Over the years, I have come to realize that the greatest misunderstanding about meditation is the idea that meditation is about controlling the mind to be quiet. That only when the mind is still meditation can take place.
And this idea gives way to the greatest frustration. Because it means I am trying to stop something that will never stand still.
I am trying to rid my mind of thought, which’s inherent nature IS thought. As if I am asking a bird to stop flying and sit still.
So what if meditation is something different altogether?
What if meditation is not about controlling the mind but to simply look and watch? Not about willing or welding but watching?
Because when I do this, when I just watch, I will see that the mind itself is one of great madness and disorder … always flying, turning, twisting, moving; left, right, up, down.
And the only way to end that madness is to let the mind run free and just watch. Not taking sides, not making any choice, no condemnation of all its content; positive or negative, good or bad, happy or sad.
When I just watch, the opportunity arises for true freedom—to come alive, right here and now.
When I just watch I have the opportunity to step outside the field of thought and time. Into a totally different dimension. A dimension where I become the space and thoughts merely fly. Fly by, drift by, race by.
And I find out how wonderful it is to watch. How freeing it is to watch. How liberating to not take sides. To not control, decide, or run along. To become the space and simply watch. Sitting on the bench of the river and watch the birds fly by.
Joyful watching.
Then I will come upon that true meaning of the word meditation. Then I will experience what it means to be totally free, relaxed, and awake. Only in my watching, I give the opportunity for the bird to land and sit still for a moment. Just watch.