Good morning! Welcome to the DKos Sangha weekly open thread.
This is an open thread for members of the DKos Sangha and others who are interested in discussions concerning how we integrate our progressive political activism into our spiritual practice. If you have observations about the political discourse of the week, or about practice, or about anything else related to walking a spiritual path through the political world, if you wish to share, or if you seek support, or if you simply want to say hello, please do; this space is for you.
If you would like to write a diary for the DKos Sangha, please let me know.
If you care nothing for spiritual practice and only wish to denigrate and disparage, please do so elsewhere, and respect that this is a community diary for the DKos Sangha.
Stillness. We use this word to describe the ordinary natural state of being that is who we are when the stories, the drama, the mindless chatter of thoughts, aren't covering over our experience. And yes, ordinary. There isn't anything extraordinary about stillness, other than the fact that most people are too caught up in the stories to experience it.
When the veil is first lifted, stillness can be a bit disorienting. Because we have accepted the "belief" that the running commentary in our mind is who we are, when that identification is broken and we experience our true nature, our natural state of being, it can seem profoundly different. Yet, over time, as our experience of stillness deepens, it becomes ordinary; nothing special. We still wash dishes, work in the garden, drive into town, meet with friends.
As our experience deepens, the drama dissipates. Everyday life becomes less unpleasant. It can take quite some time for the conditioning to fall away; but what conditioning does arise increasingly appears as just something to notice. The agitation, stress, annoyance, etc, gradually fade.
For most people this doesn't happen over night; it can take quite a while for conditioning to dissipate, especially those stories that are deeply entrenched within us. For instance, a relationship with a family member whom you've known most of your life can have a lot of energy and momentum; and it can take a lot of compassionate meeting with this conditioning when it arises within us for it to slowly fade away.
Awakening isn't linear; there are times of deep peace and times when things seem less clear. When reactive conditioning arises, even if identification is no longer there, we must still meet what arises with compassion.
But the stillness is always there. And the drama falls away. Life isn't some soap opera running through our heads with "me" as the central character. Life just is.
And within this stillness that is our natural state of being, as our experience deepens, we find an ever deepening connection with our fellow human beings, with this earth, with this universe. Within this stillness, we find joy.
It is nothing special, it becomes rather ordinary; it is who we really are.
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You are welcome to join us each week in our Monday night group meditation here at DKos Sangha. This online group meditation is hosted by Ooooh, and the diary is posted at 7:00 Eastern. So that we are able to be together for as many here at Daily Kos as wish to participate, the meditation period runs from 7:30 - 10:00. This group sitting is open to beginners and advanced, and is not restricted to any particular traditions or practices. It is not expected that you sit for the entire period; sit for as long as you like, when you like. The idea is that we are here together; supporting each other, holding space for each other.
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Enjoy your day!
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