Now find a quiet place and sit comfortably. You may choose to sit cross-legged or in any position that feels natural for you. Gently close your eyes and breathe naturally.
Move your shoulders slightly and notice whether they are tense. If they are, allow them to relax.
It is very important to relax the body. If the body is tense, we are not meditating—we are fighting. When the body relaxes, we become open and receptive to a deeper dimension of awareness.
Bring your attention to your body. Is there any tension? Allow it to soften naturally.
Have you ever noticed that when we are asleep, the body is in its most relaxed state? When we are deeply relaxed, where are our worries, obstacles, and suffering?
As the body relaxes, it becomes easier to observe the mind. Much of our pain and suffering is sustained by our thoughts.
Once again, bring your attention to the body and allow it to relax.
We can truly connect with the present moment only when the energy of the body is relaxed. Insight arises naturally when we become open and receptive.
Relax the body and remain attentive and aware.
When the body is relaxed, our energy returns to its natural state. The original state of awakening is a state of naturalness. If something is attained solely through effort, it is not the effortless presence of our true nature.
Relax your shoulders. Relax your entire body.
If any thoughts arise, simply be present with them. Just be present.
The moment we are present with our thoughts, we begin to discover something. Insight naturally emerges.
What happens to our thoughts when we are fully present with them? Where do they go?
When we are present with our confusion and obstacles, what happens to them? Are they still the same? Do they begin to change?
Whenever a change arises, pay attention to it as well. This attention is presence itself. When we are present, pain and worry begin to transform.
Why do they change? Why do they disappear? If they were truly solid and permanent, why would they dissolve? If they were absolutely real, why would they constantly change?
Relax the body once more. Notice how thoughts continually arise, change, and dissolve.
Simply follow whatever arises and remain present with the pain, fear, or obstacles. As we continue to stay present, we eventually come into contact with a vast and timeless emptiness—the unchanging nature that has always been here, yet has long been forgotten.
What we are doing is not striving to become something. Rather, we are uncovering what has always been here. The obstacles that obscure our true nature are like coverings over a lamp. We do not need to create the light; we only need to remove what conceals it.
Once again, bring your attention to the body and allow it to relax.
The body, the mind, and the ego carry anxiety, memories, difficulties, and accumulated burdens from life. As the body relaxes, these energies gradually recede.
At this moment, if we observe our worries and problems carefully, we may discover that much of our suffering comes from attachment—from insisting that life should unfold according to our preferences and expectations.
These thoughts, expectations, fears, and worries veil the natural state of present awareness.
Bring your attention back to the body and relax it.
When the body relaxes, the state of presence arises naturally.
By Suzhen Liu
If you enjoy Suzhen Liu’s writings, please check out her latest book, “Discover Love Within—Release your suffering,” available on Amazon
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