[August 2022 – Dharma Center Mindfulness Tip]
As summer draws to a close, we feel the balancing effects of the Equinox approaching. Here in the northern hemisphere, it is harvest time. Although the growing season is not over (is it ever?!), the early harvest is an opportunity to check in on what we’ve been creating.
Take some time over the next couple of weeks to observe all that is coming into your life, both physically and energetically. Notice what you are rejecting. Notice what you cling to. Use the practice to center yourself and calmly observe.
Challenge yourself to accept all that you are rejecting. Recognize the seeds you planted, and how they have grown. Ask yourself: “What can I do with this now?” Use this valuable information to weed out the roots of attachment which no longer serve the new you.
Challenge yourself to release what you cling to. Recognize the impermanence of all things, and how the clinging creates suffering. Ask yourself, “What is now filling the space where this used to be?” Use this valuable information to appreciate what was and what is now.
Harvest Time Choices
At harvest time, the only choice is in how we accept the fruits that have grown in the garden of our life. The fruit is here, whether we like it or not. Ignoring it won’t make it go away. Clinging to the memory of fruits we enjoyed after they are gone won’t bring them back. Clinging to the idea of the fruits which did not materialize will not make them appear. We can suffer in attraction and aversion, or we can accept our harvest wholeheartedly with gratitude. By cultivating gratitude, we appreciate and make use of everything that manifests within our life.
Thanks to the upcoming Equinox, we can tap into the energy of equanimity as we view our harvest. Through our meditation practice, we uncover the capacity for non-attachment. With mindfulness, we can see the arising and falling away as part of the glorious cycle of life. We can use our harvest to teach us about the hooks within our mind that keep us stuck in the weeds.
By giving harvest time our attention, we can grow and be creative with what we have. We also earn the information required to make intelligent decisions about which seeds to plant and tend through the next cycle.
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