Finding Wisdom in Each Moment
Meditation is about so much more than just sitting still and being quiet. Lauren talks with author and Buddhist meditation teacher Spring Washam about the simple yet challenging practices of mindfulness meditation and why we all struggle to let ourselves pause and tune into the energy of our mind and body. Spring sheds light on the beauty of feeling all of our feelings, what we can learn from dis-ease and unhappiness, and why hope requires trust, faith, and gratitude!
In this podcast episode, Lauren and Spring discuss:
Spring’s background and recognizing how our thinking can get in our way
Not shutting down the break-down and feeling difficult feelings
The beauty of Spirit Rock Meditation Center and finding freedom in silence
Practicing stillness, walking, and movement
Mindfulness and going to the “beauty parlor” for the inside
Details about Spring’s retreats in Peru
Creating a community of supportive teachers
Sangha and finding refuge in community and friendships
Trusting in a higher intelligence and game-changing gratitude
Memorable Quotes:
“But you have to work through everything to come into full balance and walk your path, all the extra traumas and all the things that happen along the way have just become the rocks in the path that we climb and they do give us a sense of resiliency.”
“There's a lot of misunderstandings about what [meditation] is and how it helps...our culture goes so fast that the pause, it's very hard for people to know how to do that. We're just a little bit frenetic—our energy, we go, we go. So the idea of turning off is hard at first for people...they're going against a lot of programming that they already have.”
“First, let's get rid of the idea of whatever you believe that should happen or what [meditation] could be like and we just meet the mind where it is. If we're sad, we open to sad. If we're bored, we open to boredom. If we feel lonely, we open to loneliness. If we're afraid, we feel fear. It's about moving through, it's not about trying to escape. And that's a big shift that starts to happen over time.”
“We write the things that we need to know...We’re just all interconnected. So what’s healing you is healing us and vice versa. And I love when our passion becomes the purpose and then other people are affected in a positive way.”
About Spring Washam:
Spring Washam is a well-known Buddhist meditation teacher, visionary leader, and author of A Fierce Heart: Finding Strength, Courage, and Wisdom in Any Moment. Spring grew up in a violent neighborhood raised by an absent single parent. After being introduced to Buddhism and its message of mindfulness early on, her life unfolded. She now spreads the message of living in the present as a meditation and dharma teacher at Woodacre’s Spirit Rock Meditation Center and teaches meditation retreats, workshops, and classes worldwide.
Connect with Spring:
Fierce Heart: Finding Strength, Courage, and Wisdom in Any Moment
Links Mentioned:
Listen to the episode here:
