Smite Your Enemies with Mindfulness

This article originally appeared in Elephant Journal. Yes, I wrote it. Full article.

People who develop mindfulness are pretty tough to mess with.

Maybe you’ve discovered this before, after messing with the wrong person one time and learning a painful and heart opening lesson. Maybe it was the other way around.

Mindfulness is a powerful force that can be used for what many in metaphysical circles call “psychic self-defense.” It can be likened to a martial art that can transform any conflict or uncomfortable social situation into a catalyst for deep healing. It can also protect us from any harm a person can inflict if used properly.

First let me explain, in case some readers don’t know, what mindfulness is. Mindfulness is the art of being present with moment to moment experience as it arises into consciousness. This includes both pleasant and unpleasant emotions, thoughts, sensations and anything else that can be experienced.

When we’re not mindful, our breath is easily affected in difficult situations. When an experience is unpleasant, we may restrict our breathing to avoid feeling it. We may become reactive to a person because we fear experiencing difficult truths about ourselves.

In some cases, we might start a conflict because there is some truth about ourselves that the ego doesn’t want to experience and we project that quality onto the other person. We may even escalate a conflict because of resentment of our current experience with the person. We are much more vulnerable to the negativity coming from others.

With mindfulness, the breath is deep and free. During unpleasant situations, it remains unaffected. We are not burying any unpleasant information about ourselves. We are simply noting what is going on while still participating with what is going on. There is nothing to resent. Everything is just a set of processes happening in the moment, and we are joyfully embracing them whether we’re angry, sad or scared.

Most of the tension in our bodies comes from being unwilling to confront and experience something. There may be old wounds or feelings that the ego feels are best left untouched. Tension allows us to avoid experience.

Mindfulness allows us to open to experience and to shine the light of awareness on unresolved issues. A tension point in the body-mind is like a wall that creates separation instead of flow. Mindfulness breaks down these walls so that consciousness can start flowing. The less walls obstruct the flow, the more whole we become. There is less division in the body-mind.

Here’s where the ninja stuff comes in.

When the “antagonist” walks into the scene, what is his or her job?

Read the full article at Elephant Journal: http://www.elephantjournal.com/2014/03/smite-your-enemies-with-mindfulness-tom-von-deck/

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