April 4, 2020: Post Meditation Email to Practitioners

It was nice to connect with you all again today and to tell you more about mindfulness meditation, its origins, and growth across the world. I hope that you enjoyed Sending and Receiving, a much-needed practice for today.

We did have a question from one of today's participants:

Q: "How important is it to keep the eyes open in mindfulness meditation?"

A: The open eyes is one of the main differences between mindfulness practice and other forms of meditation that focus more on "going inward." Mindfulness is not about going inward but about being fully present right there in your body, on the cushion, in the room where you are sitting.

During practice, we deal with the following things: Posture Breath Sight Sound Mental contents Physical feelings Energetic presence When practiced correctly, there is a full awareness of all of these elements. They come together in a holistic experience of "fully-being" wide awake a present at this moment. Closing the eyes would remove one of these essential elements.

Look, it's about building the strength and fearlessness to live in the present moment, to work with whatever life presents you with, and deal with that without freaking out or without running away.

Stay Awake!