The dance of life

​An extended contemplation on the nature of reality

This week I'd like to present something a little different - an exercise which is usually called 'contemplation' in meditation circles. Contemplation and meditation are similar in that they're best done in quiet conditions when you'll have a decent period of time without distractions; the difference is that in meditation we're generally discouraged from 'thinking about' the technique or subject of meditation, whereas in contemplation you're welcome to think about the subject, as well as exploring it non-conceptually.

Contemplations usually consist of one or more statements which the practitioner brings up and then explores, both through thinking and feeling. For example, one classic contemplation is 'Since death alone is certain and the time of death uncertain, what should I do?' What thoughts come to mind as you sit with this question? How does it make you feel? What happens if you continue to sit with the question for an extended period of time?

For today, however, I have a more elaborate contemplation exercise for you to try out. It's pretty wide-ranging, and ultimately covers every aspect of ourselves and the world we live in. I've broken it down into a series of phrases, each of which is an encouragement to look at, think about, feel into and otherwise explore some aspect of who you are and how you relate to the world. I recommend taking quite a bit of time to go through this, spending at least a couple of minutes on each line. You could even spread it over several sessions if you like, but it's intended to be worked through all in one session.

The contemplation

(To begin, set yourself up in a meditation posture that will be comfortable enough for you to sustain it for quite some time. If you need to change postures part-way through, try to do so carefully and mindfully, so that you don't lose the focus you've built up through the practice so far. Then, having established your posture, you might like to meditate for a few minutes, e.g. by following the breath, just to settle the mind a little. When you're ready to move into the contemplation, read on, one paragraph at a time. If you spend about three minutes on each section the whole contemplation will take about an hour.)

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Notice your physical body. Is this a core part of who you are? If you had a different body, would you be a different person?

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Notice that your body is constantly changing. Year by year, your body is different - the body you have now is not the body you had at age 3. Day by day, you consume food and drink which becomes part of you, and you let go of hair, skin and waste products, which cease to be part of you. Moment by moment, the sensations which make up the body change, as you breathe, as your heart beats. Is anything permanent, fixed, unchanging in your body?

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Notice that some aspects of your experience are pleasant, some unpleasant, some neutral. More generally, you have likes and dislikes, preferences and tastes. Are these a core part of who you are? If you had different likes and dislikes, would you be a different person?

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Notice that whether an aspect of your experience is pleasant or not is partly dependent on context. Music that you normally enjoy might be distracting if you're trying to focus on something else, or unpleasant if it's too loud. Notice also that your preferences have changed over time. How you liked to spend your time as a small child is quite different to what you enjoy now, and what you fear and dislike has changed too. Is there anything permanent, unchanging and independent of circumstances in your likes and dislikes?

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Consider your memories and experiences. These inform the way you see the world - the language you use, the emotional associations you have with particular people, places and things, the skills and knowledge you bring to bear on the situations of your life. Are these a core part of who you are? If you had different memories and experiences, would you be a different person?

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Notice that your memories and experiences are constantly changing. Moment by moment, day by day, year by year, you accumulate new experiences and form new memories. You come to see the world differently as you learn more about it - you notice more details when looking at something you have studied in great depth, details that would not have been part of your simpler experience in the past. At the same time, older memories can fade or change, and some of your experiences are irretrievably lost over time. Is there anything permanent or fixed in your memories and experiences, anything about the way you see the world which is not subject to change?

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Notice that you have the capacity to make decisions, to choose to act and to follow through on that choice. Do the decisions you make and the way you act define you? Is this capacity for choice a core part of who you are?

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Do you always follow through on every decision you make? Is your willpower absolute, or does it come and go, depending on factors like your energy level at the time and your degree of commitment to the decision? Is there anything truly fixed, permanent or ultimately reliable about your capacity for making choices?

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Notice that, right now, you are conscious. If you were totally unconscious, you would not be having any experience at all. But because you have hearing-consciousness, you notice sounds; because you have body-consciousness, you notice physical sensations; because you have mind-consciousness, you notice thoughts. Is this consciousness a core part of who you are? Would you even exist without consciousness?

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Notice that your consciousness changes over time. Each night, you fall asleep, and you are no longer conscious of the world around you. Each morning, you wake, and become conscious of the outside world once again. When you become absorbed in a task, you become more conscious of that task and less conscious of what's going on around you. Is there anything fixed, permanent or unchanging about consciousness?

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Is there any other aspect of yourself which is fixed, permanent or unchanging? Is there anything about yourself which never changes? Or are you actually more like an unfolding process?

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Now turn your attention to the world around you. Notice that the world is constantly in motion. Civilisations rise and fall. Nations prosper and fail. Buildings are constructed and demolished. Friendships are made and broken. We acquire possessions, use them up and discard them. Is any part of the world around you fixed, unchanging or entirely reliable? Or is the world, too, an unfolding process, always in motion?

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Notice that much of what you experience about the world actually comes from you - you call a chair a chair because you speak English, and you like or dislike certain foods not because the food is inherently pleasant or unpleasant, but because of your personal relationship to that food. How much of what you see in the world is a reflection of you, as opposed to intrinsic to the external world?

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Notice also that how you are in each moment is a reflection of the world around you. The sights and sounds, thoughts and feelings we experience are often provoked by or otherwise related to our surroundings and circumstances. How much of how you are right now is a reflection of the world around you, either in the present moment, your memories and experiences from the past, or your hopes and fears for the future?

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Where do you end, and where does the external world begin? What is the boundary between self and other? Is there a clearly identifiable separation at all? Are you and the world two totally separate processes, or do these processes interact and interpenetrate one another to the point that they become a single process unfolding?

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For the last few minutes, simply rest in the recognition of whatever has come up for you during this contemplation. Then, when you're ready, come to the end of the practice, ready to go on with your day.