pausing: “… Just pause. Nothing else. And notice your experience. Notice what is there. In this moment …” ~ Peter Russell
Back in June we had started a pause (in all content publishing : Posts + bi-monthly newsletters) for health reasons … with planned RESUMING sometime in August … and any mid-stream updates via a post on website and a special newsletter. Unfortunately, we are delayed … and have to continue the pause through September and will RESUME in October … we are very grateful for your understanding and patience.
Thought it might be worthwhile to share some benefits of Pausing … through the words of some of our familiar teachers …
The very simple act of pausing offers profound gifts and the pause itself becomes a real teacher … a teacher that is always available : in any moment by simply noticing – that we’ve “wandered” – there is an opportunity to gently come back “home” to now. As Peter Russell reminds us : “… Meditation practice is not learning how to stay present, but learning how to return to the present …” …
When we truly pause, we expand our awareness which transforms our entire experience … and we discover what Alan Watts called the eternal now … the eternal present: “… We are living in an eternal now, and when we listen to music we are not listening to the past, we are not listening to the future, we are listening to an expanded present …” …
Each pause allows us to use this moment consciously, skillfully, with full presence … His Holiness The Dalai Lama understood the profound peace available in presence: “… From my own limited experience I have found that the greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion …” … of course, this tranquility naturally arises when we pause and meet the moment with an open heart.
Elias Amidon says pausing “… opens us to a natural humility and innocence in the moment …” … and, in this innocence, we find freshness—seeing life as if for the first time, free from the weight of past conditioning and future anxieties.
And … the ultimate benefit of pausing, in Peter Russell’s words: “… the essence of awakening is simply letting go of our preconceptions and judgments, returning our attention to the present moment, and there recognizing our true nature …” …
May you naturally pause throughout the day … in your everyday life … and realize the simple yet profound benefits …
Quotes (in order of usage) : 1) Enjoy Just Pause: Peter Russell’s Letting Go of Nothing, A Tolle Edition – Stillness Speaks, 2) Effortless Meditation by Peter Russell (Part 3) – Stillness Speaks, 3) The Way of Liberation by Alan W. Watts, 4) Compassion and the Individual: His Holiness The Dalai Lama, 5) Power Of Accepting What Is? Elias Amidon Notes Open Path – Stillness Speaks, 6) Seeds of Awakening – Peter Russell – Stillness Speaks.
Images: (edited and logo added): Featured and 1) Male of resplendent quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno) sits on the tree branch in the forest of Monteverde National Park, Costa Rica by mihtiander. All purchased from 123rtf and/or depositphotos. All are for use only on our website/social channels (these images are not permitted to be shared separate from this post).
