Awareness Is The Key

The main objective of vipassana meditation practice is to know what is happening, while it is happening. It is a practice in service of becoming aware. We do not practice meditation in order to become good meditators. Vipassana is not a practice that is all about feeling good or escaping our problems. It is a practice that requires being with whatever arises, moment by moment, so that as many experiences of the body, mind, and senses, can be known as fully as possible.

This allows us to be more attuned to our present-moment experiences after we get up off the cushion and go back into our daily life. These day-to-day experiences are what really matter, of course. The way the mind habitually reacts toward one situation or another, for example. When we see this event clearly during our meditation practice, and then allow it to continue in awareness, we can begin to catch this experience more adroitly in daily life. In this way, the habitual patterns of the mind no longer control us, and we have a chance to make more skillful and effective choices, thus reducing our suffering.

Blessings,
Roger