How to get away from the drunk guy at the bar

Sometimes I see my own mind as that drunk guy at the bar who wants to engage you in conversation. Very opinionated, a bit intense, judgemental, but underneath it all just lonely and needing someone to talk to.

And talk to you he will do. “You and me, buddy, together we’ll … blah blah blah … “

You look for the exit, someone to save you, some other conversation to be had … and nope, everyone has vanished so you’re left politely nodding, focussing on the carpet, hoping and praying for a chance to get away.

The mind is an excellent tool and a terrible drunk.

You need to consider that what your own mind says isn’t that rational, all of the time.

If you watch it for a while I think you might agree.

Yet you constantly let it in, you give it an opening.  You refer to it all the time: “what do you say, drunk guy at the bar?”

It’s one of the few things you can absolutely change in this world - your relationship with your mind.

Treat it as an option, not the truth, just an opinion.

Be aware of your mind’s addiction. Don’t let it ceaselessly ramble on and on.

Now, you don’t need to force it to stop. No force is required.

Just simply become more aware of what is happening. In that awareness, in noticing the mind but not giving any energy to it, it creates a sense of space.

If you can be aware of your mind it means you are not it.

This space means the option to listen or not is easier, more obvious, ok?

But it is something you have to practice. It is an addiction, something you need to wean your mind off.

Well worth it though. You know those times when your mind is sober - sharp, intuitive, clear, calm.

Living with a mind like that is worth everything. The relief from the constant chatter alone is one thing.

So practice. Learn to meditate. Even better, learn the simplest and most effective method of meditation I think the world has ever seen (personal opinion, of course).

Come over and learn the Bright Path Ishayas’ Ascension. Next course here in the North East - where you can come stay and make a little retreat of it - is early April, so you have plenty of time to organise yourself.

It’s worth its weight in gold. If it had a weight.

Go well - stay away from the sauce.

The one vital - yet simple - key to perfect meditations

I saw a funny guided meditation this morning, and it reminded me of something extremely valuable.

It’s called, and I apologise in advance for the profanity, “F**k It” meditation.

I only write about it, not because I rejoice in crassness, but it serves a valuable teaching purpose.

Or something like that.

But anyhow… what a wonderful attitude.

How wonderful if you applied that attitude to your own meditation practice…

What if you just stopped doing, trying, scrambling, for anything?

That’s the whole purpose of meditation - to give yourself a moment to do nothing.

Nothing at all.

How often do you do nothing?

That’s right - not enough.

But it’s easy to bring a “get there faster” achievement mentality to meditation.

I know that, having a background in sports, there is a certain amount of “just do it… yesterday” attitude around.

“If I was doing it right there wouldn’t be all these thoughts”

“If I was doing it right there I wouldn’t get distracted”

“If I was doing it right, a lotus would grow as my seat, and celestial beings would come and massage my shoulders”…

So meditation is the opposite of that.

It is giving up the right.

It is giving up the wrong.

It is indeed saying “F**k It” to everything.

It is doing nothing, but doing nothing with a purpose.

That purpose is in this moment to just gently notice everything.

You see when you give up, you stop focussing on the thing you think “should” be happening, and just let everything happen.

When you let everything be there, you notice more.

You widen your focus. You allow everything to come and go.

You get perspective.

Your body rests. Your mind rests deeper than ever before (even if you don’t realise this is happening)

You don’t cling to the one thing, you let everything.

You become the ocean.

(that’s spiritual talk that is)

So when you sit down and close your eyes today - stop achieving, searching, hunting.

Do nothing. Even say “F**k It” if it helps.

You may believe you can’t meditate, or that it’s difficult. But everyone can do nothing. Everyone can give up trying.

Close your eyes, and simply notice what there is to notice.

If you know the Ascension techniques, wait, just notice - what’s the hurry, huh? and then introduce one. See what happens.

You have it good - they do everything for you,

They “disapparate" (told you I was reading Harry Potter) the clinging to an outcome, they guide you to the truth of the matter.

Whatever you do, just do nothing.

And reap the rewards.

Meditation is selfish? (Or where resistance to being awesome comes from)

Meditation is selfish? Really?

oh well, you are doing it for yourself, not for them. Don’t care what anyone says, unless it’s your partner, then you might want to take some time to explain. And make up by doing extra to help…

The thing is as soon as they see how better you are as a person, they will be shoo-ing you to your meditation chair.

And if they’re not - well, that’s a little different.

You’re probably aware of resistance within yourself. Funny thing, it happens all the time when you break out a new idea or a plan to better yourself.

There’s internal resistance - you know! The voice in your head, the doubt or uncertainty that all of sudden appears; and then there’s external resistance.

External? From your loved ones. They can feel threatened (even if they don’t consciously know it) because you’re pulling off the handbrake and not compromising in some way.

Because you’re not compromising any more, it means they feel they’ll have to start doing the things they know they “should” do. Should in a good way, btw.

Interesting huh?

Sometimes some people are happier when you don’t do anything great.

Because then they have an excuse “well he’s not, so I don’t have to either”. That excuse gets blown out of the water when you actually do.

As always, expect the resistance and do it anyway. Don’t care about anyone else, and support your loved ones as best you can. But still do it.

The only approval you need is your own, because your goals are your own; because you are the one that has to live with your own head.

You are the one that has to live with their own awesomeness - or not.

The secret to never getting stressed

Do you know anyone who doesn’t get stressed?

Over anything?

The secret to never getting stressed is a simple one.

It’s not that these people don’t care, it’s not that anything isn’t important to them, it’s just that they know what the absolutely most important thing is to them.

What is the most important thing to you?

Keeping that as a priority means that nothing is worth losing that important thing.

Nothing is worth stressing over.

Those people who don’t seem to get stressed?

They know this.

They have a sense of perspective.

They know when to give up and let go.

They would rather be happy than right.

They know life can only be lived right now.

They know how to do one thing at a time.

They know life is too short to struggle, to get stressed.

All these things means they laugh a lot more - when things don’t go according to plan, when they do something silly.

Can you do these?

Yes, yes you can.

It’s just a matter of practice.

Meditation gives you the ability to do all these things.

To enjoy this moment fully.

To not get stressed.

To put things in perspective.

To laugh a lot more.

Have you meditated today?

If you don't know how, just sit comfortably with your eyes closed. Notice the breath. If you like count them up to 10, then start again. Or notice your thoughts - count them as well if you like.

If you know how to Ascend you have it so easy. I promise.

You don’t realise how good you have it when you know the Bright Path Ishayas’ Ascension.

You just have to do it.

Regardless - Be present - be here, now. It’s the only way to live.

Honestly.

And it’s only a matter of practice.

Questions? Let me have them. I'm here to help.

Meditation is your natural state...?

Did you know that the meditative state is your natural state?

I know… hard to believe.

But not the state you might think of, the one where the guy with a bald head and saffron robes is crosslegged on the floor in a cave.

But the state of being totally alive.

Totally aware. Completely at ease. Calm, centred, capable.

Free of drama, struggle, self-doubt.

Free of regret and worry.

If it is your natural state to be like this - then it should be natural to live like this continually, no?

It is just a habit not to.

Just a habit.

The practice to get back to it?

That’s right - closing your eyes, and meditating.

You don’t have to sit on the floor, be comfortable. If you can’t be comfortable you’ll be thinking about your body all the time, and that’s a pain.

Give yourself ten minutes and simply observe everything.

If you wish, try gently noticing the breath as it comes in and out, in and out.

Fight nothing, resist nothing, accept and allow everything.

If how you meditate isn’t working - don’t throw the baby out with the water.

Not all meditation techniques are created equal.

Find a teacher who is alive and at peace.

Get them to teach you a quality tool.

I think you know what I would suggest …

I would personally learn the Bright Path Ishayas’ Ascension, except I’ve already learnt.

No matter.

Take ten minutes for yourself. You will come to love it.

Why not start today?

Why the Army are learning to meditate

I love my life.

Just had a fine weekend - taught a Bright Path Ishayas’ Ascension course to a full house.

I love knowing that it doesn’t even matter how well I teach - if someone practices the techniques they are going to have so much come to them.

An end to struggle, stress, self doubt and self-sabotage?

I’m not sure what could be better than living life without such a load.

Ascension just gives you everything you need to rise above all of this, so simply, so effortlessly, it’s ridiculous.

This morning I’m getting ready for another course, one that I’m super excited about.

Jumped on a train last night, and here I am in Kent.

I have three days with the British Army - some bomb disposal guys are coming in for some time.

You think you have a stressful job?

If you’ve ever seen the movie “The Hurt Locker” you might have an idea of what stress is.

I’m excited because I know if these guys practice what I teach, they will come to a place where they have some tools and develop some habits so they can stay cool and clear regardless what they’re faced with.

There was some stats a while back that suggested there were more deaths amongst soldiers from suicide than in combat.

I don't know why this is so, but I know where ever there is stress, Ascension will help.

It doesn't make problems go away, it just makes things clearer. It puts things in perspective.

If someone were to keep practicing - and I've seen this in so many people over the years - the continued growth in clarity and perspective means that stress can become a choice.

Problems become challenges, not stress inducing nightmares.

How wonderful.

I’m excited because meditation has been used for literally thousands of years and finally we’re starting to catch up.

I’ll tell you all about it later when we’re done.

Til then just know, just have it as a possibility in your mind that stress could be optional.

Struggle could be needless.

You can have everything you want, and be free of all suffering, any anguish, any stress at all.

Wouldn’t that be nice?

How closing your eyes changes other people.

Did you know that your meditation practice changes other people?

There have been various studies done on the correlation between populations of meditators and statistics like crime rates.

Transcendental meditation even used to have a crack squad of elite meditators who would fly into conflict zones, for example, to bring more harmony and peace.

I’m not sure if they still do that,  but the stats in the studies are significant and have been repeated.

Google something like "meditation and crime rate" if you don't believe me.

The fact is you don't even need to leave home.

I was involved in an informal one the Ishayas did about ten years ago together with a contact in the police department of a major US city.

We were in BC, Canada at the time.

We also found - in a city many hours from where we were - a big drop in crime rates, especially amongst violent crime.

The only rate that didn’t go down was speeding.

Given the Ishayas at the time were heavily into go-karting on their time off, we got wondering…

There are various theories as to why this happens, some more outrageous than others, but for me the fact is meditation gives me so much. When I’m solid, when I’m calm and clear and content, everyone around me has the chance to be solid.

If there is also some unseen fringe benefit to the people around me, well, that's just great.

Maybe I should start charging for the calm and clarity influence…?

Set up a “I meditate so you don’t have to” business?

Don’t steal my idea.

When stopping means you actually go forward

I've got a five day Ascension retreat on here at the moment, and I’m loving it. We - the fiance (I only use that word as it rhymes with Beyonce) and I and a few good men - are doing the whole thing, teaching, cooking, cleaning. I’m doing more dishes this week than I’d usually do in a month.

Loving it.

Because it’s so good to give people the space just to do nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

Amazing things happen from periodic spells of doing nothing.

You can see the retreaters unwinding, their faces literally changing, softening, becoming lighter.

They come into the kitchen and share their discoveries - had a lady find me this morning as I was tackling a particularly sticky pot:

“Look what I’ve been doing all my life” she said and then proceeded to laugh her arse off, as she realised she just didn’t need to do that thing any more, ever again.

All of them, ditching narrow reactive habits for freedom and awareness and choice.

Being worry and doubt free for perhaps the first time since childhood.

Getting clear and focussed on what they want from life, and setting real plans to go get it.

I love it.

You want that too?

You can have it.

Stop.

Sometimes to retreat is to advance.

You need little spells in your day, time outs. Even if you just sit somewhere quiet and simply breathe - deep and slow.

Close the eyes, notice the breath. Coming in, going out. Keep it easy.

Doesn’t make your problems go away. But it gives you clarity and perspective.

Lets you stop worrying unnecessarily.

Gives you insight into what you can do, and what you need let go for the moment.

If you like a good, productive, enjoyable, stress free life, it’s got to be done.

It’s got to be done.

The King eats first.

If the king doesn’t eat, no one gets to eat. If the queen is empty, how can she look after her people?

If you don’t look after yourself, you can’t do anything for anyone. If the head isn’t right, the body can’t follow.

Have you sat down to meditate today?

Have you done the things you know you need to do that nourish and strengthen you?

You do that because you think that you by looking after everyone else first, you help them.

You don’t.

You need to make sure you get in what you need to do for yourself, every day.

When you’re at 100%, everyone wins.

If you’re not, no one wins.

It isn’t selfish. It’s getting to know what you need to do, every day, that brings you to a place where you can totally be at your best, to be of service, to be absolutely alive.

My coach Paul Mort reminded me of this crucial fact this very morning. Brilliant reminder. So good having someone on the outside to keep you aligned with what you want to do.

The King has responsibilities. The King needs to be on top of his game.

Whatever it is you’re doing right now - stop.

Do the thing you need to do to nurture yourself - even if it’s just for 10 minutes.

Meditate - Ascend.

Programme that into your day, every day.

Work around it, don’t let it slip. Don’t “fit it in”  - schedule it.

It requires a small amount of commitment, of discipline - but you do that and it becomes a habit.

It starts out as needing some effort, some sacrifice, but you do it enough and it just becomes natural - something you do.

So do it!

The King eats first.

_____________

The best tools for an end to all self-doubt, all worry, all anxiety, all fear, all self-sabotage?

For being super clear, for having a sense of well-being that is so beyond the petty ups and downs, the silly dramas?

and the big challenges, so you sail through without losing it?

to be as stable as a mountain, to fully enjoy each and every single moment?

To live the best life possible…

All here, so simple:

The Bright Path Ishayas’ Ascension - 20/22 November

Doing something for nothing

“When someone seeks, then it easily happens that his eyes see only the thing that he seeks, and he is able to find nothing, to take in nothing because he always thinks only about the thing he is seeking, because he has one goal, because he is obsessed with his goal. Seeking means: having a goal. But finding means: being free, being open, having no goal.” - Hermann Hesse

Meditation gives you what you need, not necessarily what you want, and definitely not what you expect. The same might be said about life.

The trouble comes when we’re not innocent, when we have a demand or an expectation of an outcome. If you become present and let go of your expectations, then the trouble goes.

You have a goal, you have an intention or whatever, but it’s almost like you allow it to fulfil itself. You dream, do, act, say, all of that, just let go of what happens next. Attachment to an outcome shrinks your perspective, creates resistance and then hurts.

So when you meditate, don't do it to get - anything. Don't do it to get rid of your thoughts, don't even meditate to have peace or to rest. Don't do it for any reason or for any result, just do it and see what happens.

In life, don't anticipate any result from anything that you do or say. Notice especially when you do or say something in order to get something for yourself. Instead, choose and let go. Act and let go.

Try it. If you do so, you will find it – ironically to the mind – very rewarding.

How to meditate simply and effortlessly

The overwhelming difficulty so many have with meditation is that they believe they need to empty their minds.

Meditation becomes confused with having an empty head, no thoughts, complete silence in the skull.

Rejoice! For I am to tell you this is not necessary. You can have the busiest mind in the world and still experience peace, calm and clarity. 

This alone will make all things in your practice super simple and easy. Maybe it will help you try again if you find meditation hard work. Draw in closer...

Meditation involves no force, no strain, no controlling, no trying whatsoever. So don't start.

Meditation is effortlessly allowing each and every thing. Being aware of all, and sitting in the middle of this awareness.

You don’t have to change a thing, simply change your relationship with everything.

Be totally okay with each thought, emotion, sound, and sensation as it passes through your awareness.

Watch it come, watch it go.

A child can sit and watch. So can you. And so you will, especially with practice.

Make yourself comfortable, close the eyes, take some deep breaths if you like that, and just sit.

Open your senses, be presence itself. Just notice.

Distraction is normal. No deal, come back. It is never a problem unless you make it a problem.

If you have a technique like the Bright Path Ishayas’ Ascension, use that simply and gently.

Allow, allow, allow.

This moment is the only moment you can do anything. The past is gone, the future not yet here. Just be here, right in the middle of the moment.

All is well here. Enjoy.

What meditation has given me

My life has changed immeasurably since I came to learn a simple, easy meditation technique, and actually used it every day. It still surprises me, the power of sitting down every day and closing my eyes.

I really feel like I have become the person I always knew I was, but just couldn’t guarantee I could be.

In the past I would get stuck in these mental loops of thinking and worrying. I knew all about the worries and the fears, it was just that I couldn’t get out of them. They seemed to possess me. I would wake up worrying about something I said the previous day or worrying about what would happen in the upcoming, or about my bank balance.

I was constantly saying one thing to one person and another thing to another person. I was trying to be all things to all people. I would get stressed, so easily. I would lose my cool over the smallest things.

In no way was I a basket case, there was just plenty of room for more enjoyment and ease. Which I now have, which continues to grow.

I also seem to have found my purpose. I had a wonderful life, I had ticked all the boxes on my “to do and to have” list, and yet I was not content. It was a confusing time - my tick list said I should be happy and yet there was a growing unease which said I wasn’t.

The small act of closing my eyes every day and becoming more and more present has meant everything that I do is based in a satisfaction or a sense of wholeness and fulfilment.

There is no more idea that there is something else, that I’m missing out on something, the question “what am I doing here?” doesn’t appear. There is no worry, no fear, no unease.

In many ways, nothing has changed. I literally have gotten nothing from meditation - but everything that is not me has fallen away.  In one word, meditation has given me authenticity… and freedom from worry and fear… and purpose, meaning and satisfaction… and real enjoyment of life… and a million other things

It’s the smallest thing, to become present, to learn to meditate, to actually practice but it gives you so much.

Why not? What have you got to lose?

Best times in the day to take ten minutes to meditate

The best way to find time to for your ten minutes "out" meditating is to schedule your day around your meditation practice, and not the other way around. If you try and squeeze in a meditation “when you have time”, chances are it ain’t going to happen. Prioritise it!

Set aside a time to practice, put a reminder on your phone/calendar so you remember, and stick to it. You won’t regret it.

Regular practice brings great rewards.

Times of the day that are excellent for practicing:

1.) First thing in the morning You don’t have to wake up super early, just give yourself enough time to get out of bed, have a wash and a stretch if necessary, and go and find your place to sit. If you practice in the morning regularly, you will find your day just turns out so more enjoyable and effective.

2.) Sometime during the day For example, lunch time. Your afternoon will again be so much more enjoyable and effective. I used to be a raft guide and I would always find at least 10 minutes to sit by myself while my group had lunch. It made a huge difference to my afternoons.

3.) When you come home from being out at work or wherever. Take your time to practice and then join your family or partner. You can leave the cares of the day behind you, recharge and fully be at home. I have friends - when they don't practice their children tell them to go and "do that thing that you do". Your people will notice and gladly give you ten minutes to yourself.

4.) Last thing at night Meditate in bed until you go to sleep. You can sit up if you like for a few minutes, or simply lie down and see what happens. Your sleep will be deep and restful.

I don’t recommend doing a deep breathing practice at night - I found it woke me up meaning I was really quite awake. But that may be just me. Try it out for yourself.

5.) Eyes open anytime You cannot be too present and alive. Anytime you remember: simply become really present. Take some deep breaths. Explore your senses. Stop: Look and feel and hear. Open up to this moment rather than entertaining those loops in your head.

Whatever you do, have fun with it, okay? You can't do it wrong. Just remember now.

Taking ten minutes to bring out the best of you

How would you feel if you could bring out the best version of yourself every day? You would have wonderfully enjoyable, relaxed, productive days without a doubt. You know this best version of you very well, but how to you make sure she or he comes out to play?

I have a challenge for you… give yourself 10 minutes every day for the next 10 days. Find a quiet place, close your eyes, and without judgement, without pushing away or grabbing for anything, just notice.

Notice your breath. Or your heart. Or scan your body, releasing any tension you may find.

Notice the air, the space within the room you are in. Notice this moment happening, as it happens. Or gently think a favourite phrase, a reminder, or simply the word “peace” or “relax” or “good”. Think it, and watch it go. When it’s gone, no longer there at all, and you’re thinking other thoughts, gently bring yourself back to the words.

Just sit, and be at the centre of everything, just for a moment.

Do this for at least 10 minutes everyday for 10 days straight and reap the rewards. You may find you want to sit longer.

Or you may want to learn a simple technique like the Bright Path Ishayas' Ascension that makes meditating an absolute no-brainer: www.thebrightpath.com or www.findpeace.co.uk.

Taking time out means you can move forward

I’m going to Spain tomorrow to spend the (English) summer at a meditation retreat.

Three months in the mountains with people from all around the world. They’re coming from as far as Mexico, New Zealand, Argentina and Taiwan.

The weather is sweet, the food is tasty, and the vibe is very relaxed yet excited. There are some grand discoveries happening, and a lot of joy. If you're at all interested, or just want to have a snoop at the retreat, here's the page: www.thebrightpath.com/spain-mastery-retreats

I’m not telling you this to show off. Well, ok, a little bit, but more to tell you about the value of retreating.

In this busy world we think more is better. Go further, faster, stronger. The thing is that it doesn’t seem this way, but sometimes to retreat is to advance.

To take time out, to take stock, to come out of the details. Actually, just to let go of the stuff for a little while.

You need to retreat every day. You can create a little sanctuary - and you need to create a little sanctuary - just by finding a quiet place, even the toilet, to sit and take time out. To do nothing.

It doesn’t need to be long - ten minutes is a great start - just close your eyes and see what you notice. You aren’t “doing” anything, just noticing, without judgement, everything.

Try your breath. Or sounds. Or your body. Or count your thoughts. Or you can think a phrase that means something to you and watch it dissolve and vanish.

Whatever you do - take time out. It’ll make a huge difference in the enjoyment and effectiveness of your day.

How happiness is like exercise

Did you know...? Thinking too much, anxiety, worry, anger, fear, stress, actually negativity in general… all of these things are just habits.

They are something we’ve learned to do in response to things that we don’t like. The more you react in a certain way, the stronger that “way” gets and so the easier it is to respond like that.

It becomes a habit, a reaction.

It’s a bit of a bottomless cycle, a slippery slope.

But the good news is that it is just a habit. You can create another habit.

The even better news is that you don’t need to work out or overly analyse why you get stressed, or anxious, or not respond to life in the way that you want.

A habit is simply a strong pathway in the brain.

Want a new habit? Make another pathway. Do something else that takes you in another direction.

A little known key to life is what you put your attention on, grows.

The more you do it, the more the new habit becomes stronger and more “slippery” for your attention, the old one less so. You become incapable of behaving like you used to, simply because all your attention is on the new way of being.

Happiness is way more attractive to the mind. If you give it a chance it will become your default.

Good news indeed. I believe it was Aristotle who said:

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act, but a habit.”

In this way, happiness is a lot like going to the gym  - that’s why I say the source of happiness and all good things in life as occurring when you are mentally fit, and flexible, and fluid.

You don’t need to believe a push up or Zumba class will make you stronger and healthier, you just need to do it - with good form and regularly - and the results are obvious.

Regular practice is everything then.

A fitness regime is essential. If you want a better life, some sort of regular “choice” practice - as in choosing your attitude and choosing to be present - is necessary.

You need to give it enough time to create a new habit, for it to become stronger, and the predominant way of living and being in the world.

But the more you do it, the more your life changes and so the more you keep wanting to do it.

It becomes self-propelling and motivating.

But you need to start. And you need the commitment to follow through.

Grab a buddy and make a pact, set aside a time each day. Just close your eyes. Remind yourself to see everything as being half-full. Be as present in this moment as much as you can.

If you need any assistance in this, let me know. I know some good ways.

Take care, and have a wonderful weekend! In fact, make it a habit.

- Arjuna

Life In Perspective

Nothing surpasses the holiness of those who have learned perfect acceptance of everything that is. In the game of life one plays the hand one is dealt to the best of one’s ability. Those who insist on playing not the hand they were given, but the one they insist they should have been dealt – these are life’s failures. We are not asked if we will play. That is not an option. Play we must. The option is how. - Maharishi Sadashiva Isham

I have a friend who found out a couple of weeks ago he has a tumour in his brain. I just saw him, and he is doing amazing. He is, in his own words, spiritually filled up.

He’s using his Ishayas' Ascension meditation practice more than ever because this news has shown him what stability it brings. He’s not freaking out over what might happen. He’s taking every moment just as it comes. He is receiving so much love, all he wants to do is give as much out as he can. He is so saturated in the goodness of life, and all due to the events of life making things very black and white for him.

Sometimes life just puts things in perspective for you. It shows you what is important and what really isn’t. It shows you what you have control over and what you don’t.

I know life gets busy. I know sometimes life is challenging. But don’t lose sight of what is truly important to you. Don't delay goodness until life looks the way you want it to. You may be waiting a long time for it to look perfect.

We don’t have any control over what happens to us, but we do have control over how we live through what happens. When it is all said and done, the how is the only thing that matters.

Stop fighting for what you can’t control, and start choosing for what you can. Fill this moment up with your presence. Choose to see the good, choose for acceptance, for gratitude, for love, for peace.

Life takes on another dimension when you let go of the "what," and fill each moment with the "how."

Simple and joyful, all the way

The truth is simple, and the living of it will make you laugh. If it’s not simple, it’s simply not the truth.

What I love about the meditation practice I practice - The Bright Path Ishayas' Ascension - is that it is the most simple thing I know, and it isn’t serious at all. The living of truth is a serious business, yet anytime I get serious, there is no truth.

Every holy woman and man I have ever met have been remarkable in the amount of joy they exude. Even when talking about the most serious of topics, the lightness of their being infuses every moment.

No one who has a full and rich experience of inner peace takes themselves seriously for a second.

It’s funny how I thought in order to be free, it involved some complicated knowledge, the gaining of which was a serious pursuit. I remember when I met my first Ishayas. I was wondering about their integrity because they seemed so simple, so innocent. “What could they teach me?” I thought. It turned out to be a lot.

Seriousness and lack of simplicity has become a really good indicator of where I’m off, where I’m complicating things.

It is very very simple just to stop, be aware and sink into this moment. How wonderful is it to know that is all peace requires? It makes any hard work and struggling to seriously attain something just a little bit funny.

How wonderful is it that life can be this simple? How wonderful that experiencing peace in this moment is this simple?

Innocence - part 2

When someone seeks, then it easily happens that his eyes see only the thing that he seeks, and he is able to find nothing, to take in nothing because he always thinks only about the thing he is seeking, because he has one goal, because he is obsessed with his goal. Seeking means: having a goal. But finding means: being free, being open, having no goal. - Hermann Hesse

Innocence is having no fixed expectations. It is being fresh, being free, being open. Innocence is the cornerstone of a full life.

Meditation shows you how to regain innocence. Meditation, just like life, gives you what you need, not necessarily what you want, and definitely not what you expect or demand.

In this regard, the path and the goal are the same thing. Innocence and meditation go hand in hand.

So when you sit to meditate, or you simply stop and rest your attention in the essence of this moment, don’t do it for a reason. Don’t do it to get anything. Don’t do it to get rid of your thoughts, to rest. Don’t even do it for peace. Just see what stillness has for you, right in this moment of time.

You’ll find meditation, and life, becomes simple. You’ll become open, receptive to whatever needs to happen. You’ll find contentment because you have let go of expectation.

Innocence means you meet life as it is, pure, without expectation, judgement, or filters.

Some confuse innocence with naivety. I say an innocent life is an authentic life. You are you, without masks or roles or old reactive patterns of behaviour. You are able to meet the need of the moment. You are untouched by change. Each interaction is fresh, new, alive.

Innocence has no agenda. There is no effort in innocence. There is no grasping there either.

Put down your expectations and demands. Rest innocently in the heart of stillness and in all moments all is well.

Innocence - How a fresh attitude changes everything

We do not see things as they are; we see them as we are. We do not hear things as they are; we hear them as we are - The Talmud

You see what you expect to see. The world is created by your expectations. If you wish to engage with the world fully, as it is, you need to drop these filters to reality.

Life is so much easier without expectations.

The Bright Path Ishayas refer to this as being innocent. I like that.

Innocence = having no expectations = no preconceived ideas = no prejudice

There is no better way of instantly experiencing more peace and joy. Having no preconceived ideas about any person or situation means that you can experience things exactly as they are. Instant freedom.

We only experience suffering in life when our experience of it does not meet our expectations. The stronger our expectation the greater the trouble for us. Recognise this?

Innocence has a sense of play about it too. If you're really being innocent and fresh, you cannot possibly be taking anything seriously. Taking things seriously is always the end of enjoyment. Also - If there is such a thing as an omnipresent cosmic intelligence taking an interest in my life, I've found it goes out of its way to poke me when I am being serious. How about you?

Innocence does not mean naivety. It means being open to life changing in unexpected ways. It means having the flexibility to accept this change, thus being in a position to cope, to react creatively, to enjoy the ride. It is an easy, fun, peaceful way to live.

Innocence and Meditation:

We all want something from the practice of meditation. However, what I've found is that meditation will give you what you need and not necessarily what you want. It definitely doesn't give you what you expect.

You are not in control of the experience when you close your eyes. A great deal of healing is taking place. Your meditations will be so much easier and fulfilling if you let go of control and allow whatever happens happen.

Take an attitude of innocence with what is happening. It just doesn't help to fight or insist on a certain experience, so you might as well sit back and relax. If you are using an effective meditation technique it will guide you to the best possible experience. It will give you what you need.

You be innocent and let go of any idea of what should be happening and all your meditations will be easy and restful and enjoyable. Anything else and they get harder and less fun. If you're just beginning, judge progress not just by what happens during your practice time but also in your wider life.

You may find that even though you might have a lot of thoughts when you close your eyes, when you open them you are at rest, you don't react so much, you are more calm and centred.

Give it a try.