Surrendering...

From my perspective and approach to spiritual practice, both in my own direct life experience and in my work with others, the practice of "surrender to what is" in ordinary, everyday life situations, (especially the "challenging" ones!) is the primary spiritual practice...

Meditative/contemplative practice while sitting quietly in a peaceful setting is essentially practicing this "surrender to what is" in a very controlled environment where it is relatively easier to do and in conditions that are fairly conducive to it..

But formal meditative practice is certainly a very good preparation for consciously entering this surrendered state of consciousness in the midst of ordinary, everyday life situations, where 99% of our life certainly unfolds, where and when the proverbial #$@%*# often seems to hit the fan!

For example, it is relatively easier to surrender on a cushion whilesitting in a quiet, pleasant room when you have no where else to really go, than it is to surrender in a traffic jam that has been at a standstill for 3 hours and has made you late for the final appointment concerning an important business deal you have been working very hard on closing!

Surrendering to what is in the midst of what we think of as "chaos and calamity" is very advanced practice. But sitting quietly on a cushion is a good and necessary preparation for such advanced practice, and can certainly help prepare us for it.


-Francis Bennett