WHAT IS NEXT? BY DOING “NOTHING” WE CAN PREPARE TO DO EVERYTHING
It happens for many people at this time of the year feeling great anxiety for not knowing what is coming next and how to approach their time off in a way that feels rewarding and satisfying. School or job needs to re-start soon and many things are still needed to figure it out as new projects are waiting to be born. Often, this sort of anxiety is not a strange feeling for many, especially when in our daily lives we are all the time bombarded by change of all sorts and threatened by news that take us out of our comfort zone.
When we meditate and make peace within in our minds, hearts and souls, it is easy to get out of this blissful state when we go back to interact with the world and deal with its problems and controversies. We are the agents of action or agents of no-action by ways in which we relate to the world and to others every single day. In every single moment we choose or we simply have a more or less coping response.
The point is how we might respond and from what place. I mean that depending of the perspective and state of mind we approach life it will be more enjoyable process or not. In this case, I have chosen the word “enjoyable” because I like it. Perhaps I can define best the why I have chosen it by concretizing a word that would capture the fact that one embodies the quality in the action that feels assertive and positive, when giving a good response to life and that response allows oneself to thrive and keep moving. This happens (we enjoy) when our energy does not get stuck or depleted.
In this sense, to replenish our inner buckets of energy, I believe it is good to make an inventory, to sit down and reflect. In order to do that, we definitely need “time” and we need “time off” to simply shift gears. To allow insightful energy to come to us to give us the clues we need to create what is next and be fully up to it. If we don’t have a certain good amount of energy, if we don’t experience clarity and we don’t feel safe, what is next that we are envisioning to manifest and conquer, it can become a burden instead of an enjoyable or pleasant experience.
When we meditate and make peace within in our minds, hearts and souls, it is easy to get out of this blissful state when we go back to interact with the world and deal with its problems and controversies. We are the agents of action or agents of no-action by ways in which we relate to the world and to others every single day. In every single moment we choose or we simply have a more or less coping response.
The point is how we might respond and from what place. I mean that depending of the perspective and state of mind we approach life it will be more enjoyable process or not. In this case, I have chosen the word “enjoyable” because I like it. Perhaps I can define best the why I have chosen it by concretizing a word that would capture the fact that one embodies the quality in the action that feels assertive and positive, when giving a good response to life and that response allows oneself to thrive and keep moving. This happens (we enjoy) when our energy does not get stuck or depleted.
In this sense, to replenish our inner buckets of energy, I believe it is good to make an inventory, to sit down and reflect. In order to do that, we definitely need “time” and we need “time off” to simply shift gears. To allow insightful energy to come to us to give us the clues we need to create what is next and be fully up to it. If we don’t have a certain good amount of energy, if we don’t experience clarity and we don’t feel safe, what is next that we are envisioning to manifest and conquer, it can become a burden instead of an enjoyable or pleasant experience.
THE SILENT REALITY IN WHICH EVERYTHING IS BORN
There is a well known Buddhist parable of a master teacher and a novice monk sitting together in meditation practice. The student, while is learning the meditation technique that is taught by his teacher, asks the teacher: And what happens next? The teacher then implies: “Nothing happens next.” The student simply replies to himself with apprehension: “This is it?”
The student expectation was to notice that something out of ordinary was going to happen in order to support him to get to the gate of what he believes will conduct to enlightenment. Of course, this is a paradox when sitting quietly to expect “nothing to happen” but at the same time to expect “everything to happen” and become enlightened or awakened to a divine reality.
Certainly, this paradox of sitting in meditation is also an attitude in life, it contains a great teaching for all of us. By slowing down our minds, we can encounter this void. That place where “nothing” happens. Yet, as meditation teachers have been preaching for millennia, it is this “nothing” or this “emptiness” that we find and we can feel inside of us what is great searched and cultivated in meditation practice. This empty space we find within is really a great something, a realization of the fullness of who we are.
I might say that this is also what we fear the most: that through this void we may expect to find “death,” the “no being” and the “no-thing” which is the erosion of our precious Ego (the end of the illusion that the mind creates). That is probably why beginner students often experience resistance to practice meditation. It is ingrained in our addictive minds to resist change or face death, especially the type of change and death and regeneration that needs to occur when nothing needs to be happening and one can find oneself there, unified with the whole, with the silent reality in which everything is born.
Fortunately, the empty space is like a phenomenon that is not limited only to the meditation practices. What implies for any of us to go “blank”? Is this blank template a negative state of mind or state of being? Is this natural and desirable? Facing moments in which nothing comes up is a natural process and part of who we are. We are creative beings that, like nature, have to face “down side” moments in which nothing is happening, moments in which our buckets need to remain empty and be replenished.
The problem we sometimes suffer is that we certainly don’t like or we simply resist those moments of slowing down and listen to what is there; when society and the organization of our culture gives us the mirror that we have to be producing all day long, all the time (24/7) and this is far from being true.
Unless we learn to discern that, we fall pray of stereotypes and lies about being superheroes (supermen and superwomen) with unlimited energy. I believe that it is true that there exist a spiritual place where there is a source of infinite energy but I believe that this place is not human made like many attempt to claim. We can tap into it with the right mind or right heart but we need to go through the process to empty ourselves in order to be replenished by it.
The student expectation was to notice that something out of ordinary was going to happen in order to support him to get to the gate of what he believes will conduct to enlightenment. Of course, this is a paradox when sitting quietly to expect “nothing to happen” but at the same time to expect “everything to happen” and become enlightened or awakened to a divine reality.
Certainly, this paradox of sitting in meditation is also an attitude in life, it contains a great teaching for all of us. By slowing down our minds, we can encounter this void. That place where “nothing” happens. Yet, as meditation teachers have been preaching for millennia, it is this “nothing” or this “emptiness” that we find and we can feel inside of us what is great searched and cultivated in meditation practice. This empty space we find within is really a great something, a realization of the fullness of who we are.
I might say that this is also what we fear the most: that through this void we may expect to find “death,” the “no being” and the “no-thing” which is the erosion of our precious Ego (the end of the illusion that the mind creates). That is probably why beginner students often experience resistance to practice meditation. It is ingrained in our addictive minds to resist change or face death, especially the type of change and death and regeneration that needs to occur when nothing needs to be happening and one can find oneself there, unified with the whole, with the silent reality in which everything is born.
Fortunately, the empty space is like a phenomenon that is not limited only to the meditation practices. What implies for any of us to go “blank”? Is this blank template a negative state of mind or state of being? Is this natural and desirable? Facing moments in which nothing comes up is a natural process and part of who we are. We are creative beings that, like nature, have to face “down side” moments in which nothing is happening, moments in which our buckets need to remain empty and be replenished.
The problem we sometimes suffer is that we certainly don’t like or we simply resist those moments of slowing down and listen to what is there; when society and the organization of our culture gives us the mirror that we have to be producing all day long, all the time (24/7) and this is far from being true.
Unless we learn to discern that, we fall pray of stereotypes and lies about being superheroes (supermen and superwomen) with unlimited energy. I believe that it is true that there exist a spiritual place where there is a source of infinite energy but I believe that this place is not human made like many attempt to claim. We can tap into it with the right mind or right heart but we need to go through the process to empty ourselves in order to be replenished by it.
GOING WITH THE FLOW OF THE CREATIVE DANCE OF THE YIN AND YANG
The blank space creates a sort of vacuum in which new ideas can be created. If we take a help from the Chinese Philosophy, yin and yang, the inseparable and contradictory opposites, the creative process is the Yin (masculine) and the receptive process of the empty space is the Yang (feminine). In this case, seemingly opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world but also in our psyches and bodies.
In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the cycles of Yin and Yang and this gets replicated into objects and lives. Yin is the receptive principle of life, and Yang the active. We see and experience those in all forms of change and difference such as day and night, winter and summer, negative and positive, female and male, order and disorder, hot and cold, and any other couple of opposites you can easily name.
The problem many face with this process of being in the lower side of oneself up for regeneration and for new ideas to be born is when they aren’t able to maintain that black state long enough for what needs to be born or will germinate without panicking that they will never have or be like before again.
There is a fear that something will be lost. For example, this is one of the most irrational fears we face in childhood when we try to hold onto the day (that game or an activity we enjoy) believing that that experience, that toy or person is not going to be there tomorrow.
In this case, I often prescribe the flower essence “Impatience” and the flowers “Aspen” and “Mimulus” for fears of unknown and known things and they are good also for treat the generalized anxiety. By working with the virtues of trust and patience, things come back to normal, and the person can allow him or herself to be human, allowing themselves to struggle with this process and normalize it once this was completely blocked and that was creating the fear or the anxiety.
Then, a part of themselves can recognize the fear and the impatience and say: “Ok, I acknowledge that I have fear, I am impatient at these moments of my life. It is hard to be still and listen to the pain and fear I have. It is difficult and challenging to be quiet and allow life to unfold through me without me trying to control it all the time.”
In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the cycles of Yin and Yang and this gets replicated into objects and lives. Yin is the receptive principle of life, and Yang the active. We see and experience those in all forms of change and difference such as day and night, winter and summer, negative and positive, female and male, order and disorder, hot and cold, and any other couple of opposites you can easily name.
The problem many face with this process of being in the lower side of oneself up for regeneration and for new ideas to be born is when they aren’t able to maintain that black state long enough for what needs to be born or will germinate without panicking that they will never have or be like before again.
There is a fear that something will be lost. For example, this is one of the most irrational fears we face in childhood when we try to hold onto the day (that game or an activity we enjoy) believing that that experience, that toy or person is not going to be there tomorrow.
In this case, I often prescribe the flower essence “Impatience” and the flowers “Aspen” and “Mimulus” for fears of unknown and known things and they are good also for treat the generalized anxiety. By working with the virtues of trust and patience, things come back to normal, and the person can allow him or herself to be human, allowing themselves to struggle with this process and normalize it once this was completely blocked and that was creating the fear or the anxiety.
Then, a part of themselves can recognize the fear and the impatience and say: “Ok, I acknowledge that I have fear, I am impatient at these moments of my life. It is hard to be still and listen to the pain and fear I have. It is difficult and challenging to be quiet and allow life to unfold through me without me trying to control it all the time.”
Often, as I experience myself counseling many clients that I see in my regular job and in my private practice, I kept realizing that the fear may not be so much about what people name, it could be: running out of ideas, money, friends, or other. I kept realizing that most of the time is this fear of encountering that creative emptiness or what we can also call it “silence within.”
Curiously, I let them know that what they fear the most and what they have a hard time making space for, is what they most want, what they most desire and need. Therefore, by giving themselves some time off to reflect, talk about, journal and ponder is as necessary as it is breathing.
When studying Psychology of Social Phenomena back in the years where I studied in Spain, there was one phenomenon that caught my attention in regards of couples splitting when they were in vacation. I kept wondering, why in this world a couple would get into arguments and quarrels during vacation time, when they can enjoy time off together? Made no sense!
The answer I learned at such questioning this phenomena was that there are archetypal forces in us and in our psyches that we share as humans that naturally emerge at certain times and they get constellated as group dynamics. They usually take place, unless one becomes conscious of it or one does not put resistance when it happens and can learn from it. Well, knowing that this often occurs and has its function, it can help us to deal with it when it happens.
Another important point to consider is that we all need a period of adjustment in which different psyches need to come along and when two opposites unite, the interaction and disparity in ways of thinking and being (normal differences between two persons) a quarrel or fight can be generated. The argument can escalate and create a crisis, but dealt with it in the right mindset has the function to re-organize the energy and elevate the couple to a new re-organization.
If the couple was deprived of each respective down time for a long time individually (for example, each individual has been building stress at work) as well as the couple has been deprived of experiencing down time together, it is when they unite, when this accumulated stress comes up from the dark place that was this tension first placed and when not dealing with it alone or beforehand it shows up in unexpected ways. This gets transferred to the couple and at the context that gives the time for this to occur.
Unfortunately this goes in detriment to the vacation time. It is by projecting a free-stress time to the vacation where later the disappointment comes forth and when this first expectation is not fully met. One needs to work at it to adjust first to the other, allowing what remains to be there and once all comes up, welcome the new flow in a positive and receptive way. Then, what comes next, can be all enjoyment!
Curiously, I let them know that what they fear the most and what they have a hard time making space for, is what they most want, what they most desire and need. Therefore, by giving themselves some time off to reflect, talk about, journal and ponder is as necessary as it is breathing.
When studying Psychology of Social Phenomena back in the years where I studied in Spain, there was one phenomenon that caught my attention in regards of couples splitting when they were in vacation. I kept wondering, why in this world a couple would get into arguments and quarrels during vacation time, when they can enjoy time off together? Made no sense!
The answer I learned at such questioning this phenomena was that there are archetypal forces in us and in our psyches that we share as humans that naturally emerge at certain times and they get constellated as group dynamics. They usually take place, unless one becomes conscious of it or one does not put resistance when it happens and can learn from it. Well, knowing that this often occurs and has its function, it can help us to deal with it when it happens.
Another important point to consider is that we all need a period of adjustment in which different psyches need to come along and when two opposites unite, the interaction and disparity in ways of thinking and being (normal differences between two persons) a quarrel or fight can be generated. The argument can escalate and create a crisis, but dealt with it in the right mindset has the function to re-organize the energy and elevate the couple to a new re-organization.
If the couple was deprived of each respective down time for a long time individually (for example, each individual has been building stress at work) as well as the couple has been deprived of experiencing down time together, it is when they unite, when this accumulated stress comes up from the dark place that was this tension first placed and when not dealing with it alone or beforehand it shows up in unexpected ways. This gets transferred to the couple and at the context that gives the time for this to occur.
Unfortunately this goes in detriment to the vacation time. It is by projecting a free-stress time to the vacation where later the disappointment comes forth and when this first expectation is not fully met. One needs to work at it to adjust first to the other, allowing what remains to be there and once all comes up, welcome the new flow in a positive and receptive way. Then, what comes next, can be all enjoyment!
So, it is true that a vacation can be stressful but only if you haven’t taken one lately. Therefore, I want to encourage you to be expectant of encountering unexpected moments of upheavals with yourself and when relating with others. You have to be very tolerant and conscious of yourself, to notice where you come from and where you are going and the dynamic that is being played out (often unconscious).
Well, first of all, it is good to name that there’s the ordinary stress of preparing to go away, rushing to pack while still doing everything else you normally have to do. Add to that the anxiety of getting were you plan to go. Flying these days has clearly taken on one extra layer of stress, but even driving anywhere further than the nearest mountain, beach or park can be stressful, and even dangerous.
In this regard, for short and long trips, I prescribe the “Travel Sickness Remedy Formula” which combines the Comforter Essence (a combination of different flower essences that treat moments that one feels contradicted, in shock with high anxiety, and is useful for moments when old trauma can be resurfacing). At the old Rescue Remedy, I add another flower essence that is Scleranthus, which helps to re-center and go back to center. This is the flower that makes peace with the two different opposites.
Well, first of all, it is good to name that there’s the ordinary stress of preparing to go away, rushing to pack while still doing everything else you normally have to do. Add to that the anxiety of getting were you plan to go. Flying these days has clearly taken on one extra layer of stress, but even driving anywhere further than the nearest mountain, beach or park can be stressful, and even dangerous.
In this regard, for short and long trips, I prescribe the “Travel Sickness Remedy Formula” which combines the Comforter Essence (a combination of different flower essences that treat moments that one feels contradicted, in shock with high anxiety, and is useful for moments when old trauma can be resurfacing). At the old Rescue Remedy, I add another flower essence that is Scleranthus, which helps to re-center and go back to center. This is the flower that makes peace with the two different opposites.
THE ORIGIN AND MEANING OF VACATION
if we look at the origin of the word “vacation,” interestingly, we can find that its root comes from the Latin word “vacuum” that means “to become empty” and “to be free from duty or service.” By default, this can imply carving out a space of time in which you leave your normal location, your normal consciousness as well and your daily routine to enter a different space.
The whole point of a vacation is to let your body (physical) and also your mind (psychic field) to “lie fallow” for a time as a way to reconstruct and recover your energies. We have to learn how to “chill” – that is enjoying ourselves by simply doing nothing, by simply “being” who we are. By doing that, we align ourselves with nature, allowing our energy to recover and this process put us back to normalcy.
After allowing ourselves to go through this sometimes unpleasant process, we should be carried over by a new wave of energy coming from our unconscious which this is what leads us to go back to feel whole, to “feel great” and regenerated.
I am using the term “lie fallow” in this Blog because I enjoyed learning that “fallow” in English means. This is an adjective that means “unseeded.” This refers to 1) left unseeded a land after being ploughed and harrowed to regain fertility for a crop. Also, it refers to 2) of an idea, state of mind, etc. undeveloped or inactive, but potentially useful. So what looks like doing nothing may actually be a good sign that something is engaged underneath or beneath the surface in doing inner work and as preparation for what is next.
The whole point of a vacation is to let your body (physical) and also your mind (psychic field) to “lie fallow” for a time as a way to reconstruct and recover your energies. We have to learn how to “chill” – that is enjoying ourselves by simply doing nothing, by simply “being” who we are. By doing that, we align ourselves with nature, allowing our energy to recover and this process put us back to normalcy.
After allowing ourselves to go through this sometimes unpleasant process, we should be carried over by a new wave of energy coming from our unconscious which this is what leads us to go back to feel whole, to “feel great” and regenerated.
I am using the term “lie fallow” in this Blog because I enjoyed learning that “fallow” in English means. This is an adjective that means “unseeded.” This refers to 1) left unseeded a land after being ploughed and harrowed to regain fertility for a crop. Also, it refers to 2) of an idea, state of mind, etc. undeveloped or inactive, but potentially useful. So what looks like doing nothing may actually be a good sign that something is engaged underneath or beneath the surface in doing inner work and as preparation for what is next.
We probably are often afraid of silence and empty space because we have trouble understanding the potential and power of doing nothing. When farmers lye fallow their crops, they let their fields grow at their will so to speak. Thus, they can regenerate precious nutrients that are necessary for the next crop to grow and new seeds that will be planted. The result will be a healthier and more nutritious crop.
There is nowadays a psychic phenomenon that is experienced in people who often feel “burn out” in their jobs when they are constantly interacting with others. Many people experience vicarious trauma while interacting with others that they are in need and they often feel that they have little time to recuperate their bodies and minds after giving their energy away. Many are in the in the field of nursing, vendors, doctors, flight attendance, etc.
In this case, I often prescribe the flower essence, Olive. This flower essence is very helpful to regenerate when one feels exhausted or depleted. As Dr. Bach said about this essence: “This is for those who suffered much mentally or physically and are so exhausted and weary that they feel they have no more strength to make any effort. Daily life is hard work for them, without pleasure.”
In this case, it happens sometimes that that many folks who work hard in their daily jobs, end up with not having much hope that even a vacation is going to help them to be well when they have their buckets empty. In this extreme case, it is good to take the remedy before and while in vacation to help restore what was lost and replenish while spending a time off from work.
There is nowadays a psychic phenomenon that is experienced in people who often feel “burn out” in their jobs when they are constantly interacting with others. Many people experience vicarious trauma while interacting with others that they are in need and they often feel that they have little time to recuperate their bodies and minds after giving their energy away. Many are in the in the field of nursing, vendors, doctors, flight attendance, etc.
In this case, I often prescribe the flower essence, Olive. This flower essence is very helpful to regenerate when one feels exhausted or depleted. As Dr. Bach said about this essence: “This is for those who suffered much mentally or physically and are so exhausted and weary that they feel they have no more strength to make any effort. Daily life is hard work for them, without pleasure.”
In this case, it happens sometimes that that many folks who work hard in their daily jobs, end up with not having much hope that even a vacation is going to help them to be well when they have their buckets empty. In this extreme case, it is good to take the remedy before and while in vacation to help restore what was lost and replenish while spending a time off from work.
MAKING ROOM TO ENJOY YOUR INNER BEING
In the ancient traditional Chinese Medicine exercise known as qigong (Chi Gung), one common foot posture that is practiced is called “empty step.” This is when you put your front foot forward but don’t place any weight on it. As qigong masters explain, this is one of the most powerful moves one can make because the front leg is free to move quickly to strike or block an opponent. Most of your weight remains on your rear leg. A leg or food that has all your weight on it is oppressed or overload and can’t be moved nearly as fast or as effective. The same is true of a mind or psyche that has become too busy and needs some room to breathe.
Now that we highlight that it’s good to create some down time, time off or a more long time off we call it “vacation” – how do we go about it? One way is through some kind of daily meditation practice for 20-30 min and getting acquainted with the benefits of getting empty while practicing mindful breathing. We then become more familiar to also enjoy silence, the respite from concerns of daily life, at least in the sense of not allowing the problems to wear you down or dominate your consciousness.
Meditation moments can be just a beginning. There are plenty of other ways to enter and enjoy silence by inviting it more into your life. Reduce television or not turning the radio on. This type of silence in which a mental space is open in where ideas can germinate and intuitive feelings may be revealed to you. By learning to control your mind is part of our work as students of life; making your life more at ease and be less pray of the ego controlling mind, were wonder and creative thinking can co-exist.
Some people also use mantras, affirmations and prayer for this purpose. At BFT we are all up to that, and while you take your remedy formulas, we encourage and recommend everyone to do their own affirmations to anchor the healing work and put the mind, body and soul aligned with the purpose that is at stage to be achieved. Repeating a mantra or prayer can help calm your mind and ground up in the present moment. Intention is a very powerful tool to also be present and let go of negative thoughts that are always jumping in.
Another recommendation I want to offer you is to allow yourself to sleep as much as your body needs and to at least allow a couple of days to not wake up with the normal alarm clock. In this sense, your mind and body will do its work and will heal you while you are sleeping. At the same time, dreams will also bring you medicine re-setting your clock in a natural way.
Finally, I just want to suggest that you let yourself feel everything move through you with acceptance and with love, whatever this is. Listening, it is of course important, often it is best to be in silence. Saying that doesn’t mean that you have to be in silence all the time, just that you let yourself to have such kind of mental release when you allow yourself to listen and be in that silent state.
Often, it all begins with getting comfortable with the silence – the external one and the internal. You then allow yourself the freedom to go blank without fearing the consequences. Once you can be in the void once comfortable, with no fear and with contentment, you will conquer your present moment and tap your abundant potential! May you have a good practice and harvest!
I wish you all continue to enjoy the precious moments of your summer and vacation time!
Roser
Images used from Free Images at https://pixabay.com
Meditation moments can be just a beginning. There are plenty of other ways to enter and enjoy silence by inviting it more into your life. Reduce television or not turning the radio on. This type of silence in which a mental space is open in where ideas can germinate and intuitive feelings may be revealed to you. By learning to control your mind is part of our work as students of life; making your life more at ease and be less pray of the ego controlling mind, were wonder and creative thinking can co-exist.
Some people also use mantras, affirmations and prayer for this purpose. At BFT we are all up to that, and while you take your remedy formulas, we encourage and recommend everyone to do their own affirmations to anchor the healing work and put the mind, body and soul aligned with the purpose that is at stage to be achieved. Repeating a mantra or prayer can help calm your mind and ground up in the present moment. Intention is a very powerful tool to also be present and let go of negative thoughts that are always jumping in.
Another recommendation I want to offer you is to allow yourself to sleep as much as your body needs and to at least allow a couple of days to not wake up with the normal alarm clock. In this sense, your mind and body will do its work and will heal you while you are sleeping. At the same time, dreams will also bring you medicine re-setting your clock in a natural way.
Finally, I just want to suggest that you let yourself feel everything move through you with acceptance and with love, whatever this is. Listening, it is of course important, often it is best to be in silence. Saying that doesn’t mean that you have to be in silence all the time, just that you let yourself to have such kind of mental release when you allow yourself to listen and be in that silent state.
Often, it all begins with getting comfortable with the silence – the external one and the internal. You then allow yourself the freedom to go blank without fearing the consequences. Once you can be in the void once comfortable, with no fear and with contentment, you will conquer your present moment and tap your abundant potential! May you have a good practice and harvest!
I wish you all continue to enjoy the precious moments of your summer and vacation time!
Roser
Images used from Free Images at https://pixabay.com
