Question 1 response: I believe the two practices that seem to be the most beneficial for me are the Loving-Kindness and Subtle mind practices. The subtle mind practice is helpful because its focus is breathing. There is a direct relationship between the breath a d mind. Peaceful breathing patterns lead to a peaceful mind(Dacher,p.75). As I have gotten older it has become harder for me to stay focused, at times I find myself immersed in the "clutter" of my mind instead of falling asleep or concentrating on what I'm doing. I have already used the Loving-Kindness practice to heal a relation with and old friend. Embracing what is "good" while focusing only on love allowed me to let go of the negative feeling I had towards this person, holding onto the negative feeling was actually more damaging to me than I'd thought. I felt such a sense of relief after letting it go. This practice encourages you to develop the mental attitude of Loving-Kindness.
~Mary
Mary,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that the loving-kindness exercise has helped you mend an old friendship! It must be such a relief to be able to let go of that negativity and focus on a wonderful new friendship. Sometimes we don't realize that we are actually using up more energy holding on to our grudges and negativity then if we just let them go and focused on forgiveness and loving-kindness instead. I hope you continue to practice loving-kindness along with the other exercises we have learned and keep reaping those benefits!
~Lindsay S
I am glad that you have been able to use what you have learned in this class and repair a friendship. Sometimes I feel that we focus too much on the negative and not enough on the positive.
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