Mindfulness is something which seems to be everywhere. At work, social circles, you name it! In a way, I appreciate that being 'mindful' or at least being conscious is being promoted in society at large. Not for a push for anything religious; but maybe something more spiritual. Even the word spiritual, can bring a lot of negative connotations. But why? Being very drawn to specific words and there individual powers, 'Spiritualness' is a word I would like to use instead of mindfulness. To be honestly 'Spiritualness' seems to hold a lot of weight- something that takes years to understand, or only reserved for individuals. But I guess because a percentage of people would not acknowledge the 'spiritual’ nature of things. On the other hand, everyone can accept the existence of the mind. Without dispute! Enter mindfulness! To answer the question, or shift our perception, thoughts, views - and therefore our actions - in the present moment. Whether to settle a dispute at work or your partner, being mindful seems to be the remedy for those moments. But what if we want to extend this? Can we? How? Enter 'Soulfulness' Recently, my wife and I embarked on starting a course in Practical Philosophy with the London School of Economic Science. It was a course she had attended before and recommended it to me. Last Tuesday was the fourth day and we explored the topic of awareness; the different states of awareness and how can we ultimately be more aware and therefore have higher states of consciousness. During the course of weeks, we had been given the task of doing an awareness exercise which consisted of focusing on each of our senses; taste, touch, sound etc. for 3-5 minutes, twice a day. This proved very useful just to bring me to the present moment. So, during the last session, the question was asked: what is the difference between the awareness exercise and meditation? And this is when the light went off in my head :-) If the awareness exercise helps us to be more mindful of the present moment, then meditation is a tool to go deeper. So if mindfulness is a tool to bring us to the present moment, then Soulfulness can be used to to bring us to a deeper state of consciousness. Even though I like to meditate, I do find it difficult sometimes, but I guess being mindful is a good start. Its kind of like window shopping and actual shopping. Buying things all the time can be taxing, however you look at it! But every once in a while, you might see something you like. .....and then just go buy it...... Go Deep V @vessarts
origamiaround
titsay
yousharknotpass
stormborns
kaledo-art
snowghoul