It is with great joy that I bring to you this weeks guest blog post. I met Hana while going to Humboldt State University. She lived on the same street as me, and one day I saw her walking by with an epic bear hood on and hula hoop spinnin’, it was love at first sight!
Grab a cup of tea, and enjoy…
Hanakekua has been an active and serious meditator for 5 years, beginning on her home island of Molokai, Hawaii. She lived and served for a year at Dhamma Dhara, a mothership center of Vipassana meditation as taught by S.N. Goenka. She has sat many short and long retreats in complete silence, her last course being self-led with nearly two months in solitude. Her current daily practice consists of 1-2 hours of meditation dedicated to the Brahma Viharas to generate Love, Compassion, Joy and Unconditional Acceptance for all beings. She has learned from the text and audio recordings of S.N. Goenka, Ayya Khema, Dipa Ma, Upasika Kee Nanayon, Ajahn Sumedho, Bhante Vimalaramsi and Sharon Salzberg, in addition to recent online tutorship with Cedric Reeves. If anyone has any questions regarding a meditation practice or how to begin, feel free to contact her directly at hanakekua@gmail.com or @wegiveyouourlife via Instagram or Wordpress. As an experienced meditator, she feels as if the following information is foundational in committing to take the first or millionth step on the path of heart.
The nature of any Buddha was spoken eloquently by Siddhārtha Gautama - “With goodwill for the entire cosmos, cultivate a limitless heart: Above, below, & all around, unobstructed without enmity or hate” (Sutta Nipāta). With that, each creature in all of existence has a pearl of this Buddha nature within, the limitless heart, that becomes covered by the grime of accumulation in the mind. The path is one of heart, therefore one must heal what has been willingly or unwillingly acquired. I have learned in a half decade of serious meditative practice that by cleansing what arises in the mind with awareness, we can purify the heart with wisdom. Essentially, there is no separation from the heart and mind – only conditioning has severed their appearance, and courage brings the heart home.
Our conditioning has led us to a house of mirrors that reflect our beliefs built by experiences in the body. When our body comes home it has kitchen to feed itself, a bathroom to clean itself and a bed to rest upon. Where and when does the mind find respite? The mind is constantly reaching out of its fragile sense doors, hording sights, sounds, feelings, interactions, tastes and thoughts in one’s waking and dreaming states. This accumulated junk takes up residency in our mind and heart, becoming the garbage that is never disposed of and is projected onto others.
Mediation is a tool to observe things as they are, where the mind can reflect, digest, rest and clean itself of doubts, yearning, aversion, laziness and restlessness. These hurdles of hinderances turn our mind into a toxic factory generating byproducts like anger, greed, and ultimately hatred which poisons the heart.
Meditation frees the heart to heal by fully experiencing what the self-realized Siddhārtha Gautama called The Four Noble Truths. These truths were the first teachings that were taught after he was liberated from all hinderances:
Stress is universal – What’s noble about this statement is we’re changing the attitude from “I suffer” and “I’m stressed” to “there is suffering” and “there is stress”. I suffer because of external sources, which there is only conventional blame and no nobility. I’m stressed because I’m clutching on to what changes, therefore I am able to generate compassion because stability is not promised to anyone. By recognizing that there is suffering, one can then understand that…
The cause of suffering is clinging to a non-existent, ever-morphing self. This self has sticky desires and beliefs that it has identified with, which make it seem stable, secure and impenetrable. These beliefs are bequeathed to us by this conditioned sense of self, which has no substance because it is in constant flux. The desire of sense pleasures creates craving in self, the desire to become creates clinging to self and the desire to be rid of the unpleasant creates grasping to self, therefore the epitome of delusion and stress is attachment.
3.There’s a means to an end of all stress and suffering. When one observes all objects that arise to pass away as, simply put, stressful, one will not crave for what has no substance. One will be free of craving, clinging, grasping and attachment. Therefore, that in which fluctuates from painful or pleasant will be seen in regards to these characteristics of impermanent, unsatisfactory, and non-self.
Upon the cessation of suffering one has courageously walked, in perfection, the entire path of the heart.
The Buddha categorized the path into eight facets that must be practiced to heal the heart of grime, and restore the pearl of the Buddha Nature within. It is known as The Eightfold Noble Path:
Righteous view detects delusion and navigates with the understanding of cause and effect. Our compass on the path is the law of karma or kamma, which reveals that our intentions seed thoughts, which blossoms into actions, which roots down, following us like a shadow throughout existence. By orienting choices and actions in the correct direction, one is bound to be led successfully.
Righteous thought expresses that all action is first derived from a volitional thought. The Buddha expresses that “whatever [one] frequently thinks and ponders upon, that will become the inclination of the mind” (The Middle Length Discourses).
Righteous speech begins with a wholesome cause, which leads to wholesome effects. These words are true, compassionate, encouraging and timely, give others confidence to take right action. In the Dhammapada it states that, “Mind is the forerunner in all things. Speak or act with a peaceful mind, happiness follows like a shadow that never leaves”.
Righteous action discerns commitments to not kill, steal, lie, engage in sexual injustice, or indulge in intoxicants that cloud the heart. By doing so, clarity leads to compassionate and charitable actions.
Righteous livelihood leads to an occupation that generates morality. If one’s actions encourage others to generate more hurdles of hinderances, one will stray away from the commitment to heal the heart. Morality purifies the mind by lessening our intake of doubts, yearning, aversion, laziness and restlessness, and allows stale, toxic hinderances to bubble to the surface to evaporate. My late teacher, S.N. Goenka expressed, “If the intention is to play a useful role in society in order to support oneself and to help others, then the work one does is Right Livelihood”.
Righteous effort means moving with continuous diligence and discernment in the direction of mindfulness, whilst skillfully negating pitfalls along the path. This involves preventing the accumulation of unwholesome states through practice so wholesome states arise effortlessly. Like a marathon runner in training, continuous effort has righteous rewards.
Righteous mindfulness is the pure and simple attentiveness of what is present. It is a gift to be a guardian of awareness; to notice the body, the changing sensations, the opening sense doors, and the ebb and flow of the emotions. Mental proliferation is prominent because this is the preference of the mind’s behavior. However, when mindfulness endures recall this peace when mental proliferation reigns. Mindfulness is a reminder that peace is always possible.
Righteous concentration settles the distractions of the body and mind through the momentum of mindfulness. In training, the mind is taught to lessen in reaction by sustaining the aim with a balanced heart. With concentration the mind has endured, and finally surrenders to serenity so the heart can accept all as it is, not all that we want it to be. The Buddha said, “One who is developed in the power of concentration sees things in their true perspective” (Dialogues of the Buddha).
By traversing the intricate landscapes within, I’ve discovered that wisdom means insight into what is true of nature, and is directly experienced when one has walked the noble path and enjoyed the fruits of one’s endeavors. Without strong morals, there cannot be courageous meditation. Without meditation, the mind and heart cannot be fully healed by wisdom. Integration of these insights is a continuous journey, with constant practice to cultivate a limitless heart.
In conclusion, how does meditation heal the heart? A renown meditation teacher, Ajahn Chah, once said that “mediation is a holiday for the heart”. When the mind has a place to digest and rest, the heart has space to heal.
Love,
Hanakekua Joao Farquhar
Thank you Hana for your in beautifully articulated post on how we can better care for ourselves and our hearts. If you want to connect with her find her on instagram @wegiveyouourlife
If you’re looking to begin or deepen your meditation practice I would like to share that “Insight Timer” is an amazing app that I use and love. It’s free, and has thousands of guided meditations on specific things, or just timers you can use to sit and meditate. If you have any questions leave them below or reach out to Hana.
Thanks for being here, Happy Saturday!