“Let go” means “let it be”.
One thing I learned from the book “10% Happier” is that when meditation teachers say we should “let go” of a thought or feeling what they mean is “let it be”.
Our job as meditators is to not hold on to thoughts and feelings that arise. When we drift off, we:
- recognize this - “oh, I chased a thought”
- acknowledge the thought or feeling - “it's here and I can't change it”
- then let go - “that's ok, I'll just let it be”
This explanation helped me understand things a little better.
I want to read more books about mindfulness and meditation this year, and I'll share the best lessons here with you.
“Meditation is not about feeling a certain way. It’s about feeling the way you feel.” ― Jon Kabat-Zinn
Reading Recommendations
“One of the more annoying meditation clichés is the familiar tautology ‘It is what it is.’ The phrase is at once ubiquitous and, seemingly, meaningless. It can literally apply to anything that exists. It sometimes functions as a spiritual merit badge, meant to display the pseudo-wisdom of the person who says it. And yet, I’m here to defend it.”
Fair Is Fair, But Not Everywhere
“Imagine this scenario: Two commercial fishermen head out to sea at the break of dawn, and spend the next ten hours hauling in the day’s catch. When they wearily return to dock and count their take, one has three times as many fish in his hold. How should the two fishermen be compensated for the long day’s work?”
“Now some readers will probably not have to worry about the same sort of scalability problems the BBC has to deal with, when designing/building systems and applications. But this isn't to say the information and thoughts I'm going to share with you here in this post aren't transferable. In fact, much of what I'll be discussing are concepts that can be utilized in applications of any size (because good design is effective at any scale).”
Weekly Mindfulness Practice
Start with slow and deep breathing.
Imagine that you are in a place where you feel satisfied and deeply relaxed. This could be your favorite holiday destination, a forest or lake near you, or any other place you like to spend time.
Now imagine all the details. Imagine the surrounding colors. Make the picture clearer and clearer. Feel the textures and hear the sounds of your place.
Enjoy this feeling of relaxation and happiness.
We think of imaginary places so often: the unchangeable past and the unforeseeable future. Why not imagine a place that you like?
End Note
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Have a great week
Simon
PS: What do you think about this? Please hit reply and let me know. I'm curious!
PPS: Let me know if you have any book recommendations about mindfulness or meditation!