7 Mindfulness Practices to Help Induce an Inner Revolution
Contemplate impermanence.
Three years ago, I almost met the Dalai Lama. I was in the Dalai Lama’s current home — Dharamshala — with a few of my friends. Although he’s always travelling around the world, he was at home at that time. However, it was only on my last day that a local told me that His Holiness was in town a few days but had left for Sweden that morning itself. He went on to say to me that he was even meeting with people who are visitors in Dharamshala.
If only someone had told me earlier, maybe I could have met him. I could have felt his presence. Just the other day, I watched Seven Years in Tibet. The movie shares the story of Heinrich Harrer, played by Brad Pitt, and how he became friends with the Dalai Lama. And I won’t lie, I imagined what it would be like to be friends with such an enlightened soul. We would have hit it off, I imagine.
Okay. Thinking about befriending the Dalai Lama — the daydreaming might be getting a little out of hand. But either way, I wanted to have felt his presence. I wanted to know what it was like to be in the company of immense mindfulness. I even would have been satisfied if I had seen him from a distance. But even though I didn’t get to meet him, I did feel the mindful presence of some other monks.
In Dharamshala, you see many Tibetan monks roaming around — clad in their maroon outfits. When I was trekking to Triund, a monk — who was returning from his own trek — said very softly to me — “Tashi Delek”. I later learned that it was a Tibetan greeting. I also had a conversation with a very old monk who had come to pick up her granddaughter from school. The whole time we talked, her face showed some sort of residual happiness, never going away. Their presence was soothing in a somewhat indescribable way.
Since then, I’ve never felt what I felt in the presence of those monks. That kind of mindfulness that exudes from your skin is hard to find in the modern world. And I want to be mindful like them. That level of calm and peace is very attractive to me, which is why I’m trying to induce an inner revolution through the use of mindfulness techniques. Here are some of my favourite ones that I’m using as of now.
Contemplating Impermanence
Buddhist monks identify five hindrances that inhibit progress in their meditations and their daily lives. The first one of these hindrances is being attracted to sensual pleasures. For instance, in my life, there are two sensual desires that I’m trying to get control over — food and binge-watching. Unhealthy food has always hindered my progress in my fitness goals, and Netflix hinders my progress in professional pursuits. While it’s okay to indulge once in a while, I don’t want them to stop me from getting the life that I want to build.
To overcome the hindrance of sensual desires, Buddha suggests us to contemplate the impermanence of those pleasures. Because even though we know the transient nature of our pleasures, we’re unable to resist them. Which is why Buddha suggests that we take a few minutes every day to think about the temporary nature of those sensual pleasures and what it costs us in our lives. The point is not to generate guilt within ourselves but to achieve a healthy moderation.
Besides that, I also contemplate the temporary nature of events of life in general. The core belief of Vipassana — a meditation practice by Budhha — is that we suffer when we attach sensations of craving and aversion to temporary things in life. Which is why I also issue a healthy reminder to myself that everything — the good and the bad — is temporary.
Inducing Attacks of Compassion
In 2002 scientists asked Mingyur Rinpoche — a Buddhist Monk — to allow them to study his brain. With 256 electrodes attached to his scalp, the scientists had Mingyur alternate between one minute of meditation on compassion and thirty seconds of a neutral resting period. What scientists observed was extraordinary. During his moments of compassion, there was an inhuman spike of electrical activity in his empathy circuits. A scientist later stated:
Such an extreme increase befuddles science; the intensity with which those states were activated in Mingyur’s brain exceeds any we have seen in studies of “normal” people. The closest resemblance is for epileptic seizures, but those episodes last brief seconds, not a full minute. And besides, brains are seized by seizures, in contrast to Mingyur’s display of intentional control of his brain activity.
I don’t know about you, but that sounds insane to me. Which is why I (try to) induce attacks of compassion every day. Because compassion is going to save the world, isn’t it? In essence, I try to be compassionate towards the people around me but especially towards the people I dislike or have grudges against. Because that’s much harder and will help build my compassion muscle.
Inducing Attacks of Gratefulness
Research has shown time and again that gratitude leads to happiness. And I guess it’s safe to assume that more gratitude equals more happiness. And perhaps, trying to induce attacks of gratitude like attacks of compassion, can overflow our reservoirs of joy. So, that’s the idea: To not just practice gratitude but to let gratitude overwhelm you. It’s like practising gratitude on steroids. One of my favourite quotes by Gandhi comes to mind:
I cried because I had no shoes, then I met a man who had no feet.
And again, knowing gratefulness is not enough. Practising it every day is essential. Due to our inborn bias to negativity, practising gratitude is like taking a shower in the sense that none of them will last more than a day. If you already practice gratefulness every day, try taking it up a notch by trying to induce attacks of gratefulness. It made a difference in my life. See if it does in yours.
Macro-Visualisation
Visualisation is a simple mindfulness technique where you try to imagine a future you desire in explicit detail. Visualisation has several benefits. It keeps you motivated, improves performance, creates hope, and alleviates stress and anxiety. I’ve found that it’s beneficial to know what you’re going to visualise about. A predecided direction really helps.
Which is why, I’ve picked three major life projects that I care about — writing, studying and fitness. And then I go over each of them to visualise the future I desire. I picture myself doing backflips, parkour, and handstands. I see my future self studying Neurology under the best doctors of India. As for writing, I see myself writing interesting articles and perhaps a book or two, someday. Visualisation is excellent because it provides me with hope and motivation to go on later and seize the day.
Micro-Visualisation + Self-Compassion
Visualising a bright future doesn’t do much if we’re not willing to dial it down to the present and inculcate the right habits to turn those imaginations into reality. Because as F. Matthias Alexander said:
People do not decide their futures, they decide their habits and their habits decide their futures.
Which is why every morning I visualise the day I want to have. I envision myself accomplishing what I want to achieve — kind of like a mental rehearsal. That makes it easier to overcome the mental inertia. Also, there’s another mindfulness practice that I mirror micro-visualisation with — self-compassion. Say, I micro-visualise my plans for the day, but I fail to accomplish them. That is a recipe for guilt. In such a case, self-compassion is the solvent I use to dissolve that guilt.
Even research shows a positive correlation between self-compassion and psychological well-being. That is why I practise self-compassion every night to forgive myself for my shortcomings for the day. Even though I learn from my micro-failures, I tell myself that it’s okay and that life is imperfect. And then, I fall asleep like a baby.
Contemplation of Death
In Bhutan, people contemplate death five times a day. And they’re one of the happiest countries of the world. One of the core Stoic principles is to have a Memento Mori: a symbolic representation of the inevitability of death. Contemplation of death, while it may seem terrifying, has two significant benefits.
- It may bring happiness. A group of psychologists, after conducting research on the psychological effects of thinking about death concluded that “Death is a psychologically threatening fact, but when people contemplate it, apparently the automatic system begins to search for happy thoughts.”
- In Meditations, Marcus Aurelius wrote “You could leave life right now. Let that determine what you do and say and think.” Thinking about death may motivate us to stop waiting and start acting in the now. There’s another quote that Ayodeji Awosika shared in one of his articles recently, that I’ve been thinking about when I think about death. It really helps me understand the importance of taking action now!
Someone once told me the definition of hell; on your last day on earth, the person you could have become will meet the person you became.” ― Anonymous.
Meditation
The first six mindfulness practices involve a lot of thinking. Mindful thinking, but thinking nevertheless. Which is why I like to end my routine by focusing on my breath, in an attempt to anchor myself to the present moment. Considering the countless research-proven benefits ranging from improving your psychological well-being to boosting your productivity, it makes sense to make meditation a daily habit. Meditation makes you a true master of your mind. It won’t hurt to take it seriously.
To Sum Up
I usually set up 30 minutes on the timer and do all of these in the sequence I shared. And this is a dynamic list. I may add other mindfulness techniques that appeal to me in the future. However, this is what it is right now. If you feel like starting a mindfulness routine, you could use mine as a template and add or subtract techniques based on your preferences or come up with your own. However, I highly suggest giving mindfulness a chance. It might just change your life.
- Contemplate impermanence. Do this to remind yourself of the transient nature of your sensual desires that hinder your growth and also to understand that all your sorrows and pleasures are temporary.
- Instead of just practising compassion, try to induce attacks of compassion. And if you try to generate compassion towards people you dislike, or even people who wronged you, you’ll develop a much stronger compassion muscle.
- Just like inducing attacks of compassion, try to induce attacks of gratefulness. It’s like your regular gratefulness practise on steroids.
- Visualise your future in exquisite detail to help your mind be more prepared to achieve that future.
- Visualise your day in the morning, which must be clad with habits that align with your desired future. And before sleeping, forgive yourself for all your shortcomings of the day. Learn from your micro-failures but don’t take them to bed.
- Contemplate death. By reminding yourself that you don’t have a lot of time, you’ll be motivated to start living up to your true potential.
- Meditate. End your mindfulness routine by focusing on your breath to anchor yourself in the present moment.
Mind Cafe’s Reset Your Mind: A Free 10-Day Email Course
We’re offering a free course to all of our new subscribers as a thank you for your continued support. When you sign up using this link, we’ll send you tips on how to boost mental clarity and focus every two days.
