hilitehead

Yet another busy but very adventurous Sunday for me today from meditation at the Boston Shambala Center, to a much deserved body massage at the Happy Feet Spa in Chinatown. And even amid the freezing weather today, I kept in high spirits. I feel like I have a much higher appreciation for Boston now that I’ve seen most of the neighborhoods, and its finally starting to sink in that I’ve built a home away from home.

But I would have to say the biggest highlight of the day goes to a man I met at the Shambala Buddhist Center. Every Sunday, the center hosts free group meditations called Nyinthun’s consisting of group chants, sitting and walking meditation. And during a break, one of the Shambala instructors gave me a short one-on-one session on how to properly meditate followed by his wonderful insight on how the practice of meditation can benefit our daily lives. Being a beginner, the most challenging part about meditating for me is focusing on the breath. I always feel helpless and a bit frustrated when my thoughts start to wander a millions miles a minute. But the instructor reminded me today that since thoughts will always arise, the point lies in awareness, awareness of our actions just as the Dalai Lama states; awareness of the moment one notices our mind shifting its focus from the breath to the thoughts. Then remains the pivotal question of how one should respond to this feeling of awareness – should one feel frustrated or at ease…and how would each affect our well being?

And so after our talk, I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders since he was simply acknowledging the fact that we are imperfect and that’s okay. The key then remains in acceptance, as it brings about an end to the battle within bringing about peace and serenity with oneself.

On that note, check out this video: