The Teaching of Ajahn Suchart.
1 September 2024“Your restlessness is due to your energetic mind.”
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Question: How to manage restlessness during the 14 or more days quarantine order in this pandemic period especially for those who don’t have the concept of seclusion prior to this?
Than Ajahn: Well, your restlessness is due to your energetic mind. Your mind used to do things and now it is not able to do. So, you should apply your energetic mind into your practice, such as by doing walking meditation. When you feel restless and you can’t do anything, you can find a space where you can walk, maybe about 20 steps, and do walking meditation back and forth.
Walking meditation means that you have to be mindful while you’re walking. You have to have an object of meditation, such as a mantra: ‘Buddho, Buddho.’ Or you can use your body as your object of meditation such as by watching your steps. When you walk, when you use your left foot, you say, ‘left.’
When you use your right foot, you say, ‘right.’ Left, right, left, right or Buddho, Buddho. Keep walking.
Walk until you feel like you want to drop dead. Then, restlessness will disappear and you’ll find that just by sitting still, you can be very happy. This is one way to get rid of your restlessness. When your mind is restless, you’ll say, ‘If you’re restless, ok, let’s take a walk. Let’s take a two-hour walk or a three-hour walk. Let’s do walking meditation.’
But you have to be mindful. You have to have something to keep the mind from thinking of becoming discouraged from walking. If you don’t have the object of meditation, after you walk a few steps, you’ll say, ‘I don’t want to do it anymore.’ So, you have to use mindfulness to stop your mind from thinking. Let it concentrate on your walking only. Then, your mind can become calm and peaceful. And you can be happy, staying inside.
Dhamma in English, Apr 2, 2020.
By Ajahn Suchart Abhijāto
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