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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
Benefits of Mindfulness: Mindful Living Can Change Your Life
Mindfulness 101: A Beginner's Guide
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Hi, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness. Today, we're going to talk about the concept of becoming enlightened. Now it's a wonderful thing to be drawn towards the experience of waking up. This desire is what gives us the motivation to learn to release ourselves from suffering and stress and find greater degrees of freedom and peace of mind. And one of the greatest challenges on the path of awakening is that we often bring with us the condition to attitudes and ideas that dominate our mainstream culture.
Now in Western culture, especially, we're taught from a young age to strive, to accomplish and achieve things and to expect that we will feel fulfilled or more special once we get to that goal. We're rewarded, for instance, when we do well on a test in school, when we win a competition, when we make the cut of the sporting team. And then as adults, we strive after status maybe, wealth, career success, or to be the perfect partner. We have these ambitions that we constantly pursue. We love to accomplish goals.
So when it comes to the path of mindfulness and we hear about this concept of enlightenment, this possibility of enlightenment, the danger is that we bring these attitudes in and make awakening into another ambitious goal to attain in the future. Another goal that we believe when we get there will finally make us whole and happy and complete. But when it comes to awakening, you're not seeking to attain some future state. That's the mental trap that so many of us can get caught up in. We create this mental image of some special state called enlightenment that's out there in the future, something that we want to achieve.
And then we set about striving towards it. Now the irony is the more we focus on the outcome of attaining enlightenment in the future, the more strongly we attach to that idea that the more that we reinforce the idea that who we are right now and where we are right now is not acceptable, it's not enough, we're not there yet. And the attachment to that idea makes it impossible to be awakened, present in this moment right now fully, which is the only place where we can really do the work of awakening. So instead we want to let go of the goal and simply aim to be present right here and now. This allows us to approach our practice with wholeheartedness, acceptance and ease.
This message was beautifully summed up by Eckhart Tolle when he said. "Even my desire to become free or enlightened is just another craving for fulfillment or completion in the future." So he said, "Don't seek to become free or enlightened, just become present." In today's meditation, we'll explore this a little further. So I invite you to settle in for that. And as always, thank you for your practice and your presence here.
Becoming Enlightened
Personalized support for learning how to integrate mindfulness into your life. Delivered fresh everyday by our world renowned experts. Choose meditation duration:
Duration
Your default time is based on your progress and is changed automatically as you practice.
Hi, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness. Today, we're going to talk about the concept of becoming enlightened. Now it's a wonderful thing to be drawn towards the experience of waking up. This desire is what gives us the motivation to learn to release ourselves from suffering and stress and find greater degrees of freedom and peace of mind. And one of the greatest challenges on the path of awakening is that we often bring with us the condition to attitudes and ideas that dominate our mainstream culture.
Now in Western culture, especially, we're taught from a young age to strive, to accomplish and achieve things and to expect that we will feel fulfilled or more special once we get to that goal. We're rewarded, for instance, when we do well on a test in school, when we win a competition, when we make the cut of the sporting team. And then as adults, we strive after status maybe, wealth, career success, or to be the perfect partner. We have these ambitions that we constantly pursue. We love to accomplish goals.
So when it comes to the path of mindfulness and we hear about this concept of enlightenment, this possibility of enlightenment, the danger is that we bring these attitudes in and make awakening into another ambitious goal to attain in the future. Another goal that we believe when we get there will finally make us whole and happy and complete. But when it comes to awakening, you're not seeking to attain some future state. That's the mental trap that so many of us can get caught up in. We create this mental image of some special state called enlightenment that's out there in the future, something that we want to achieve.
And then we set about striving towards it. Now the irony is the more we focus on the outcome of attaining enlightenment in the future, the more strongly we attach to that idea that the more that we reinforce the idea that who we are right now and where we are right now is not acceptable, it's not enough, we're not there yet. And the attachment to that idea makes it impossible to be awakened, present in this moment right now fully, which is the only place where we can really do the work of awakening. So instead we want to let go of the goal and simply aim to be present right here and now. This allows us to approach our practice with wholeheartedness, acceptance and ease.
This message was beautifully summed up by Eckhart Tolle when he said. "Even my desire to become free or enlightened is just another craving for fulfillment or completion in the future." So he said, "Don't seek to become free or enlightened, just become present." In today's meditation, we'll explore this a little further. So I invite you to settle in for that. And as always, thank you for your practice and your presence here.
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Melli has a beautiful way of guiding and reminding us of the stillness within.
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I have been on a journey of healing and learning self-love. Amidst the work, I have been using the mindfulness app for the gentle reminders, guides to the moment (especially the difficult ones).
Kelly Boys offers a fresh and illuminating take on how to step out of lifelong patterns that keep snagging us.
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Truly life changing. This isn't solely meditation and mindfulness...this is about striving to be the best the versions of ourselves.
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Relaxing and assuring beyond description... thank you, Cory.
- Babs312
This is the app I turn to when I want to feel calm and loved.
- Abby
Melli has a beautiful way of guiding and reminding us of the stillness within.
- Adrienne James
I have been on a journey of healing and learning self-love. Amidst the work, I have been using the mindfulness app for the gentle reminders, guides to the moment (especially the difficult ones).
Kelly Boys offers a fresh and illuminating take on how to step out of lifelong patterns that keep snagging us.
- Tara Brach, PhD
Truly life changing. This isn't solely meditation and mindfulness...this is about striving to be the best the versions of ourselves.
- Marisa, Plus+ Member
Relaxing and assuring beyond description... thank you, Cory.
- Babs312
This is the app I turn to when I want to feel calm and loved.
- Abby
Melli has a beautiful way of guiding and reminding us of the stillness within.
- Adrienne James
I have been on a journey of healing and learning self-love. Amidst the work, I have been using the mindfulness app for the gentle reminders, guides to the moment (especially the difficult ones).
Kelly Boys offers a fresh and illuminating take on how to step out of lifelong patterns that keep snagging us.
- Tara Brach, PhD
Truly life changing. This isn't solely meditation and mindfulness...this is about striving to be the best the versions of ourselves.
- Marisa, Plus+ Member
Relaxing and assuring beyond description... thank you, Cory.
- Babs312
Shamash's guidance is a gift of wisdom to help us in our busy and stressful lives.
- Paul Gilbert, PhD, FBPsS, OBE, Centre for Compassion Research and Training, University of Derby, United Kingdom
Excellent! Cory gently guides you into internal peace.
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A necessary tool for those who feel lost.
- Piper
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- Marty
I start every day with Cory or Melli for my daily practice. Including this app into my practice helps me continue to build more mental focus and understanding of my thought processes. What a welcome and powerful gift.
- Oku
Shamash's guidance is a gift of wisdom to help us in our busy and stressful lives.
- Paul Gilbert, PhD, FBPsS, OBE, Centre for Compassion Research and Training, University of Derby, United Kingdom
Excellent! Cory gently guides you into internal peace.
- Steve Ericson
A necessary tool for those who feel lost.
- Piper
Just want to say a big thankyou to all involved as this has had a positive impact in my daily life 🙏 Valuable teachings that have allowed me to have a better relationship not only with those around me, but with myself. Heal ourselves and we heal the world 💫✨🌍
- Marty
I start every day with Cory or Melli for my daily practice. Including this app into my practice helps me continue to build more mental focus and understanding of my thought processes. What a welcome and powerful gift.
- Oku
Shamash's guidance is a gift of wisdom to help us in our busy and stressful lives.
- Paul Gilbert, PhD, FBPsS, OBE, Centre for Compassion Research and Training, University of Derby, United Kingdom
Excellent! Cory gently guides you into internal peace.
- Steve Ericson
A necessary tool for those who feel lost.
- Piper
Just want to say a big thankyou to all involved as this has had a positive impact in my daily life 🙏 Valuable teachings that have allowed me to have a better relationship not only with those around me, but with myself. Heal ourselves and we heal the world 💫✨🌍
- Marty
I start every day with Cory or Melli for my daily practice. Including this app into my practice helps me continue to build more mental focus and understanding of my thought processes. What a welcome and powerful gift.
- Oku
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