The Dewdrop Digest

The Dewdrop Digest
Connecting Children, Youth and Sangha
Clouds in Water Zen Center
Sunday, April 20, 2003

2002-2003 theme: Mindfulness and Meditation Practice

Each year, we explore our annual teaching theme through the lenses of he Triple Treasure: Buddha, Dharma and Sangha for Fall, Winter, and Spring Quarters respectively. For Spring Quarter, we will continue study of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness and apply our learnings to Precept Practice, Right Action and service. The Preschool, K-1, Early Elementary and Upper Elementary classes will study and practice of Mindfulness of Emotions and the Precepts for Children. The Middle School class and perhaps the 4th and 5th graders will also study the Mindfulness of Dharmas (Mental Objects) and the Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing.

The Four Foundations of Mindfulness

The Maha Satipattana Sutta outlines four facets of living fully and joyously in the present moment. We studied the first two foundations last quarter and will be reviewing those this quarter. The practice, in brief, is to note each experience as it arises with bare attention, that is, without judgment, attachment or aversion. This brings us wholly into the present moment and is intended to awaken us to impermanence, suffering, no-self Öand to liberate us. Below is a thumbnail sketch of the sutta, adapted for young people.

Mindfulness of the Body: Noting accurately and steadily:
the changing flow of sensory input such as sight, hearing, taste, touch, smell,
the changing flow of sensations experienced throughout the body, such as muscle tension, warmth, pain,
body postures and movement,
the sensations of breathing
and being mindful of the impermanence of the body.

Mindfulness of Sensations: Noting accurately and steadily the changing flow of pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral reactions to experience. All experience fits into one of these three categories, and learning to recognize which sensation predominates from moment to moment is a basic step to recognizing the roots of suffering: attachment, aversion and ignorance.

Mindfulness of Emotions (or Conscious States): Noting accurately and steadily the changing flow of moods (joy, anger, fear, sadness, etc) and states of mind (confidence, self-doubt, attentiveness, restlessness, etc).

Mindfulness of Dharmas (Objects of Mind, or Phenomena): More on this later!
TEACHING GOALS FOR MINDFULNESS OF EMOTIONS
Learn to notice my feelings.
Learn to identify my feelings (give them names).
Learn to notice and identify the feelings of others.
Learn ways of managing feelings.
Learn that:
Everyone has feelings.
Feelings come and go.
Some feelings are comfortable, others are not.
Some feelings seem to come from our bodies, some from our mind.
Feelings are real. (Though they come and go, you are not imagining them!)
Feelings are not good or bad. There is not such thing as a right or wrong feeling. How you feel is simply how you feel.
Feelings are good friends. It's important to listen to them. They tell you what you like and what you don't like. They help you to understand yourself, the world, and other people. They help you make wise decisions. They help you to stay safe and grow as a person.

IDEAS FOR MANAGING FEELINGS
My feelings belong to me.
I can decide what to do with them. I (not my feelings) run the show. I can choose what to do or not to do because of them.
One way to manage feelings is simply to feel them, show or express them, then let go of them. Imagine that your feelings are bubbles that just keep rising up in you. Some feel good, others uncomfortable. Some are so tiny that you hardly notice them. Some you see and watch them float away. Some get your attention and push on you: you'll want to express these.
The easiest way to express feelings is to do it right away, as they arise.
When you have a difficult feeling, for instance, if you're angry:
It's OK to say how you feel and to express it in other ways too. You could scribble an angry picture or sing an angry song or write about it, or stamp angrily, or cry, or get a hug from someone while you tell them all about it.
It's not OK to hurt other people, yourself, or anything at all.
When you choose someone to share your feelings with, listen to the voice inside you that tells you just who you can trust with your feelings. Find someone who cares about you and will try to understand.
Sometimes the same feeling keeps coming back again and again, or a feeling gets stuck in you. If it's a good one, enjoy it! If it's an angry one or a sad one or a fearful one, ask for help.

Homework assignment, "due" Sunday, May 4:
Parents: Invite mindfulness of your senses, body and breath, sensations and emotions into your family activities and conversations and into your own moment-to-moment awareness. "Breathing in, I am aware that I am breathing in. Breathing out, I am aware that I am sad." "Washing my hands, I am aware that I am washing my hands." Practice and model this, and invite family members to join you.

posted by Michael Howard on 4/20/2003 02:23:00 PM | link