As we look forward to our cities and states slowly reopening, we may be asking ourselves: How do we move forward from here with presence and awareness?

We asked Lama Tsomo for some advice and have summarized it below. We hope you find it helpful.

Personal, community, world integration

Our new reality is going to cause us to adjust yet again to a different type of normal— and there’s no set blueprint for how we move forward. We recognize that as humans, we seek to feel fulfilled in three different spheres of engagement: personal, community, and world.

For now, I’ll focus on the personal sphere or “innerwork.” We often find that the more time we spend in practice, the more skilled we become at identifying habits, recognizing triggers, and sorting out our own personal work and growth.

Our personal world plays a part in how we relate to the community and the larger world around us, where we can sometimes have uncomfortable dynamics or interactions. During these situations, we should ask ourselves what is causing us to feel uncomfortable? This may require us to take a break, settle our emotions, and come into our own place of personal empowerment. Remember to use your practice as your ally to bring more clarity to the situation and know that the work you put in benefits not only you, but the world around you. Be kind to yourself and others during this transition, hold space for each other, and practice non-violent communication in place of laying blame.

Building a bridge to the new world without hope or fear

It can be difficult to envision a new paradigm post COVID-19 without falling into the problematic stance of hope or fear. Ask yourself how would it be to step into the new paradigm without hope and fear serving as motivators? If hope and fear aren’t our motivators, what are? We all want a world that works for everyone, where we can all be healthy. This gets back to our true motivation of compassion. The true nature of reality is that we are all connected and all from one source. If we can use compassion as our North Star, we can find our way, too.

Imagine if everyone challenged the feeling of not being able to ask hard questions and inspire growth during difficult times. The world would be different, and we would realize that instead of holding onto that which doesn’t serve us out of fear could be let it go. And in doing so, we’d gain so much more. This situation can be applied to our own communities where we may have to buck the norm and ask the hard questions. How can we nurture our inner circle and our larger community? What gifts do we feel called to share? Because of your own personal experience, there may be something that you want to do that can really bring tangible benefit to the world. Consider exploring with a meditation buddy or companions in a Learning Circle

If you’re looking for more guidance and teachings during these times, check out our events page for our current offerings.

Published on May 14 08 : 38 am