Enjoy Your Life

For the most part, this challenge is best approached as a practice in momentarily dissolving into the innermost feeling of beingness.

You simply focus on the feeling of being alive– the very primal, direct, and intimate feeling and let the enjoyment of that guide your attention home.

But as far or not far as that goes, the way to approach it from there is simply to enjoy yourself as much as possible, from the inside-out. So it doesn’t primarily mean to go to the amusement park and have a good time (though it could, see tips). It’s not that kind of a shift exactly– it’s a challenge to enjoy your life as it is by seeking that in the inner source.

Secondarily, you take this on in a spirit of CHALLENGE– as in, I will attempt this many times, and during those brief times, I will see how deep I can go, momentarily.

Thirdly, and very important: When possible confirm and recognize: is this always here? Is this mostly often possible?

Some special circumstances may arise that may present certain obstacles and possibilities:

1. By coincidence, this may or may not be a time period in your life where attention turns often to unfortunate events and circumstances. We all have times when attention is going toward those things, and that can be totally appropriate sometimes, depending on the circumstances. Don’t feel the need to change how you feel at those times (unless you do feel inclined to!). Simply look for other moments, to be in the mix of where attention is going. Have a mix going on, and use the recognition and confirmation part to see something different, and take that in for it’s own sake.

2. During most periods of our life there are not unfortunate circumstances attracting our attention so persistently. Just the usual stuff. When that is the case, try this anytime anywhere. Try it in different circumstances. How much does it really matter what the circumstances are?

3. When we have good moods and good circumstances, go ahead and try this but don’t limit it to these times.

Basically we are taking what we might think would be a natural desire and impulse, and turning it into a deliberate meditation.

Pretty much every time you do it you will be contributing something special to the stream of your life.

Take on this challenge! While we would think the word challenge applies to unpleasant things that we endure for the greater good, here we are using CHALLENGE to dare to do something totally nice and pleasant.

Strangely, it IS a challenge. So embrace that and see how far you can go.

Accept the challenge to do it often. Accept the challenge to do it as deeply as possible in the brief times. Accept the challenge to connect with the primary feeling of being alive, even to the point that goes beyond circumstances like temporary moods and feelings in the body to something more basic. Accept the challenge to confirm and recognize many times in the day.

TIPS:

1. If necessary, initiate this by changing circumstances to make it easier. For instance, do pleasant breath meditations to familiarize yourself with the meditative act of deliberate enjoyment.

Or, try initiating it with certain pleasant circumstances in your life– like set yourself up to have that bowl of ice cream, or whatever, and start with enjoyment on that level, and bring attention in, closer, to your innermost feeling.

2. Take advantage of pleasant circumstances that spontaneously pop up, and be on the lookout for them. Suddenly, you might find yourself enjoying the bus ride or walking in the sun, or whatever. Just a normal time that we happen to be enjoying. Do the meditation then.

If necessary, initiate your enjoyment of the moment by paying attention to what feelings are arising anywhere and everywhere in the body at that moment. However if you can skip right to your innermost feeling, go for it!

3. Remember that unpleasant feelings and objects of attention are sometimes normal and natural and if it feels inappropriate to try and change them, don’t. You can practice at another time when this is not on your mind. Contrary to what we might believe, even during hard times when we “feel bad all the time” it’s actually not true. It’s “not all the time.” That’s just a belief. So just wait for a moment when it seems possible to feel into your innermost feeling. Persist only a little and put this meditation off indefinitely, if necessary.

4. As long as you are up for it, don’t avoid neutral or mildly unpleasant moments to practice this. A lot of unpleasantness is generated from the body-mind for no apparent reason. Use this meditation to cut through that consciously for a few moments.

And if your recognition and confirmation of the sense of being alive is quite decisive and clear, then there’s no reason you can’t practice this during highly unpleasant moments. You might notice that your innermost feeling can be one thing, while other feelings can also be co-present.

5. Don’t struggle or strain to do this challenge– that’s not enjoying your life!
(And enjoy the paradox and challenge of that) 🙂