Identify and release all forms of attachment, whether to status, possessions, or even concepts like poverty, as these attachments express and entrap the ego. This process allows for a different level of being to flourish.
Understand that ’letting go’ means releasing attachment to outcomes or fixed ideas, not abandoning your goals or activities. The problem lies in the attachment itself, not the pursuit of ambition.
Reduce the dominance of the thinking and intellectual mind to uncover your inherent loving nature. When conceptual thought drains out, you can access a hidden, fundamental state of love and acceptance.
Challenge your fixed ideas of who you are by continuously working with the sense of continuity and change in all situations. This practice can loosen the mind’s rigid perceptions and free you from feeling stuck.
View everyday experiences as continuous cycles of ‘dying, changing, and being reborn.’ This perspective, seeing bardos as states of mind throughout the day, can reduce the fear of physical death.
When performing tasks, focus purely on the activity itself rather than on how it will make you look or what external validation it will bring. This allows for greater effectiveness and reduces the misery caused by attachment.
Through sustained meditation, investigate the illusion of a fixed ‘self’ or ’thinker’ behind your thoughts. The aim is to realize that consciousness is ’empty of self,’ meaning there is no permanent, independent entity at its core.
Recognize that you are creating your own suffering and possess the capacity to liberate yourself from it, rather than blaming others. This understanding is a critical first step toward working with emotional difficulties.
Engage in ’nature of mind’ meditation by repeatedly asking yourself, ‘Where is your mind?’ This practice aims to familiarize yourself with your mind beyond its surface-level activity and can bring specificity to your meditation.
Ask yourself profound questions like ‘What color is your mind?’, ‘How big is your mind?’, ‘Where does it come from?’, and ‘Where does it go?’ to explore and become more familiar with the deeper aspects of your consciousness.
When experiencing sensory input, such as hearing noises, ask yourself, ‘What is hearing?’ or ‘Who is hearing these noises?’ The act of looking for an answer and not finding a fixed entity can be a healing and insightful practice.
If your mind is driving you crazy with obsessive, unpleasant thoughts, turn to meditation practice. It offers an alternative to unconstructive rumination and can provide hope and optimism.
Engage in mindfulness as a practice of ‘remembering’ or ‘recollecting’ to wake up from denial and forgetfulness, especially regarding difficult truths like impermanence.
In your daily activities, pause to ask ‘Where does it start? Where does it end?’ This practice helps absorb the concept of continuous change and transformation, loosening fixed ideas about yourself and your experiences.
Use your breath as a continuous practice of recognizing beginning and ending, birth and death. Each inhale can be seen as a rebirth, and each exhale as a death, fostering a sense of continuous change.
Consciously practice letting go in small moments, like releasing a breath, to cultivate new possibilities, greater curiosity, and acceptance of what is present. This helps break habitual mental programs.
Apply the concept of grieving and letting go to everyday ’endings,’ like finishing a book or a project. This shift in perspective allows you to be more open to new experiences and reduces attachment to what has passed.
Challenge the idea of enlightenment as a static, immutable state. Instead, embrace the understanding that everything is changeable and transitory, applying this perspective even to spiritual attainment.
Understand that brief ’enlightenment experiences’ or ‘glimpses’ are not the same as sustained enlightenment. True enlightenment requires a deep, acquired steadiness of mind beyond fleeting insights.
Understand that spiritual practices like Buddhism will not solve all your problems permanently, as new challenges and circumstances will always arise. This perspective helps manage expectations and reduces disillusionment.
Consider seeking a spiritual teacher or guru for guidance in your practice, as Helen found her practice was not where she wanted it to be without one.
If you have fears or misunderstandings about spiritual practice or teachers, recognize that these can be overcome over time. Helen took 10 years to move past her initial fears and begin practicing.
When practicing loving-kindness meditation, send wishes like ‘may you be safe, healthy, happy, and live with ease,’ even to those struggling. If your mind argues, simply note the thought and return to the wishes, aiming for the best possible state given current circumstances, not unrealistic fantasies.
Consider undertaking a ‘wandering retreat’ by moving through streets and forests, begging for food, and living in unconventional ways. This practice, traditionally done by meditation masters, challenges attachments and deepens practice in real-world conditions.
When facing difficult or controversial issues within a community, create independent platforms (like Tricycle Magazine) to discuss them openly, own the narrative, and place them in a larger, sympathetic context.
Update the 10% Happier app to experience its new design and access new meditations. Provide feedback via Twitter or the in-app coach to help improve the user experience.
Subscribe to Dr. Jen Ashton’s podcast, ‘Life After Suicide,’ to hear discussions about grief and coping with loss.