“In order to find the peace that you seek, you must learn how to quiet your mind.”

“How might I do that?”  The young boy asked the great master.

“Listen to your mind that is disguised as the voice that is constantly speaking to you.  When that voice is quieted, the mind will follow.  At that point, you have reached the state of peace that you seek.”

The man thought about the conversation he had years ago with a great spiritual master.  At that time, although he did not know it, he had little things to worry about – for he was only responsible for himself.  Now, he was in a demanding job, and had a family that was dependent upon him.  The pressures of the job, family and his financial strain was taking its toll on him.

Ultimately, he felt that he would be okay, but for some reason he kept worrying about what might happen.

“Today, I need to quiet that voice by quieting my mind,”  he said to himself while shaving in the mirror.

“Yes, today is the day.”

Before he went to work, he decided to give himself just five minutes to collect his thoughts.  He found a quiet room in the house and sat in a chair.  He closed his eyes, placed his feet flat on the floor, sat straight in the chair and placed his hands on his legs with the palms facing up.

“How can I quiet the mind?  I have so much to do today.  I don’t know where to begin.  After work, I really need to fix that leaking faucet.”

The thoughts continued to bombard him.

He took a deep breath and could feel his chest puff out with the air it was receiving.  He then slowly released the breath and took another.

“They say to focus on my breath.  I’ll give that a try.  It seems to be working a tiny bit.”

For the next several minutes that is what he did.  He took one breath after another into his lungs and slowly released it through his nose.  The breaths came in and out through his nose with his lips sealed.

Pretty soon, he could feel the tension in the back of his legs let go, and his shoulders drop a bit in a relaxation state.

After the five minutes were up, the chime on his phone alerted him that his time had expired.

“Okay, that is a good start.”

On his way to work, he was more focused on his surroundings and thinking less about the day that may or may not lie before him.

During lunch, he sat in his car and repeated the five-minute exercise.  The “reset” seemed to help him get through the afternoon.

On his way home, he stopped in a parking lot a few blocks away, and once again repeated the five-minute exercise.   “Things are already getting a bit easier,”  he thought.

That night before retiring to bed for the evening, he decided to give himself ten minutes.  Once again, it seemed that his mind cleared a bit quicker.

That night, the man met his spiritual master in his dream.

“You are making great progress.  The key is to have patience and persistence.  Much like a young sapling takes years to become a mighty tree, the same is true here.  With practice and persistence, you will find the peace that you seek.”

Years later the man continued his exercises.  He managed to find a bit more time so that he could extend the five minutes longer.  He looked back on the first day that he started this process and realized that he did not have the peace for which he was looking, but had much more peace than ever.   He then realized that what he was looking for, was going to take a lifetime of practice and patience!

Ω

InspiraCard

When we quiet the mind, the body will follow.  With a quiet mind and relaxed body we can live in a state of peace!

Written, Thu, Apr 14, 2016 8:13 – 8:27 AM MST