By Joanna Macy — 2011
The greatest gift we can give our world is our presence, awake and attentive. What can help us do that? Here, drawn from ancient religions and wisdom traditions, are a handful of practices Joanna Macy has learned to count on.
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To change the experiences of your life requires becoming aware of the intentions you are choosing moment to moment, and the experiences you encounter, and then making the connections between your intentions and your experiences.
“Intention is not something you do,” says Dyer, “but rather a force that exists in the universe as an invisible field of energy—a power that can carry us.”
Start your day with reverence for the sun, and harness its life-giving energy with Surya Namaskar.
Forgiveness is an interesting phenomenon. As you learn to forgive and to say, “Of course you’re human,” or, “We all do that,” you open up your heart to embrace the person or the situation back into you.
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A few weeks ago, a Baptist minister in Texas started a rumble, or at least a small brouhaha, when he declared that yoga is not suitable for Christians. His point was that using the body for spiritual practice contradicts basic Christian principles.
When one hears a chant like Aum Namoh Bhagvate Vasudevaya, it is not a Grammy award ceremony that comes to mind as the setting of such chanting; but that is precisely what Krishna Das has been able to do—take cherished age-old Indian kirtans to a global stage such as the Grammys.
He’s driven a school bus, dabbled in the blues, and meditated in the jungles and ashrams of India, but today Krishna Das is known as the King of Kirtan.
Although it’s vital to not turn away from what needs attention it’s also important to reflect on what’s good in our lives.
A focus on the present, dubbed “mindfulness,” can make you happier and healthier. Training to deepen your immersion in the moment works by improving attention
Wherever attention goes the rest of the brain follows—in some sense, attention is your brain’s boss. But is it a good boss and can we train it?