~ ∞ ~ The Art of Mindful Living - Awaken the Living Awareness Within ~ ∞ ~

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In the previous chapter, we explored something called Lucid Living. As a supportive chapter, rather than a comprehensive one, this chapter introduces the reader something called the Art of Mindful Living, or short, just mindfulness. There are lots of good books and resources out there full of detailed descriptions outlining how to practice mindfulness — this book is not one of them, and therefore it is advisable to seek out those kinds of resources for more insight.

Currently, we live in a world that contributes in a major way to a mental fragmentation and disintegration. It is our fast-paced lifestyle in today’s news feed-driven world that causes restlessness, anxiety, and decoherence of the mind. This happens because we are constantly bombarded with so many different forms of distractions. When we are too involved in life’s distractions, we are losing the sense of what is important and meaningful. As a result, too many unique and memorable moments are missed completely. Even though we all know at the very core of our being the truth that life unfolds in the present, still most people are never fully present in the moment — instead, they let the present slip away. This happens because they unconsciously believe that the next moment must somehow be more important or valuable than this moment or the previous ones. In so doing, they miss out most of their lives just because they are oriented either in the past or to the future.

When asked, everyone unanimously agrees that it is important to live in the moment, but the problem for many seems to be that they don’t quite know how to live in the moment. Although living in the moment sounds incredibly simple, it isn’t — at least not at the beginning, because living in the moment requires constant alertness and attention to one’s surroundings, to one’s thoughts, feelings, and actions. Truly enjoying and appreciating life’s most memorable moments takes a conscious effort; and it is precisely due to that effort why living in the moment is often dismissed and replaced with entertainment and other forms of distractions. If follows, naturally, then, that the quality of life is more or less lowered; and so it can be said that remembering to take time to live in the moment is most definitely the greatest challenge of our time.

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Living in the moment is closely connected with happiness. We as human beings often believe that happiness is something that is possible to achieve somewhere in the future. This goal-oriented belief derails us from the truth that happiness is inherent in all of us; it’s there — it always has been, and always will be. You see, happiness isn’t dependent on the circumstances; our happiness isn’t dependent on the time or place either. The conscious realization and acknowledgement that we already have arrived to our destination and we don’t have to travel any further, will create happiness in and of itself. This profound realization further leads to inner peace, from just the simple act of allowing, you see? When we are more present in the moment, live less out of habit, and more out of intent, and also be careful of our thoughts and emotions — we can increase the quality of our lives. Sometimes this type of beingness or state of being is called “mindfulness,” which is a state of being where one is alert, active and open.

In a nutshell, mindfulness is present moment awareness — a gentle effort to be continuously present with experience. In other words, intentional attention on the present moment. More broadly, mindfulness is complete engagement with the present moment, which enables authentic connection to oneself, to others, and to life itself. Therefore, mindfulness can be described as knowing what you are doing when you are doing it, which goes on to say that mindfulness is a particular way of paying attention. Thus, mindfulness is the mental faculty of purposefully bringing awareness to one’s experience. Mindfulness can be applied to sensory experience, thoughts and emotions by using sustained attention and noticing one’s experience without reacting. Mindfulness creates space, changing impulsive reactions to thoughtful responses.

Mindfulness is at the root of Buddhism, Taoism, Yoga, and is also found in many Native-American traditions; mindfulness simply stands for the Art of Awareness or the Art of Mindful Living, of what is happening, of living, you see? To be mindful means to deeply enjoy life with a state of active, open attention on the present moment. When one is mindful, one can observe one’s thoughts and feelings from a distance, without judging them good or bad. Instead of letting our life pass us by, mindfulness teaches us how to live in the moment and awaken to experience.

In closing, it can be added that it is through mindfulness that we can experience beauty in everything, everywhere, and in every moment. It is through mindfulness that we can become aware of thoughts, emotions, feelings, physical sensations, behaviors, and speech. It is through mindfulness that the suffering of others and oneself can be understood, alleviated, overcome and eventually transcended. And more than that, mindfulness facilitates direct intuitive insight (called wisdom) into the ever-changing, conditioned nature of all phenomena from moment to moment. It facilitates understanding that everything is interconnected and interrelated.

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~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~

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Get the Book: Awaken the Living Awareness Within – Discover the Keys to Happiness, Inner Peace & Harmony

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[ Click » here « to read the next part: Living Quantum World - A New Synthesis of Knowledge ]

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Extra Material: Video: You're It - Alan Watts. Video description: "An inspiring and profound speech from the late Alan Watts. Speech extract from 'Zen Bones and Tales' by Alan Watts"

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Further Reading - Book Recommendations

For those who might be interested in deepening their understanding of these areas, I can wholeheartedly recommend the following books: 1.) The Way of Zen 2.) An Introduction to Zen Buddhism 3.) Manual of Zen Buddhism 4.) Essays in Zen Buddhism, First Series 5.) Essays in Zen Buddhism: Second Series.

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1.) The Diamond Sutra 2.) The Heart Sutra 3.) A Treasury of Traditional Wisdom: An Encyclopedia of Humankind's Spiritual Truth (Wisdom Foundation series) 4.) Words to the Wise: A Practical Guide to the Esoteric Sciences 5.) The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels Between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Telempathic ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Telempathic is a portmanteau, or combination of two words: telepathic + empathic, which describe the ability to feel others’ emotions. Empaths can perceive information through others emotions and feelings, which allows them to communicate through the same emotion, which may be processed as an energetic vibration through the empath’s body, making them Telempathic.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Human Condition ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

The Human Condition is a name given to a collective condition, which is traditionally being described as the unalterable part of humanity, not dependent on factors such as gender, race, culture or class; it includes concerns such as the meaning of life, the search for gratification, the sense of curiosity, and last but certainly not the least, an awareness regarding the inescapability of death – you see, of all living things, only humans suffer an awareness of their own mortality, which is the source of a great deal of emotional distress and pain.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Satori ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

In Zen Buddhism, Satori is ‘a glimpse of truth’ or a sudden moment of awakening – seeing into one’s true nature; Zen is a product of Satori – achieved by deepening one’s experience even further and bringing it into maturation by continuous practice. Zen in its basic essence is the art of seeing into the nature of one’s own being, and therefore it points the way from bondage to freedom; being free means of giving free play to all the creative and benevolent impulses inherently lying in our hearts – Zen liberates all these energies naturally stored within each of us. See also closely related terms Samadhi, and Nirvana.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Positivism ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Positivism is a philosophical system recognizing only that which can be scientifically verified or which is capable of logical or mathematical proof, and therefore rejecting metaphysics and theism.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Spiritual Transcendence ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Spiritual Transcendence refers to the very highest and most inclusive or holistic levels of human consciousness, behaving and relating, as ends rather than means, to oneself, to significant others, to human beings in general, to other species, to nature, and to the cosmos. Spiritual Transcendence is the experience of one’s consciousness moving beyond the normal sense of self and the body boundary into an experience of the Divine, the Sacred, or True Nature. This experience often manifests as a sense of unity, boundlessness, vastness or an oceanic experience; to experience true Spiritual Transcendence is to experience the effortlessness of being.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Entropy ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Entropy can best be described as follows: everything that comes together falls apart. In other words, it is the nature of this universe that entropy increases over time, which means that everything in the universe tends towards disorder or chaos. For example, all living things age and die, they don’t get younger; mechanical things tend to wear out and break down; bricks are not naturally stacked up nicely or become part of a building unless someone has put a lot of effort into making it. And so it seems that chaos or disorder is more probable in the universe than order. This goes on to say that chaos or disorder is the backdrop against which order (life, intelligence) can be seen.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Paradox ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Paradox is a statement that contradicts itself, and when investigated might actually be true. Paradoxical statements may seem completely self-contradictory, but they can be used to reveal deeper truths. To understand paradox means accommodating different viewpoints within a broader perspective. As an example: understanding creation out of nothing or just simply ‘ex nihilo,’ one must appreciate paradox and learn to see opposites as complementary which are equally important parts of the whole. You see, the wisdom lies in paradox: even if something contradicts itself, it can still be true; some would call this ‘coincidentia oppositorum,’ or just simply Unity of Opposites. A thing is both what it is and what it is not, and yet it somehow escapes contradiction – that’s how the Miracle of Life is possible.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Paradigm Shift ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

A paradigm is the collection of ideas and assumptions that pass from one generation to the next and which seem to be immutable. The paradigm shift, then, is when the paradigm shifts. In this process, everything that no longer serves its purpose – begins to fade away, to be replaced with something else; and with it goes all the old, outdated and outmoded structures that are limiting us – both as individuals and as a species. This in turn gives way to a new understanding, a new way of seeing, a new way of living, being, and doing. Paradigm shifts are necessary for growth and transformation.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Scientism ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Scientism is the claim that science is the only source of knowledge. In essence, scientism sees science as the absolute and only justifiable access to the truth.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Telos ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Telos is a term used by philosopher Aristotle to refer to the full potential or inherent purpose of a person – supreme end of man’s endeavour.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Samadhi ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Samādhi (Sanskrit: समाधि), also called samāpatti, in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools refers to a state of meditative consciousness; it is a meditative absorption or trance, attained by the practice of dhyāna. In samādhi the mind becomes still – it is a state of being totally aware of the present moment; a one-pointedness of mind. In Buddhism, it is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path. In the Ashtanga Yoga tradition, it is the eighth and final limb identified in the Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali. See also closely related terms Satori, and Nirvana.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Zen ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

The word Zen is derived from the Japanese word Chán, which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna – meaning “meditation,” or “meditative state”; Dhyana is the practicing of the inward life, the silent realization by which the individual is instructed in the great universal truths. Zen is a total state of focus that incorporates a total togetherness of body and mind – in other words, Zen is a way of being; it is also a state of mind, which involves dropping the illusion, and seeing the World as-it-is, without the distortion created by our own thoughts – in other words, Zen is a way of living, a way of being in the World; it is the achieving of the balance between the World and the Self.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Lucid Living ~ ∞ ~

When we begin to live in the present moment, we can consciously access the dreamscape itself – this type of experience can be called as the Lucid Living. The best way to explore the mysteries of Living Life is to subjectively explore the different levels of our own consciousness by practicing being more aware.

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

This type of alive and vivid experience of life (Lucid Living) could easily be compared to viewing a film in an Ultra-HD resolution that has more depth & variety in colors than the ordinary normal resolution. The most amazing thing about this type of living is the fact that the experience isn’t only richer in color and sound, but that the experiencer is embedded in the action and creating the story in real-time.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Enlightenment ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Enlightenment is an understanding of both the relative mode of existence (the way in which things appear to us) and the ultimate mode of existence (the true nature of these same appearances). This includes our own minds and consciousness (Inner World) as well as the external world.

In the Western world, the concept of Spiritual Enlightenment has become synonymous with Self-Realization; the term is being used to translate several Eastern terms and concepts, such as Nirvana, Satori, and Kenshō. Nirvāṇa (Sanskrit: निर्वाण nirvāṇa; Pali: निब्बान nibbāna) is most commonly associated with Buddhism, literally meaning “blown out,” as in a candle.

In the Buddhist context, nirvana refers to the imperturbable stillness of the mind, after the fires that cause suffering (dukkha) have been finally extinguished; it is the state of perfect peace that comes when craving is eliminated, the unconditioned state experienced while alive with the extinguishing of the flames of desire, aversion, and delusion.

In Hindu philosophy, it is the union with Brahman, the divine ground of existence, and the experience of blissful egolessness. See also closely related terms Satori, and Samadhi.

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~ ∞ ~ Awaken the Living Awareness Within: Infinity ~ ∞ ~

Awaken the Living Awareness Within Glossary

Infinity (∞) is a concept describing something without any limit; Infinity is infinitely infinite, where even seemingly finite structures are inherently infinite at all points. In other words, Infinity is the unreachable point at the end of a never-ending line that repeats itself ad infinitum.

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