The Seeds of Transformation.

“There is nothing to practice. To know yourself, be yourself. To be yourself, stop imagining yourself to be this or that. Just be. Let your true nature emerge. Don’t disturb your mind with seeking.” —Nisargadatta Maharaj

There’s a scene in a television show I quite like to watch, in which the half-witted boss experiences extreme financial difficulties.

In a moment of absolute desperation he cries out, “I declare bankruptcy!” – thinking by just simply *saying* it he might be relieved of his troubles.

And though, the scene is intended for comedic effect – there really is a bit of truth in the ‘telling’.

I remember when I first began my mindfulness training. “I’m a Buddhist,” I would proudly declare – not yet knowing the full depth of its meaning.

It’s never enough to simply profess our intention. In order for the lesson to ‘stick’, we must give it roots to grow.

In the Buddhist teachings, we speak of consciousness in terms of ‘seeds.’ That is to say, in life – we begin to store these seeds of change.

Within all of us, and through our experiences, we have gathered the seeds of compassion, of trust, of promise, and of faith. Likewise, and by way of our more difficult challenges, we have gathered the seeds of fear, of jealousy, of betrayal, and of pain.

These seeds represent our potential – the potential for enlightenment existing just as strongly as that of defeat. But, likewise – these seeds can be transformed.

How often have we criticized ourselves for having acted a certain way. “That not my nature,’ we might lament.

Oh, but my darlings – it really is.

And, that’s okay. For, just as we are born with the capacity towards greatness, so too – must we struggle with these occasional lapses of ‘character’.

“Mindfulness is like a lamp illuminating ourselves” writes Thich Nhat Hanh, “As soon as the lamp is brought into the room, the room changes. When the sun rises, the light of the sun only has to shine onto the plants for them to change, grow, and develop.”

The trick is – to recognize and accept the potential within us all; to shine our light of mindfulness, and embrace the transformation before us.

“Breathing in, I know the anger is in me.” he continues. “Breathing out, I know am strong enough to take care of this anger.”

It is within this light of knowing, my darlings – that our greatest transformation may begin.

About

Tara Lemieux is a mindful wanderer, and faithful stargazer. Although she often appears to be listening with great care, rest assured she is most certainly‘forever lost in thought. She is an ardent explorer and lover of finding things previously undiscovered or at the very least mostly not-uncovered.

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