Making Friends with Yourself

Do you read Parabola? It’s a lovely quarterly which characterizes itself as “where spiritual traditions meet.” Beautifully produced, thoughtful, deep, it’s not a throw-away rag but a journal of deep listening, deep thinking and deep writing.

In the Spring 2010 issue, there is an interview with Buddhist David Rome. Rome studied with Chongyam Trungpa Rinpoche for many years. He describes the master’s definition of meditation as “making friends with yourself, welcoming whatever arises.” What a great idea!

So many folks struggle with meditation. They tell me …

I can’t sit still.

I have no time.

My family interrupts me.

I can’t stop thinking.

There are a million, squillion reasons not to meditate. And just as many, plus one, to meditate. We live in a wildly whirling whirlwind of busy-ness most of the time. We’re overtired. We’re out-of-sorts. We’re pressed, stressed, depressed, a mess.

Meditation, regular, quiet stillness, solves all these problems and more. It gives you clarity about yourself, your life, your work, your relationships, your mission. All sorts of good things come from meditation. IF we’ll do it.

Whenever people tell me they have no time to meditate, I always ask (it’s a little graphic, sorry), “Do you pee?” (They all do.) Use that as your meditation time.

When they tell me they can’t sit still, I say, “Don’t. Walk.” (That’s two for the price of one! Meditation and exercise.)

When they tell me their thoughts won’t stop, I say, “Don’t try to make them. Drop down into yourself and let your thoughts be the tickertape above your head.”

When they say that people interrupt them, I say, “Meditating is a habit. Yours, and that of your family. Make new agreements.” (If you have small ones, teach them to meditate with you!)

The point is that meditation happens when you make time for it. And now you have the Rinpoche’s best reason for it!

When someone asks you why you meditate, you can say, “I’m making friends with myself.”

1 Comment

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  By Sherry, March 10, 2010 @ 10:52 pm

  When I least feel like meditating is usually when it’s needed the most. I enjoyed your post, especially the list of all the reasons one can’t find time. Daily meditation is not a have to now it’s a get to. I work for an HMO and I also get to teach meditation as a stress relief practice. I’m sharing some of my tools on my blog Daily Spiritual Tools and would love your feedback. Namaste, Sherry

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