Everyday Dharma
Finding a way to fit practice into daily life.
Q. How can I fit Buddhist practice into my daily life? I hardly have time
to meditate or study Buddhist scriptures. Where do I find the time and space?
A:This
is a very important question. It is something we each face, every day--especially
in this speeded up culture of ours. We each have 24 hours in a day. It all depends
on how skillfully we manage to allot and utilize that time. It is not unlike trying
to add an exercise regimen to one's daily schedule. We have to actively make the
time for it, on as close to a daily basis as possible; And if we miss some days,
committing to getting to it three to five times a week year-round still fulfills
the purpose.
We can also try to allocate a "Sabbath," a whole or
half day on the weekend to practice, to join a regular meditation group or class.
We can also go now and then for a weekend or longer retreat away from home. But
fundamentally, it is our personal daily spiritual practice that helps us develop
the most in the long run.
One good way to create time for a regular spiritual
practice--such as daily meditation, prayer, chanting, tai chi or yoga--is to do
it at the same time in the same place every day. This kind of self-discipline
helps create both a regular habit and a comfort zone, once your practice gets
going. It will also help if you have comfortable, familiar, loose fitting clothes
that you use just for practice. Getting up a little earlier in the morning can
further help massage your daily schedule and other responsibilities into alignment.
I like to do my meditation and chanted prayers every morning when I wake up. And
having someone to practice with spurs you to do it when the getting gets tough--showing
up is more than half the battle.
People usually think that practice means
doing something quite special, like going to church, reading scriptures, praying
and meditating. Of course these are religious activities and can help cultivate
genuine spirituality, and even spiritual activities, but true spirituality is
much broader, richer and deeper than institutional ritual. It also has an "everyday,
every moment" dimension that is crucial to following the path. According
to the New Testament, "the Kingdom of Heaven is within." Buddhist scriptures
tell us that "Nirvana can be found right here and now." And a 12th-century
Tibetan adept, Padmapa Sangyay, exhorted that everything we need can be found
within.
Buddhism shows us how to exploit those innate resources by cultivating
mindfulness in every action throughout the day--"meditation in action."
This kind of attention helps us to be more mindful, wakeful, conscious and aware
every moment of everyday life, so that we are fully aware of reality just as it
is. This miracle of mindfulness transports us beyond our selfish, egocentric concerns
and ourselves, making us better people and bringing us an intimate sense of kinship
with everyone and everything.
Beyond explicit religious practices, even an
experience as simple as taking a walk can become a spiritual action. Buddhist
monasteries in Asia alternate sitting meditation periods with walking meditation,
placing equal emphasis on both. Identify mundane activities like this in your
life, where a spiritual connection naturally occurs, and utilize them regularly.
For me it is walking; for you, it might be dancing, singing, knitting, or some
other form of creativity or work.
Buddhism teaches us how to slow down and
simplify our lives, which in turn helps clarify and focus our energies and our
minds. We can learn to integrate mindful living into daily life through bringing
our conscious, intentional attention to such daily activities as washing the dishes
or eating. In mindful eating meditation, we eat one raisin or one tangerine section
at a time, thoroughly and completely, while letting go of all extraneous plans
and ideas and just concentrating fully on experiencing every single taste, fragrance,
physical sensation, and thought attached to the process.
Seclusion and withdrawal,
I believe, are no longer the name of the spiritual game today. Rather, it is about
inclusiveness and integration with daily life. Few of us will go off to remote
caves, deserts, or mountain hermitages; and if we do, it won't be forever. It
is good to cultivate spiritual life intensively as I did in a Tibetan cloister
for years, but you still have to live in this world, even if not totally of it.
Everyday life is the Way. It is up to us to walk it, step by step. When the mind
is free and the heart is at peace, every day is a good day.