I had a conversation with a young man yesterday. He was unsettled that his meditation practice hadn’t yielded the anticipated benefit, and wondered – what if, he wasn’t inclined towards this sort of thing at all.
He took a deep breath to explain, “I try to clear my mind, but something is always there. Why on earth do I even bother?”
I thought for a moment before I answered, “That’s a good question; why do you bother?” At first glance, my response may seem callous, at best. Though, I assure you there’s a much deeper meaning.
We’re always so quick to rush through our practice. We forget that this process is intended to unfold over time. That we must ‘make raw’ before the heart may be revealed. Though, perhaps most disappointing is our willingness to so easily ‘throw in the towel’ simply because our immediate expectations haven’t been met.
“When it comes to spiritual practice,” writes Tibetan abbot, Tsoknyi Rinpoche, “the most important thing isn’t the who, the what, the where or the with whom. What’s important is why we do it.”
Indeed, my darlings — why do we practice? Is it for rest of mind, peace of heart? A deeper need to let something go? Or, are we wishing simply to open our hearts to an often unforgiving world? Yielding the better part of ourselves in service to humanity.
Why do we practice?
For me, it is to continuously engage a mindful heart; to encourage the true essence of bodhichitta. More simply, to cultivate the means by which I may benefit all sentient beings.
Without our ‘why’, my darlings – we are rowing towards an endless horizon.
“To me,” he shares, “deepening our practice means having a genuine practice, practicing not in form only. When your practice is genuine, it will bring joy, peace, and stability to yourself and to the people around you. ”
My darlings, in order for our practice to yield genuine results — we must genuinely engage our practice. We must find the ‘why’ within our practice.
A little something to consider on this day, my loves — and, if I may ask…
“Why do you practice?”
Namaste ❤️
by 
“Without our ‘why’, my darlings – we are rowing towards an endless horizon.”
Ah, but that is exactly how I practice, to the infinite horizon. I row because the infinite Love asks me to row. I seek no shore, only to row with the Beloved.