Engage in consistent meditation practice, even if it’s just 20 minutes daily, to get familiar with your mind and prevent thoughts and emotions from controlling you.
Regularly examine the state of your mind by asking ‘What’s the attitude in the mind right now?’ to honestly observe its workings and prevent selfish impulses from dictating actions.
Extend mindfulness beyond formal meditation sessions into daily life, aiming to improve overall well-being and how you navigate the world, not just to be a good meditator.
Develop patience not merely as a virtue, but as an obligation for a practitioner; in frustrating situations, open to the moment and release judgment to transform the experience.
Begin your meditation with an altruistic intention, using aspirations like the ‘four measurables,’ and conclude by dedicating any merit gained to the benefit of all beings.
Use mindfulness to create a ‘seven-second delay’ between an emotion or impulse and your reaction, allowing you to choose a constructive response rather than acting impulsively.
Understand that meditation is not about having a quiet mind or stopping thoughts; busy minds are normal, and the practice involves working with thoughts, not eliminating them.
If interested in Buddhist practice, find a teacher from an authentic lineage to avoid ‘watered-down versions’ and access genuine, living traditions for deeper progress.
Use your basic sanity and ethical discipline to guide your actions, determining if they harm yourself or others, rather than relying on dogmatic rules.
Understand that ‘prayer’ in Buddhism is about acknowledging and honoring the innate enlightened nature within all sentient beings, which is uncovered, not acquired externally.
Cultivate mental space to acknowledge the truth of impermanence and life’s unpredictability, which can lead to a more meaningful existence and shift motivations.
Be open to lessons from great upheaval, tragedy, or significant change, as these experiences can reveal the nature of reality and impermanence, fostering wisdom.
Strive to align your actions (body, speech, and mind) with your theoretical understanding of ethical and spiritual principles to bridge the gap between knowledge and practice.
Recognize that cultivating patience does not imply being a doormat; intervene in situations where abuse or harm is occurring to protect yourself or others.
Prioritize freedom from reactivity and attachment over being ‘right’ or justifying impatience, as rushing diminishes your capacity for love and compassion.
Consider teaching or explaining your spiritual practice to others, as articulating and breaking it down can reinforce your own stability and understanding.
Strive to live a useful and engaged life, rather than merely consuming, especially when considering a potentially long lifespan, to find deeper meaning.
View meditation as ‘gom’ (to habituate), a process of getting intimately familiar with your mind’s patterns and workings.
Incorporate quiet mind meditation into your practice, focusing on stillness and allowing thoughts to arise and dissolve without engagement.