Yogi: I’m always tense.
Sayadaw: When you breathe, breathe deeply. Follow the breath – when you breathe deeply, you will feel the tension increase when you breathe in, and when you breathe out, you will feel some relaxation happening.
Just track the relaxation, and repeat – feel the tension and then track the relaxation. You do that over and over again.
Not just in sitting – this is going to be an exercise for you all day long. We all forget our breath and start to breathe shallow and that makes the mind and body tense.
We tend to forget our breath – as much as you remember, come back to it and take a deep breath. You will forget some times and when you remember, just start again.
THE VALUE OF THE PRACTICE IS IN THE AWARENESS, NOT IN THE PLEASANT EXPERIENCES
Sweden Retreat 2019 Interviews Day 3 Group C (1:14:00-1:16:54)
Yogi: This morning’s session was really peaceful for me and I feel that I’m on my way in the practice.
Sayadaw: What if your meditation this morning isn’t peaceful? Would you still feel that you’re on your way?
Being on the way is when we’re aware – it’s not when things feel good. That’s not what puts us on the way.
The value of the practice is not in feeling good, but in being aware because we want to understand the way things are, as they are.
It’s inevitable that when we understand the path and walk it, there will be peace. Peace is a side effect of practicing skillfully, but that’s not our goal. The goal is to keep walking that path of wisdom.
Our job is just to work steadily on the 3 yogi jobs – to have right view, be aware and to continue to be aware with right view.
When we think the experience or the result is important, we start to have a lot of judgment – liking and disliking this and that. But when we remember that the value of the practice is in the awareness – in the work that is being done – then it doesn’t matter what is happening because there are recognition and appreciation that awareness is working. And then we become more skillful at being aware.