Before we begin I would like to share a wonderful story with you all.
This is a story about a farmer, who owns a cow. One day not knowing that the cow is in its stable, the farmer goes off to search for it, thinking it has strayed from home. Starting off on his search, he sees many different cow footprints outside his yard. The man then thinks, “Which way did my cow go?” He decides to follow one set of tracks and they lead him up into the high mountains, but he doesn’t find his cow there. Then he follows another set of footprints that lead way down to the ocean. However, when he reaches the ocean, he still doesn’t find his cow. He starts thinking what if my cow got drowns. This thought gives rise to a whole lot of negative thoughts without realizing that it could be back home in the stable in his yard.
In order to make our own discoveries, for freedom from pain, unhappiness, past traumas, failures etc. we have to start right here where we are. We have to search inwardly rather than outwardly. From the Buddhist point of view, ultimate happiness — the state of freedom from, or enlightenment — is within our minds and has been from beginning. Like the cow comfortably resting in its stable, ultimate happiness has never left us, although we have developed the idea that it has left home. We think it is somewhere outside and we have to find it.
Now the question is how do we find the true happiness and freedom from all the so called sufferings and unhappiness?
According to the Buddha, the actual point of all our efforts on this journey is simply to return to the state of complete wakefulness, which is the true nature of our minds. Our minds are brilliantly clear and aware naturally, but that brilliant wakefulness is hidden from our view by clouds of confusion. These clouds are caused primarily by the turbulence of our thoughts and emotions. There is so much commotion going on in our minds that our view of who we are and what the world is like is distorted. The distorted believes that we store in our minds about the self and the world is the reason for most of the challenges we face. The mind ocean deals with this powerful giant called the Mind…. May scientist tried defining Mind but the discovery is still on…The most accepted definition is: “The mind is an embodied and relational process that regulates the flow of energy and information”. Interesting, and while scientists over time have sort to define the mind there is no doubt, even amongst those scientists, that one of the more important qualities of the mind is that we can change it. We can all change our minds.
- Health challenges?
- Fears and phobias?
- Feeling low in confidence?
- Panic Attacks, unable to control yourself?
- Obsessive, uncontrollable thoughts of impending doom, death or disaster?
- Feeling dizzy, feel like you’re going to pass out?
- Pins and needles in hands and feet?
- Heart racing, feeling like you are having a heart attack?
- Bowel problems, needing to use the loo constantly?
- Bowel problems, needing to use the loo constantly?
- Muscle tension, irritability, headaches, neck pain, difficulty concentrating?
- Restlessness, feeling on edge constantly?
- Feeling stressed out, quick to anger?
- Feeling sick, tired, trouble falling asleep and staying asleep?
- Feel like you are going mad, insane?
- Depressed, can’t seem to get motivated, in a rut?
- Unable to relax but don’t know why, always jumpy?
- Anxiety problems, feeling Anxious more often?