Tag: horizon

22 Ways to embrace sense of wholeness and freedom: From rest to liberation from slavery, 9th way

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The sun bursts his total energy. The trees bent forward. Grass leaves folding. Thirsty genthilang rests, singing and dipping her cucak in soothing food. I quiet my body to sphere a little more oxygen. Everything begins and continues… insufficient at first in the mid-day is to extend further joy and aliveness. It is the moment to collaborate a tranquil heart and mind. A thin skin of wind infuses to live modestly, with no greediness. Over… The sun now begins conserving and gentler… Resting is the starting point to embrace a sense of liberation from the slavery of mind and things…

Once we embark on a spiritual and psychological path, we, as seekers, may discover a previously expected and unexpected realm of subtle, psychic reality. I describe the spiritual path as a return journey to our original home. We encounter safe and unsafe landscapes. Sometimes we need to hike the hill or mountain, and sometimes we need to go down the valley. Finally, we need to pause and take a break to rest. There are times on the journey when patience can be worn out. The journey seems too long, and we cannot see the end of it.

This journey began in our mother’s womb. It is not a journey in geographical space or calendar time. The most challenging part is that we cannot see the horizon before us because our inner eye and heart are not ready to see it. Our sight is not clear. We may see through the layers of our perceptions, preconceptions, and beliefs, or we may misunderstand the journey concept.

Our spirit is often lifted when we see the horizon ahead (i.e., hope), but as we walk toward it, it seems to stay the same distance ahead. As we journey through the process, we realize that the horizon is not something to be held. The process is a journey of accomplishment, not only success. Life’s journey consists of internal and external conflicts as well as joy and harmony, which lead to the wholeness of life.

The most important thing is, regularly, we need to lie down on the sand, resting momentarily, listening to the whisper of the wind, sensing the touch of the sun, or watching the clouds float across the sky… We talk to our body and muscles. We listen to them and let them have a moment to heal… We rest between the movements of breathing in and out… We rest from the moment of wanting to be perfect parents to the moment when we let go the perfection. Finally, we just sit and enjoy the gladness and sweetness of the surroundings, such as our colleague, friend, partner, companion, wife, husband, and children, without any expectations or demands. We must rest from “greed,” which manifests signs of unhealthy compulsiveness and proportional attachment to specific ideas, beliefs, dogmas, or things.

Rest is about the work of the inner soul, and we let it happens. We need rest from fear and anxiety. If we can rest for fifteen to thirty minutes daily, we will appreciate the meaning of doing it. We must liberate our souls from overwork, mind slavery, or self-slavery. No further justification for the benefits of doing work at that moment. We just rest most harmoniously.

Significant clarification: Rest is not a matter of sleeping or not doing anything (i.e., idleness, laziness, and mission-less) because rest is an active way of attaining liberation and transformation, which brings a sense of gladness, joy, happiness, and growth in personal life and others. The unthinkable part is that the rest transports us closer to our noble mission and destination.

Rony Kusnadi, Ph.D.

Mindfulness horizon

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As events come and go, people read, listen, see, experience, and more through all their senses. They consciously and unconsciously allow and incorporate all the experiential happening materials as a part of their personality. Some people may have to become somebody they may never think or intend to be.

One of the remarkable lessons in reflective life is that when people force themselves to take control over events or situations, they need to learn to let go of their attachments to the status quo conditions. They need to mindfully live from the deep place of recognition and then learn to unlearn.

I always remember a message from my “guru,” who said: “If you want to experience the present, then you need to drop off or give up your every idea, the concept of living in the present. You need to come to the mindfulness that leads you to the knowledge that being present is not the same as trying to be present. You need to know that you get it when you lose it, live when you die, rise when you are hung on the cross.” Remember the flow of the river… experience the symphony without needing to own the notes…”

Then, he softly stated one mantra that came from his heart, “Let things come, let things go… Let the water flow and the wind blow, and let the music sound unhindered… Do not hold one note in your pocket… let “do” comes and goes… let “re” comes and goes…” Then, he challenged me to only listen to one cassette of instrumental music each hour, then come to the whole day, month, and even a year… Do you want to try this? Once you get it… you will understand… and don’t forget to drop it again…