Reflection on Buddhist Not Self Every now and then, meditation leaves me not with an answer but with a question. The teaching of Buddhist not-self (anattā) is one of the deepest and most challenging aspects of the Dharma. Intellectually, I understand that what we call "self" is not a fixed or permanent entity. Yet ordinary Read More
Tag: Meditation
Stillness Haiku | The Pebble-Walking Meditation
Reflection On Walking Meditation During one of my early morning walking meditation sessions around the fields of the Cotswolds, I found myself reflecting on the Mental Discipline section of the Noble Eightfold Path. The image that came to mind was a still pond. When the surface of the water is calm, even the smallest pebble Read More
Can a Place Become Part of Our Meditation?
Meditation and Place I don’t often stop at this third seat. It is the closest to home, so I’m usually tempted to keep walking. But when I do sit here, I find myself looking at the water lilies growing in this particular lake. Or perhaps they are lotus flowers? Why does that matter? Partly because Read More
Can Silence Change the Way We Experience Memory?
Silence and Mindfulness This is the oldest of the three seats on my morning walk, beside the quietest of the lakes. There is very little activity here. The water is almost silent, the trees and greenery barely move, and there are few sounds to compete for my attention. Sitting here, I become aware of how Read More
Does Water Calm the Mind?
Reflection on Water Calming the Mind My morning walk takes me through fields of wheat and barley before entering a wooded nature reserve dotted with small lakes. I often stop beside the water to rest and have begun to notice something. My mind becomes quieter here. As mindfulness finds its way more naturally into my Read More