It's time, to Slow Down..................

IT'S TIME TO SLOW DOWN

One of the biggest lessons that I've learned (correct that . . . am still learning) from the Buddhist culture is mindfulness, a slowing down of our daily activities so that we can be fully present in all that we do. Our daily lives can be so full of activity that we can easily forget what we had for lunch two hours after eating it! The Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh and other great teachers have been spreading the message surrounding mindfulness for years. Now it is up to you and me to slow down and be "present" in all that we do. Become mindful of your next kiss . . . go slowly . . . of your next meal . . . eat slowly . . . slow down.

DOING THE DISHES by Thich Nhat Hanh, Buddhist monk from "Sunshine and Green Leaves" Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life

“To my mind, the idea that doing dishes is unpleasant can occur only when you aren't doing them. I enjoy taking my time with each dish, being fully aware of the dish, the water, and each movement of my hands. I know that if I hurry in order to go and have a cup of tea, the time will be unpleasant and not worth living. That would be a pity, for each minute, each second of life is a miracle. Each bowl I wash, each poem I compose, each time I invite a bell to sound is a miracle, and each has exactly the same value. If I am incapable of washing dishes joyfully, if I want to finish them quickly so I can go have a cup of tea, I will be equally incapable of drinking the tea joyfully. With the cup in my hands I will be thinking about what to do next, and the fragrance and the flavor of the tea, together with the pleasure of drinking it, will be lost. I will always be dragged into the future, never able to live in the present moment.”

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Love, david http://www.davidessel.com

Are You Looking For Inner Peace? Read on....

LOOKING FOR INNER PEACE? ME TOO.

Release the end result. Stay in the moment. Live each day mindfully. Be aware of your surroundings. Be open to small joys daily. Live in gratitude. Serve the world. In any instance, in any situation, do what Jesus would do. Or Buddha.

All of these statements, if pieced together, would lead us daily to a life full of inner peace. But, what is inner peace? To each of us, it might be slightly different. Have you ever paused and asked yourself what your concept of inner peace is? If we haven't, how will we know if and when we ever get there? Or even if we are close? As many wise sages, holy men and women have said from the beginning of time, the answers to our prayers may simply lie in the asking of the question, for if we do not regularly ask the question, we begin to live a life that is clouded, monotonous.

So, I ask you today, what does inner peace mean to you? What would your life look like, feel like, if each day was lived with a sense of peace? Focus on this question daily, for the answer may simply lie in bringing yourself back to this question every morning which will lead to awareness and inner peace.

To me, it seems that this search for inner peace is simply the search for our true, or our pure self. Did you ever stop to think that right now, what we are all searching for is already with us? The more we search and ask ourselves these questions daily, the closer we come to peace. For without slowing down our world, which unbeknownst to most of us we have total control over, we continue living on automatic, falsely believing that a life full of peace is something only the great religious chosen ones have access to. How sad and how untrue. We all have complete control of our reaction to any given situation, person or event. Peace, true inner peace, comes from knowing this truth and then acting on it.

Look at the way our wise elders in this country react to each day. The ones who have knowingly asked these questions are living peacefully in each moment in their gardens, woodworking shop, or just sitting. They have learned the futility of rushing, scrambling, fretting. They look at faces and pictures on the wall in the long line at the bank, while the rest of us nervously stare at our watches and worry about the time. Our wise elders have come to the realization that inner peace has been a choice all along, one we did not know we could grasp or snatch out of the air at any moment.

The wait in line will not speed up regardless of how agitated we become, so why do we go there? At any moment, we can choose a life filled with inner peace. Are you ready to question your outdated beliefs? Are you ready to let go of misconceptions? Follow the wise ones, the living sages today. Follow your own path starting in this moment to continual inner peace. Ask yourself the question daily, what would my life look like if it was filled with inner peace? Act on this today.

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If you believe this article can help someone you know, please pass it on.
Search. Grow. Love.

Love, peace, david

www.davidessel.com