Practicing Mindfulness I and II 8

Practicing Mindfulness II

Remain mindful, even if there is a great deal in motion within you and around you.

• By means of a so-called body scan you can perceive your body mindfully. Start with your feet, the soles, and let your attention flow into every toe. Do you feel them? Now bring your attention to the arches of the feet, ankles, heels, and on from the calf and knee to the arms, fingers, neck, ears, nape, forehead, scalp, and top of the head. Can you sense yourself? What are you sensing right now? • Initially refrain from judgment. For instance, instead of thinking, “It’s bad, it really bugs me, my neck hurts,” observe the pain. Where is it located? What does it feel like? How does it react if you consciously breathe into the pain? Or when you or someone else places a hand on the aching spot? What can you do with your fingers, your breath, by stretching? Ask further questions of your own as you continue exploring. • A problem shared is a problem halved—share your experiences, ask others about theirs. • Get help if necessary. Go see a doctor or therapist if need be. • What feelings are you observing? • Don’t believe everything you feel! What desires, what fears seem vital to you? • What feelings tend to represent transient emotions, ego emotions, which sometimes cloud our vision, as do some of our thoughts? • And which feelings give you hints on what is really important now? Which emotions are like insights that heighten your perception and give you more vitality?