The Prism of Meditation

Posted Mar 16 2011

When light comes through a prism, it casts itself into an array of displays. Like this, when meditation enters of our life, awareness becomes pervasive, supple, capable of casting itself in a multitude of directions.

These are some of yesterday’s doorways through the prism of my experience into meditation: the sound of rain, the pressure of my head on my pillow, the taste of hot tea, the contraction of my left shoulder when thoughts of previous heartbreak arise, the heaviness in my chest when counting the administrative tasks I can not tend to when sick, and the tightness in my jaw when thoughts of previous heartbreak arise again. (Being sick in bed brings ample opportunity for those thought clusters to bunch up!)

What to do?

The sound of the rain simply is. And, as I often say, sound only occurs in the aliveness of now. Thus, it’s a terrific entry into the larger pulse of life and the preciousness of this moment.

The pressure of my head on my pillow. Sensation also occurs only in the aliveness of now. While sensation can be remembered and even later described, when it is occurring, it occurs only in this immediacy. Pain becomes homecoming: The pressure of my head on the pillow, the pain behind my left eye, the memory of being terribly ill in India…oh, wait, come back to just this, today’s headache, today’s pressure against the pillow, intimacy with this pain behind my left eye, right now.

Why would we want to be intimate with pain? Looking through the prism of pain: (1) When it’s occurring, it’s what’s occurring. We are all too skilled at avoiding, suppressing, medicating, or telling stories about our pain. (2) Pain is an opportunity for presence, curiosity, and self-awareness. How do we respond to pain – our own and others? What can we learn about our reactions to suffering? How are we contributing to our pain or the pain of others? (3) Pain is not ours alone. Thus, when we are intimate with our own pain, we may remember all other countless beings who have experienced pain. This awakens a sense of companionship, and deepens our capacity for empathy, for both ourselves and others.

The contraction of my left shoulder when thoughts of previous heartbreak arise. The moment the contraction is recognized the spell of being lost in thought breaks. I observe the softening of my shoulder muscles while also acknowledging that there are still degrees of body memory associated with the loss of that relationship. Here I have a chance to either judge myself or come to tenderness toward myself. Tenderness arises as awareness of the larger pulse of life (the sound of rain), the depth of my capacity to hold myself with compassion (not pity, but real compassion), and the realization of how many countless others have felt the stinging betrayal of infidelity, the shock of deceit, and the grief that accompanies such life changes.

Of course, we don’t need to wait (nor should we) for personal illness or despair to bring us back to meditation. When we practice meditation consistently it becomes a gem for all circumstances. Take the tragedies on the planet occurring right now. If you’re someone who watches the news on TV, I recommend using the experience of seeing devastation as a prism for meditation. The information comes into your system and is cast in many directions. Perhaps you feel despair, helplessness, fear, anxiety, or a host of other reactions. Every reaction is accompanied by bodily sensations. These sensations are one doorway in to your meditation research: how do you experience your body? how does your experience fluctuate? how is your mind feeding your experience? how is your experience simply your raw human reaction – a potentially global reaction connecting you to countless others? how do you judge yourself for your reaction and is that necessary? and is there even a tiny seed of awareness of the vastness in which our planet is held in the cosmos?

Meditation can be used to expand our awareness beyond the skin of our own body, and certainly beyond our own life story. It can be used to develop heart-qualities that counter habitual despair, pity, fear, contraction, aversion, frustration, and so on. Meditation can also be used to cultivate specific and profound intimacy with ourselves, and cultivates the courageousness and self-honesty for genuine intimacy with others. Meditation is the prism through which life experiences enter our heart; with meditation we become able to see the casting of light in many directions, without a reaction of contraction, condemnation, nor suppression. With meditation, we are able to consistently open ourselves more and more to life’s experiences. We become a participating member of humanity’s capacity for compassion, generosity and service.

Whether it is through the sound of rain, the contraction or elation of our own heart, or the use of devastation or celebration on the planet to remind us of our interwoven companionship with all others, meditation un-clouds our heart. We come to know the Brahmaviharas as our native heart expression: loving-kindness, sympathetic-joy, compassion, and equanimity. Meditation unwraps these heart jewels and brings us back home. Cultivating the Brahmaviharas in the company of others who are also deliberate about their heart’s awakening catalyzes our journey.

Please join me for the Dharma Study Group on Tuesday, March 29th, from 7-9 pm. We’ll discuss the Brahmaviharas as well as the Near and Far Enemies that highlight for us where our most potent inner work is. Click here to read more about the Dharma Study Group at amrita.