SPA for the soul (I)

As we find time for all the daily lists and tasks, couldn’t we find a few minutes to dedicate to the well being of the most beautiful part of us?

In the Buddhist tradition it is said that there are five obstacles to concentration and the practice of meditation, just as, perhaps, in our daily lives there are all kinds of obstacles to a pampered and "hydrated" soul. Each of us, in one form or another, has experienced those moments when our desires, anger, laziness, anxiety or doubt have taken over our minds and taken us away from that peace we all seek in the days to come. Hours or minutes. It is true that, many times, we have a truly masochistic pleasure to listen to them, to follow their course, and then they become even harder to overcome.

We nurture the desire for the wrong person, we stubbornly argue with a dear friend, we settle for the daily routine, we try to obsessively analyze even the most insignificant decision, and we allow ourselves so easily to be consumed by doubts rather than solve them.

Recognizing them in our daily behaviors, reintegrating them into our being in a positive way, refusing to feed them is a way available to anyone. The only necessary condition - to really want a SPA session for the depth of our being.

Desires - or gentle scrubbing for fine gratitude

It is difficult to recognize that sometimes we become obsessed with a certain desire. In general, the tendency is to claim with intensity that we do not really want anything, and doing that, we actually channel the desire. Wouldn’t it be better to simply acknowledge that it is a desire and thus not be so attached to it? When we feel that we want to become its prisoners, it is recommended to start a list of things, events, people for which we are grateful. Being grateful for what we have is a powerful weapon in the way of desires that are not always good for us.

Anger - or peeling for a bright and luminous soul

Sometimes we find ourselves in a situation where we try to control our annoyance or anger at someone, but a pressure cooker boils inside. All experts say that it is not the ideal behavior to explode, but that it is good to express this anger before we even get to the point of somatizing it.

It is important to communicate how we feel, but it matters how we do it. It will not help to shout, because this will only activate the defensive mechanisms of the other, who will enter freeze mode.

If we give ourselves the time to calm down, we can see more detached things that really bother us. Once we have taken this distance, we will probably convey the message more efficiently and productively for the relationship with the other. It is possible to be seduced by the repetition of the reasons why we are angry or upset, it is possible that at the moment we feel liberated but, more than likely, there will be adverse reactions to this poison that we have transmitted to our whole being - resentments, guilt, guilt, regrets.

Buddha teaches us about compassion, about the fortress we build around us to distance ourselves from the person who angered us, but this separates us from ourselves. When anger returns, take your distance, breathe, and remember that giving yourself the space to contain your emotions is for you and not for the other person.

To be continued in next week’s article