My journey to start facing me, myself and I began some time ago.
In my twenties I was your standard no fucks given type of guy. I would drink alcohol excessively, get high and not give a second thought to the food I consumed.
Fast forward to the grand old age of 42 and I rarely drink alcohol, take drugs (aside from the therapeutic type) or eat junk food.
I could however be accused of having an unhealthy addiction to exercise and meditation, but I’ll take that over the former.
Yet despite this, I still feel there is a long way to go. I recently came to the realisation that my smart phone use is a way to avoid sitting with my feelings, food is a way to swallow my anxiety and on it goes.
But surely we need something to distract ourselves from our incessant inner chatter, I hear you internally ask yourself?
And we do, until enlightenment beckons there will always be something pulling our attention away from working with our thoughts and feelings.
Aside from scrolling on social media, my go to distraction is chocolate. I love the stuff. But as I’ve become more aware of my monkey mind, I realise that my urge to consume it, increases when I’m feeling a negative emotion.
Despite this, I can rarely control the urge to devour a bar of excessively priced Tony’s chocolate when it arises. Similarly, when I’m bored the temptation to pick up my phone is overbearing.
The good news is that rather than blindly repeating these patters of behaviour, I’m aware of what’s causing them and for the most part, what I’m feeling and thinking leading up to the scene of the distraction crime.
Legend has it that as the Buddha was meditating under the bodhi tree, the demon Mara appeared before him and attempted to distract him.
Mara whose name means "destruction" and who represents the passions that lead us astray, used visions of beautiful women, threats of violence, and doubts about the Buddha’s ability to transcend the man made prison of his mind.
However, Buddha remained mindfully focused and was eventually able to overcome Mara's temptations and achieve enlightenment.
In Buddhist teachings, the story of Buddha's encounter with Mara is used as a metaphor for the human experience of suffering and temptation.
It emphasises the importance of developing mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom to defeat these distractions and attain enlightenment.
So next time you feel the urge to distract yourself from your feelings, thoughts or the cusp of greatness, ask yourself what would Buddha do?
