Mini-Lessons on Contemplative Practice - Nonjudging

A friend asked me to summarize for her what I learned at the workshop on the neuroscience of the contemplative practices that I attended earlier this month. In thinking back, I feel that there were four main points, relating to:

1. Nonjudgment
2. Intention
3. Breath
4. Values

So, this week, we will take one of these a day to study as our mini-lessons for practice. If you can join me in person for practice, I will be at Bow Street Yoga in Somerville today (Monday) from noon -1 , Wednesday and Friday from 6:15 am - 7:30 am, and Thursday from noon to 1. I will have a sub covering my regular Saturday slot this week. And good news: the snow parking ban will be lifted today just in time for practice, so no excuses. We can work on releasing those shoveling muscles with a shoulder-focused practice.

And now for nonjudgment:

As we practice yoga (which includes meditation), we work to cultivate an attitude of nonjudgment. This means many things. First, when we practice, we are asked to watch the thoughts, and, when we do this, we begin to see that these thoughts are nearly constantly-running. We start to see that many of our thoughts are judgmental - not just in that they might be harshly condemning of the self ("I'm so clumsy", "why do I always say such stupid things?", "What's wrong with me?", etc.) but also that many of our thoughts presuppose outcomes to situations ("If I try this, I'm bound to fail", "I can't do plank pose; I'm too weak", "The boss is going to call me out in front of everyone at the meeting today", etc.).

In the practice, we begin to cultivate an open attitude, one of nonjudging. First, we start to see harsh internal dialogue and we begin to redirect it. I find the words of lovingkindness to be useful here. When I notice harsh internal dialogue during practice on and off the mat/cushion, I redirect the mind to phrases such as: "May I be safe and protected, may I be peaceful, may I live with kindness and with ease, may I accept myself as I am." During practice, we also notice where we think we know the answers, where we are anticipating things to unfold in a certain, predetermined way. We cultivate openness and a fresh perspective, the open-hearted nature of the young child interacting with the world for the first time. Did you catch a snowflake on your glove or sleeve this morning? They were absolutely perfect; each one an awesome call to wake up, to notice the beauty, to be alive. The children saw it. What did you see?

When we practice in this way, we make space for things to be new, to unfold in their own ways - often in unexpected and joyful ways. We relinquish some of the control that we falsely believe that we have on the outcomes of situations. We relinquish the grasping and holding onto, the clinging onto opinions and beliefs that may or may not be true, that may or may not serve us. And when we are able to cultivate openness and relinquish grasping, we find more space for a gentle sense of being which for all of us can be a lovely place to reside. We recapture the wonder of being alive, of having a body, of breathing and interacting and moving, of sensing and observing. For some of us, this nonjudging, open space that we cultivate and begin to inhabit more and more through practice is truly Divine.