om mind
Nature’s cycle
All gardeners and recyclers will know that clippings, trimmings, dead
plants, vegetable peelings and plants that find themselves in the
wrong place, find a new home on the compost heap. Here, nature
works its magic. The vegetation wilts and begins to rot. The rain
moistens it and the sun warms it. Eventually, from waste, beautiful
compost is formed. Seeds are sown in the compost and with
nurturing and care a new plant begins to grow. With time, the plant
forms flowers and bears fruit. This fruit becomes part of the food we
eat. Nature’s cycle is reassuringly enduring, continuously providing.
When you next sit down to eat, be fully present. Consider not just
the textures, smells and tastes, consider also what it is you are really
eating. Think about the rotting vegetation that made the beautiful
compost. Remember the care taken by the gardener or farmer who
sowed the seed. How they nurtured the plant and helped it to grow.
Be grateful for the rain and the sun, without which the plant would
not be possible. How did the food get to you? How many people
have been involved in the process? Eat the rain, the sun and the
compost with complete awareness.
Kindness and compassion
All the things we think of as waste, in this example, created
sustenance and things of beauty. Without the rotting vegetation, the
fruit would not be possible. Therefore, the waste is not thrown away
with no value, it is important and allows new growth.
In our daily lives and also in our mindfulness and meditation
practice we can greet our fears, anxieties, dis-ease and discomfort
with the same thought, kindness and understanding. Just as there is
balance with the rotting vegetation and the fruit, there is the same
balance with fear, anxiety and pain. If we experience sadness, we can
experience happiness, this balance provides that.
Fear can turn to hope, dis-ease to ease, and mis-understanding to
understanding. The rotting vegetation must be present for the flower
to bloom. When we bring kindness and compassion to ourselves and
also others in our daily lives, we allow the flowers to bloom.
Amanda Edlin is principal trainer at Waking Minds Yoga. She is
a meditation and mindfulness practitioner with over 30 years of
experience and is also a yoga teacher trainer and an author.
She has studied western psychology, NLP, CBT, eastern philosophy,
various styles of yoga, meditation and mindfulness. Visit:
wakingmindsyoga.co.uk