I shared your prayer this morning. I sometimes attend a small Friends (Quaker) meeting North of Baltimore. I summarized your post aloud, then read the prayer at the end -- one Friend thanked me for sharing your 'poem', which could've been an artifact of how I read it.
It became the fourth verbal sharing in a series of five about transitions and the changing of seasons. Several attenders had students on their minds (perhaps you and your readers do, too). For me, it connects to a developing theme of being distracted less so that I allow awareness; pain included, right? Last night I prayed before bed and I got an unusually clear sense that I should "trust the process". I suppose I'm starting a campaign to be a better self and my execution is imperfect. It's challenging to accept but I believe I am gradually accepting the challenge OF accepting challenges again. Thank you for the prayer; it belongs in places of worship as well as solitude.
I am a Buddhist of sorts, and visualize Amitabha Buddha regularly, and especially when I am in pain. I think visual practices have a way of taking the focus away from the physical body. For example, I visualize Amitabha Buddha on a ceiling if I am having difficult dental work done in a dentist office. So, when I visualize Amitabha Buddha I am both doing a prayer of sort and shifting my mental focus away from the body. Amitabha Buddha is not specifically related to medical issues; I have simply chosen one Buddha to regularly practice and stuck with it.
An historical example of a different sort is Frida Kahlo painted while she was often in great pain. I think doing artwork by itself, generally, helps manage pain by simply moving the focus off the body to ethereal images--while not necessarily needing to pray too. I also think that simply visualizing something peaceful like a rose would work in a similar fashion.
Thank you for taking the time to comment - and sharing the anecdotes of the dentist's office and also Frida Kahlo. Visualization IS such a great tool. Thank you!
Aimée--The. San Francisco Zen center has a Online group for meditation and dealing with pain. The SFZC is very sophisticated; I study with a teacher from there. Also, Soto Zen is very Similar to Dzogchen. Hope all is well!
I shared your prayer this morning. I sometimes attend a small Friends (Quaker) meeting North of Baltimore. I summarized your post aloud, then read the prayer at the end -- one Friend thanked me for sharing your 'poem', which could've been an artifact of how I read it.
It became the fourth verbal sharing in a series of five about transitions and the changing of seasons. Several attenders had students on their minds (perhaps you and your readers do, too). For me, it connects to a developing theme of being distracted less so that I allow awareness; pain included, right? Last night I prayed before bed and I got an unusually clear sense that I should "trust the process". I suppose I'm starting a campaign to be a better self and my execution is imperfect. It's challenging to accept but I believe I am gradually accepting the challenge OF accepting challenges again. Thank you for the prayer; it belongs in places of worship as well as solitude.
This is incredible. I'm amazed and flattered that you shared the little prayer at your Friends meeting. Thank you for support, it means so much.
I am a Buddhist of sorts, and visualize Amitabha Buddha regularly, and especially when I am in pain. I think visual practices have a way of taking the focus away from the physical body. For example, I visualize Amitabha Buddha on a ceiling if I am having difficult dental work done in a dentist office. So, when I visualize Amitabha Buddha I am both doing a prayer of sort and shifting my mental focus away from the body. Amitabha Buddha is not specifically related to medical issues; I have simply chosen one Buddha to regularly practice and stuck with it.
An historical example of a different sort is Frida Kahlo painted while she was often in great pain. I think doing artwork by itself, generally, helps manage pain by simply moving the focus off the body to ethereal images--while not necessarily needing to pray too. I also think that simply visualizing something peaceful like a rose would work in a similar fashion.
Thank you for taking the time to comment - and sharing the anecdotes of the dentist's office and also Frida Kahlo. Visualization IS such a great tool. Thank you!
Aimée--The. San Francisco Zen center has a Online group for meditation and dealing with pain. The SFZC is very sophisticated; I study with a teacher from there. Also, Soto Zen is very Similar to Dzogchen. Hope all is well!
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