Contentment Meditations

From 16Guidelines

Meditations on contentment are resources associated with the 16 Guidelines.

Reflection on Contentment from 16 Guidelines: The Basics

• Find a quiet space where you can relax. Sit comfortably. To help you settle, focus your awareness on your breathing. Let go of any thoughts, images of feelings that arise. Whenever you become distracted, bring your awareness gently back to the sensation of the breath going in and out. Spend a few minutes enjoying the experience of coming to rest.
• Call to mind something to which you are currently attached. This could be good, a person, clothing or a place. See it, hear it, taste it, touch it and feel it. Focus all your attention on the object and observe what happens. Feel the pull that it exerts on your mind. Then, lay it aside.
• Next, call to mind something for which you currently have a strong aversion. This could be some food you find disgusting, a person who irritates you, a place that depresses you or a song that annoys you. How does the mind react? If it is a taste, imagine rolling ir around your tongue; if it is a touch sensation, imagine rubbing it up against your arm. Stay with the feeling of aversion for as long as you can. Observe what happens to the mind. Then, lay it aside.
• Try to recall a time when you were perfectly content, like a tree unshaken by the wind. How did this feel? What difference did it make to the way you behaved, and the choices that you made?
• Reflect on the experiences you havejust had. How often does your mind get tossed around by the senses? How quickly does it move from one object to another? What effect does this have on your behaviour and your relationships? Would you like to be more peaceful and contented? Sit with whatever conclusions you draw from this exercise and allow them to deepen.
• Close with the wish "May all beings be happy!"

8-Minute Reflection on Contentment

• Sit comfortably with a straight back and relaxed hands, arms and shoulders. Keep your eyes closed or half-open. Relax your mind. Take three deep, relaxed breaths. On the exhalation, let go of all thoughts of where you just came from and where you are going to.
• Be mindful of your breath. Pay full attention to the sensation of the air passing through your nostrils. Sit like this for two minutes.
• Remember a time when you had a feeling of balance in your life. Balance concerning working or taking food or in your relationships. A time where you had a feeling that it was not too much nor too little. A time where you had an inner sense of balance and contentment.
• Reconnect with the feeling and situation as clearly as you can. Try to recall the sensations of your body and mind at that time. Recall the way you related to your surroundings.
• Realize that the benefits of being in balance are great. Having a balanced mind means having a happy mind. Being in balance with your body brings a healthy body. Being in balance with the surroundings means giving what is needed and taking what is sustainable. This way of being is the path to creating happiness for yourself and all others.
• Consider that being in mental and physical balance and in balance with the world does not come by itself. Mental and bodily balance has to be trained and developed by letting go of harmful habits. Balance with your surroundings comes through considerateness and mindfulness of actions.
• Rejoice in having taken this time to reflect on contentment and balance and to work on developing positive habits.
• Resolve that, from today, you will try to live a life of balance, with a balanced mind, a balanced body, and balance in your interactions with the world. This will not only be for your own benefit, but also for the benefit of the world you interact with.