posted 5 Aug 2012, 18:12 by Akasharaja Bruton [ updated 12 hours ago ]
It may have come to your attention that there's an awful lot of sport about at the moment, particularly focused on a part of east London. What's more, whenever I come panting off the treadmill at the gym, there always seems to be quite a number of fit- and, on occasion, less fit- looking people exercising with expressions of grim determination on their faces. And of course on certain nights of the week the streets of Shrewsbury fill up with high-visibility runners pounding the pavements. Add to that yoga classes, zumba, Pilates and all manner of keep-fit opportunities, and you have to conclude that sport and exercise play a significant role in British life, even though health experts wring their hands at the rise in obesity and increasingly sedentary nature of modern life. I think it's a fair bet that even the most hardened couch potato wouldn't deny that certain things are good for you: exercising and eating well being two of them.
But, if it’s generally accepted that it makes sense to look after the body, there doesn't seem to be any such consensus that it's also good to look after the mind. Buddhism tells us that the mind and what it gets up to play a key role in determining whether or not we suffer. As it says in the Dhammapada, an early Buddhist text:
"The mind is frivolous and difficult to control, alighting on whatever it pleases. It is good to tame the mind. A tamed mind brings happiness".
If you’ve tried to meditate – you may know all about this. You try to settle the mind - say on your breathing - but it just keeps wandering off, losing itself in random thoughts, memories, future plans and preoccupations. After 20 years on the cushion, this still happens to me! This is because we fill our minds with input and we’re not always very discriminating about it! Just as a diet of junk food is bad for the body, junk input – like too much reality TV, or too much time spent on the computer, or dare I say, too much preoccupation with work - is bad for the mind and can result in agitation, stress and an inability to focus. As I’ve said, I am no stranger to this myself: part of my work involves maintaining a website, and I’ve spent long periods of time in meditation obsessing about how to create a nice navigation rather than actually meditating! What I need to do is to make sure that I take breaks and actually turn the computer off sometimes rather than compulsively going back to have another go. This is a classic case of input overload for me, but I imagine you have your own versions!
Anyway, the point is just as you need to watch what you eat, it's a good idea to watch what you let into your minds. Sometimes it's a good idea just to be quiet or to be out in nature, or to go to a gallery or read a well-written book.
And as well as attending to your mental diet, there's also the question of exercise for your mind.
This is where meditation comes in. Meditation is about training the mind, calming it and making it clear, supple and positive, so you can apply your attention to things that really matter. It's a bit like taking the mind to the gym.
Sadly, though, exercising the mind often gets only a fraction of the attention exercising the body does. But the good news is that meditation has gained a higher profile in recent years and these days there are classes and group that can help you get started.
If you’re not interested in meditation, that's fine. But it's always worth looking at the kind of input you subject your mind to - and the effect it has when you try to be quiet and focus on a single object for any length of time.
I know from my own experience that some of the most deeply satisfying moments come - for me - when I'm completely aware of - and alive to the moment I'm in, the beauty of the world around me.
So why not try it - sit quietly for five minutes – watch the chatter in your mind and see if it subsides. Do this a few times and you may be surprised how much better it’ll make you feel.
It may have come to your attention that there's an awful lot of sport about at the moment, particularly focused on a part of east London. What's more, whenever I come panting off the treadmill at the gym, there always seems to be quite a number of fit- and, on occasion, less fit- looking people exercising with expressions of grim determination on their faces. And of course on certain nights of the week the streets of Shrewsbury fill up with high-visibility runners pounding the pavements. Add to that yoga classes, zumba, Pilates and all manner of keep-fit opportunities, and you have to conclude that sport and exercise play a significant role in British life, even though health experts wring their hands at the rise in obesity and increasingly sedentary nature of modern life. I think it's a fair bet that even the most hardened couch potato wouldn't deny that certain things are good for you: exercising and eating well being two of them.
But, if it’s generally accepted that it makes sense to look after the body, there doesn't seem to be any such consensus that it's also good to look after the mind. Buddhism tells us that the mind and what it gets up to play a key role in determining whether or not we suffer. As it says in the Dhammapada, an early Buddhist text:
"The mind is frivolous and difficult to control, alighting on whatever it pleases. It is good to tame the mind. A tamed mind brings happiness".
If you’ve tried to meditate – you may know all about this. You try to settle the mind - say on your breathing - but it just keeps wandering off, losing itself in random thoughts, memories, future plans and preoccupations. After 20 years on the cushion, this still happens to me! This is because we fill our minds with input and we’re not always very discriminating about it! Just as a diet of junk food is bad for the body, junk input – like too much reality TV, or too much time spent on the computer, or dare I say, too much preoccupation with work - is bad for the mind and can result in agitation, stress and an inability to focus. As I’ve said, I am no stranger to this myself: part of my work involves maintaining a website, and I’ve spent long periods of time in meditation obsessing about how to create a nice navigation rather than actually meditating! What I need to do is to make sure that I take breaks and actually turn the computer off sometimes rather than compulsively going back to have another go. This is a classic case of input overload for me, but I imagine you have your own versions!
Anyway, the point is just as you need to watch what you eat, it's a good idea to watch what you let into your minds. Sometimes it's a good idea just to be quiet or to be out in nature, or to go to a gallery or read a well-written book.
And as well as attending to your mental diet, there's also the question of exercise for your mind.
This is where meditation comes in. Meditation is about training the mind, calming it and making it clear, supple and positive, so you can apply your attention to things that really matter. It's a bit like taking the mind to the gym.
Sadly, though, exercising the mind often gets only a fraction of the attention exercising the body does. But the good news is that meditation has gained a higher profile in recent years and these days there are classes and group that can help you get started.
If you’re not interested in meditation, that's fine. But it's always worth looking at the kind of input you subject your mind to - and the effect it has when you try to be quiet and focus on a single object for any length of time.
I know from my own experience that some of the most deeply satisfying moments come - for me - when I'm completely aware of - and alive to the moment I'm in, the beauty of the world around me.
So why not try it - sit quietly for five minutes – watch the chatter in your mind and see if it subsides. Do this a few times and you may be surprised how much better it’ll make you feel.