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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
Benefits of Mindfulness: Mindful Living Can Change Your Life
Mindfulness 101: A Beginner's Guide
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Hi, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness.
Today, I'm going to talk about what David
Richo calls the five givens of life.
So in his book, The Five Things We
Cannot Change, David Richo states
that there are five inescapable
givens of human experience.
They are: one, everything changes
and ends; two, things don't always go
according to our plans; three, life
isn't always fair; four, pain is a
part of life; and five, people are
not loving and loyal all the time.
Now you might be thinking to yourself
at this point, "Well, thanks for
the inspiring lesson today, Melli."
You know, but hear me out.
I think David's message in this book
is a really beautiful and valuable one
because he points out that struggling
against the five givens of life is what
leads to a lot of our suffering, our
stress and our disappointments in life.
But if we can learn to really bring
an unconditional acceptance, an
unconditional yes to these givens of
life, accepting them and embracing life
just as it is, then we can discover new
degrees of freedom and peace of mind.
There is a Zen practice that David
offers us in the book, which helps
us to bring about this unconditional
yes to life in the moments when
we're faced with the givens.
It's to ask ourselves the question, this
being the case, how shall I proceed?
So when the givens come up, this
being the case, how shall I proceed?
This question helps us bring a certain
amount of acceptance to what is.
The first part of the sentence
that this being the case is kind
of like saying, okay, I accept
that this is how it is right now.
And how shall I proceed is a way of
asking ourselves, okay, how would I
like to intentionally respond to this?
It gives us a chance to tune into
our values and then respond from
that place rather than out of
reactivity or mental struggles.
So there you are, and
somebody lets you down.
They did something they
said they wouldn't do.
Instead of going into the mind and kind
of ruminating about how this shouldn't
be happening or how could they, or
why me or how catastrophic it is.
Instead you could try this being
the case, how shall I proceed?
So you accept that these things do happen
and then decide what's the best course
of action that aligns with your values.
What's the best thing for you.
Now, I don't offer you this as some kind
of magic bullet practice that's going to
take away all the difficulties in life.
The givens when they arise are not
easy and they can be really painful.
But what this practice can offer
you is a way not to add more
suffering and mental struggles on
top of what you're already facing.
And it can really ground you in
presence, wisdom, and calm right
there in the middle of it all.
So if this sounds like it could be
valuable, I encourage you to give it
a try when you're faced with loss,
disappointment, heartache, or pain.
This being the case, how shall I proceed?
May it bring you ease and
strength in those times.
Thank you for your practice.
Let's settle in for meditation.
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