Mindfulness Meditation (For Everyday Life)

Moreover, our ideas of spirituality frequently ring with
a slightly holier-than-thou resonance to the attuned
ear. Narrow, literalist views of spirit often place it
above the "gross," "polluted," "deluded" domain of
body, mind, and matter. Falling into such views,
people can use ideas of spirit to run from life.
From a mythological perspective, the notion of spirit
has an upwardly rising quality, as James Hillman and
other proponents of archetypal psychology point out.
Its energy embodies ascent, a rising above the
earthbound qualities of this world to a world of the
non-material, filled with light and radiance, a world
beyond opposites, where everything merges into
oneness, nirvana, heaven, a cosmic unity. But, while
unity is surely an all-too-rare human experience, it is
not the end of the story. What is more, all too often it
is merely nine parts wishful thinking (but thinking
nonetheless) and only one part direct experience.
The quest for spiritual unity, especially in youth, is
often driven by naivete and a romantic yearning to
transcend the pain, the suffering, and the
responsibilities of this world of eachness and
Suchness, which includes the moist and the dark.
The idea of transcendence can be a great escape, a
high-octane fuel for delusion. This is why the
Buddhist tradition, especially Zen, emphasizes