(bell)
How do I stay in the present moment when it feels unbearable?
Because in Plum Village we always say that
"Let us not get caught in the past and the future"
"Let us go back to the present moment"
And this is a question about "How can I stay in the present moment
when the present moment feels unbearable?"
That's a good question.
(Laughter)
Anyone who knows the practice of mindfulness
knows that you have to go home to the present moment.
When you go home to the present moment, you can find...
two kinds of situations:
The first kind of situation is
there are so many conditions of happiness available
in the here and the now
When you breathe in and bring your mind home to your body
you establish in the present moment.
And you notice there are so many refreshing and healing elements
available in the present moment.
There are also many conditions of happiness available in the present moment.
And with that awareness,
to generate the feeling of joy and happiness is very easy.
That you can do in order to nourish yourself.
To nourish yourself with joy and happiness.
So, that is the first thing you encounter when you go back to the present moment.
The second situation is that when you go back to the present moment
you might encounter a feeling of pain,
a feeling of a painful emotion,
that is in you.
In fact a painful feeling, a painful emotion,
manifests from time to time.
But when it begins to manifest, you don't like to be there.
So you try to run away,
pretending that it's not there.
So no one is there in order to take care of the painful feeling or the painful emotion.
So, going back to the present moment here, is no longer to recognize
the elements of joy and happiness,
but to have a chance to take care of the pain in ourselves.
And to transform it.
So, even if the present moment is unbearable,
to go back to that moment is the only chance for us
to do something in order to calm it down
and to transform it.
Most of the people don't do that
because they're afraid that when they come home to themselves,
and touch their pain inside,
they will be overwhelmed by the suffering
and that is why their practice is to run away,
imagine something about the future to forget
go back to the past to forget
but the past and the future, they are like images.
Not reality.
Only the present moment is real.
Many people try to cover up the pain inside
not only by going back to the past or running to the future,
to imagine that there will be some hope,
some end of suffering in the future
but that cannot last long
And most people try to cover up the suffering inside
by the practice of consumption.
We read magazines and watch television
we try and find something to eat
we listen to the music, we pick up the phone to talk,
everything we do, we do because we hope by doing these things,
we don't have to confront the suffering in us.
And we allow that pain to continue to grow in us.
So the practice of mindfulness helps us to go home to the present moment.
Even if the moment is not pleasant,
but it is in that very moment,
that we can understand the suffering,
and that we can find a way in order to calm it down.
And to transform it.
So, next time when you find the present moment not pleasant,
don't think that running away from it is the best way.
No, it may be a chance.
So, stay in that moment. Look deeply into the nature of your suffering.
If you know how to practice mindful breathing,
or mindful walking,
you're generating the energy of mindfulness
and then that energy of mindfulness generated by the practice
helps you to be strong enough
to recognize and counter the pain and embrace it tenderly.
And embracing your pain tenderly
in a few minutes, you can calm it down
And...
if there are practitioners practicing with you
and then you can profit from their energy of mindfulness
and compassion.
Getting in touch with the suffering,
brings about understanding of suffering.
And...
the energy of compassion - understanding and compassion -
has the power to heal.
To heal you and to heal the people who happen to be around you at that time.
And if there is a group of people practicing,
together, embracing the suffering with tenderness,
they will experience that collective energy of compassion that will heal them.
And when they suffer less, they are in the situation to help other people
to do the same.
There is a Bodhisattva whose name is Kṣitigarbha [?]
the vow of Kṣitigarbha [?] is to go to the places where
there's a lot of suffering
in order to have a chance to serve, to help.
And there are many doctors, nurses, social workers, they are doing the same
they volunteer to go to painful spots of Mother Earth
in order to help the people
so Bodhisattvas Kṣitigarbha - they are real, they are not just images.
Very young people are serving as Bodhisattvas Kṣitigarbha.
They are not afraid of suffering.
Because they know that they can bring relief
And Bodhisattva Kṣitigarbha has a strong power or source of energy
that is the aspiration
the third kind of nutriment, volition
You know you are there - alive
And you want to do something with your life
You want your life to be useful, meaningful.
So, you make a strong vow to go to help people who suffer.
So, you are not afraid of going to the situations of suffering.
And these Bodhisattvas should be supported by us.
You want to support them so they do not lose their aspiration after a few years of service.
We have to send them our energy of encouragement
They need nourishment and healing
So, after six months of working in a very difficult situation, they go home
and they have us taking care of them,
time to heal, so they will go out again the second time and the third time
Bodhisattva Kṣitigarbha needs help also.
So, we're there to help young Kṣitigarbhas to continue their work
in the world.
So, if you have compassion,
you don't mind being in a difficult, suffering situation.
And if you have enough compassion
then you are protected. You will not be overwhelmed by the collective energy
of suffering emitted by the people around.
And Bodhisattva Kṣitigarbha knows that they, that he needs a Sangha
in order to continue for a long time.
So, the practice should not only be individual
the practice should be collective also.
So, let us try to convince people in our family to join the practice.
And the best way to do it is to become more and more pleasant, every day.
More smiling, more sweet... sweeter
and they'll believe that the practice will work for them also.
So, when your family, your community, enjoy more harmony,
health, brotherhood, sisterhood,
and then your aspiration can be more easily realized.
Without a Sangha, without a group of people
our dream cannot come true.
So, not only we try as a person,
but we know that operating as a group of people, as a Sangha,
it is always much better.
(bell)
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