Cattāri Brahmavihārā

This morning as I sat in meditation the effects of a week’s fasting manifested as an almost rhythmic contraction and expansion of awareness. Ramadhan has proven to me once and for all just how important energy is for samadhi and that Right Effort is much more than a simple act of will. And yet the experience is proving to be incredibly worthwhile which must be the reason I subject myself to the observance year after year (unless, of course, it just gives the masochist in me free reign to do as it wants).

What I noticed during this mornings sit, amidst the chattering, the worrying, the sleepiness and food fantasies was that I was able to simply let go. Let go and truly begin anew. As I write it now it is clear that this realization doesn’t translate well into words but the feeling of spaciousness and an excitement born of the infinte possibilities offered by each new moment, each new breath is perhaps the best way to present it. Were I a poet I may have been better able to evoke the emotional tone of the realization but in this birth I have not been so lucky. Anyway, this morning’s sit has helped to strengthen my conviction that no effort is lost and we can always begin anew. Great news for a mind like mine inclined to negativity. Sukhita hontu.