles and deepening our breath.

When we get proficient at this we will be able to plan without anticipation. Whereas planning is the act of considering future options and actions, anticipation is the sensation of constricting the awareness energy and projecting it forward.
Instead of living now, we live as if the event were already occurring. Instead of experiencing relaxed alertness we experience anxiety.

Rumination is a similar experience where our thoughts and feeling/sensations replay past events over and over at the expense of the present moment.
There is a strong physical sensation in the body when we ruminate as well as when we anticipate. Research has actually shown that people lean slightly forward when thinking about the future, and back when they think about the past.

Awareness of the mind, (returning it to living experience when it wanders) and awareness of the body ( relaxing the tension from past events and opening to the sensation of the present.) anchor us in the living flow of experience.

Finally, avoiding ideation means preventing the mind from wandering into abstract thoughts "about" our experience. The same technique of Mindfulness applies; relaxing the physical sensation of striving and returning to raw perception of experience.

. First, we have to learn to physically and emotionally rest in the present moment which requires us to spend considerable time being attentive to the sensations of anticipation, rumination and speculation.

. Second we have to develope an increasing non-attachment to outcome which allows us to act without expectation.
This frees up our psychological energy to be where it is and experience the moment.
Easier said than done, especially under these challenging conditions.

There area few core beliefs that can be helpful protective factors:
. Learning to accept uncertainty and be fine with whatever life brings is a protective factor that can help this development. (serenity prayer)

. Faith in a higher power, or a universal purpose or pattern is also a protective factor.

. Ongoing practice of lovingkindness is another protective factor because it naturally creates a state of present centered awareness, generates relaxation, and activates the parts of the brain associated with bonding and empathy. This creates the ongoing sense of other and self being connected.

Finally, in this practice, our body is our best friend. Sensation can only happen in the present moment, so experiencing full embodiment serves as an anchor for our awareness.
The great Theravada master Buddhasa said "Do not do anything that takes you out of your body."

I think that ultimately the integration of awareness into full
embodiment in the present moment is the basis of the dharma,.
This can be done in the midst of the crush of modern civilization but will take both dedication and patience.