“The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, lecturer, and poet
I heard a story once about a man who suffered a seizure and awoke in his hospital bed with most of his memories gone. His body functioned. His intellect was still intact.
Yet he couldn’t remember a thing. It was almost as if someone had hit delete and left his mind a blank page. He had to learn everything over again — walking, eating, reading and writing.
Despite the mental and emotional setbacks, the loss of memory gave him back one thing he hadn’t had in years and that was a deep appreciation and insatiable curiosity about absolutely everything.
“What is it?” he cried out one day, his eyes wide with wonder.
Relearning to appreciate the wonder of all that is around us can prove challenging.
Without awareness, even the most amazing splendour can become commonplace. What happened so simply and naturally as a child now requires conscious effort.
We become so involved in our own struggles and thoughts that we take it all for granted. Imagine if we could close our eyes and re-open them to the miracle of life — to see the world with a beginner’s mind.
Beginner’s mind is a concept of Zen Buddhism. It refers to an attitude of openness, excitement and a lack of prejudice when assessing a subject. It asserts that there is value at times in taking all the things we know — our brilliant opinions, our logic, reason and most cherished beliefs — and setting them aside for the moment.
As with the man in the story who is seeing everything again for the first time, it is a letting go of judgments and preconceived notions.
One of the great challenges of living an empowered life is letting go of false ideas we have about how things are or should be. It is about reassessing at time the labels we have affixed to people, places and things and freeing ourselves from opinions and conceptualizations.
Consider the possibility that at least some of the time when we think we know, we don’t. All we have are past impressions and conclusions about similar events or circumstances. Living with an “I know it all” attitude can keep us lost in the past or projecting fearfully into the future. It may not allow for anything new: no new surprises, no insights or discoveries.
To better understand the concept, imagine placing ourselves in the position of saying, “I don’t know.” Few of us would consider this stance because we all want to be experts. We want to have all the answers or at least appear as if we do. None of us want to appear foolish.
I have been practising beginner’s mind for some time now and have come to many realizations. If you’d like to try this exercise, here’s the approach I recommend.
To start, find a quiet spot where you will be undisturbed for a few minutes. Acknowledge the distractions — the passing car, the voices of others, an errant worry, a fear or a physical sensation.
To put a distraction aside, you must first acknowledge it. Promise yourself you’ll attend to it at a later time.
Notice your breathing. Become physically aware of the sensation of breathing. Breathe in and hold it – sense and feel – then exhale with a sigh. This will help bring you into the moment. Appreciating the moment begins with appreciating yourself and the miracle of your body.
Next, make a mental scan of your body searching for areas that may be holding trapped stress or tension. Start with your feet (your foundation) and move up to your head.
Should you find any stress or tension, imagine breathing relaxation right into that very spot — almost like expanding a balloon.
Breathe in relaxation and exhale any stress or tension from your body.
Tell yourself to relax completely. Whisper the word freedom aloud or silently to yourself. As best you can, let go of the concept of time passing. Imagine all judgments and beliefs slowly ebbing away from you.
Take a deep breath and open your eyes. Scan the room and allow your mind to settle upon whatever captures your attention — an image, a sound, a smell. Imagine that you’re experiencing it for the first time. Allow yourself to be awe-inspired. Allow yourself to ponder its purpose.
Allow yourself to giggle at the absurdity of its form and function.
After the exercise is over, you can go right back to the shelf and pick up what you had temporarily set aside. You can wear all those reasons, opinions and cherished beliefs again, if you like.
However, you just might find that you’re coming away with something new and different — a greater appreciation for the wonder that is all around us — a new or broader perspective.
Beginner’s mind is simply acknowledging that this magnificent thinking mind may have, at times, distorted reality and obscured the true nature of things from our view.
The journey of self-esteem and empowerment must begin with the question, “Is it true?” Fostering a beginner’s mind can help to confirm or refute what we “know” to be true.
“There are only two ways to live your life,” wrote Albert Einstein.
“One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
In answer to his question, someone explained to the man that what he was seeing was a bird — an ordinary, everyday, run-of-the mill sparrow.
It sat on the branch of a tree outside the window. He mouthed the word and reached out his hand toward the window.
The sparrow hopped about on the branch and then flitted away. The man gasped and clapped his hands to his mouth. To him, he had just witnessed a miracle and to my way of thinking, he certainly had.
“Never tell me the sky’s the limit when (I know) there are footprints on the moon.”
— Author Unknown
Murray M. Fuhrer – The Self-Esteem Guy
www.theselfesteemguy.com