but too much stress is paralyzing. I ran a stress-disorders clinic at one of the Harvard Medical School teaching hospitals during the 1980s. Many of our clients came from the corporate world and were afraid that if they learned to relax and meditate, they would lose their edge. Most were surprised that their performance improved dramatically as they learned the kind of simple exercises that Joel and Michelle Levey describe so brilliantly in this book. Working at our edge means acquiring the tools that prevent us from going over the edge. And in the process, we learn unexpected and invaluable lessons about the nature of the human mind and the deep web of interconnections in which we live and move and evolve. As we begin to clear and focus the mind, senses become sharp and fresh, creativity explodes, we find ourselves inexplicably joyful, with the realization that life is an inexpressibly awesome and sacred gift. We learn to see with new eyes and recover the sense of wonder that we had as children.
Every spiritual leader has given similar advice. All human beings are alike. We all want to be happy. The road to happiness is a simple path, paved with actions that arise from the powerful intention to be kind and compassionate, just as we would wish others to behave toward us. A detractor once asked the firstcentury Rabbi Akiva to summarize the entire teaching of the Torah while standing on one foot. He replied that we should be kind to others and refrain from doing to them what we would-want done to ourselves. Jesus, another first-century rabbi, gave exactly the same teaching. We know this as the Golden Rule, and while most of us would agree that it is a great idea, it is often hard to act with this degree of consciousness and caring. The true value of meditation becomes apparent over time, as kindness and caring become second nature. The fruits of practice are much more beneficial than lowered anxiety, better health, and enhanced performance. As we learn to let go of the extraneous chatter that clutters our mind, we discover that our true nature—our essential self—is actually a center of awareness, peace, and compassion. Acting with loving kindness toward others becomes our authentic state of being rather than a mere external performance.
The Lakota holy man Black Elk said, “There can never be peace between nations until we know the true peace which is in the souls of men. This comes when men realize their oneness with the universe and all its powers, and that the Great Spirit is at its center; that all things are his works, and that this center is really everywhere. It is within each of us.” Joel and Michelle echo this powerful teaching of Black Elk when they remind us that “relaxation is not something that you do. It is a natural response that you allow to happen. Relaxation is what is left when you stop creating tension.” When the tension melts away, we discover that we are at peace, at the center and naturally in sympathy with all creation. I used to tell my clients that they were already whole and healed—words that come from the same root as holy. The purpose of the tools they would learn in our clinic was to peel away the layers of stress that covered their naturally wise, peaceful, and compassionate hearts.
As I read this book, I was struck by the humble clarity with which very powerful teachings are given. I have known Joel and Michelle for a decade, admiring their strong and unwavering intention to be of service to others by sharing the wisdom they have learned from some of the most luminous spiritual teachers of our time. Their authentic, compassionate presence is always a joy to experience and a reminder that through time-tested practices, we, too, can recover peace and happiness. It was a great honor to be asked to write the Foreword to this “simple” book, which is, I believe, the most complete primer of meditation and spirituality that has ever been written.
You hold in your hand a precious jewel, a treasure with the power to transform your life and to heal the world. If it were the only book you had to study and work with for the rest of your life, it would be all that you need. Use it well and share it with others. We have all been blessed that such profound teachings from the world's great spiritual traditions have been rendered with such stunning simplicity, beauty, and grace. In a time when so many superficial books are being published, it is a rare opportunity to own a book of this depth and breadth, written in a way that allows each of us to develop our minds and hearts at exactly the pace we need.
—Joan Borysenko, Ph.D.
AWAKENING OUR WHOLENESS AND FULL POTENTIAL
A human being is part of the whole called by us “universe,” a part limited in time and space. We experience ourselves, our thoughts, and feelings as something separate from the rest. A kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in all of its beauty…. We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if humankind is to survive.
—Albert Einstein
In each of our lives there have been times when we have experienced a deeper sense of connectedness, wholeness, and belonging than we ordinarily find. Most likely, those extraordinary moments of deeper wisdom, love, and aliveness came unexpectedly. Pause for a moment to recall those special moments when you were most fully and joyfully alive…when you felt the exhilaration of performing at your best…when you allowed your heart to open tenderly to love and be loved…when you were in the flow and felt in perfect harmony with the world in which you live. Recall those quintessential moments in your life and work that stand out and sparkle…those times when you really helped someone or when you really allowed someone to care for you…those times when, for a timeless moment, you glimpsed and understood the awesomeness of creation and your belonging within it.
If we examine the qualities of our aliveness during these special times, we will probably find that our attention was wholly focused on what was happening, and that our mind and body were operating as one. These are the very qualities that are cultivated, matured, and awakened in our lives through the practices of meditation. Remembering and appreciating moments that have allowed us to know and feel life more deeply serves to remind us of what is possible. Such moments of deep recognition awaken within us an aspiration to awaken to the authenticity and fullness of who we truly are, and may further lead us to devote our lives to helping others to do the same.
Through the disciplines of meditation, we intentionally nurture and cultivate sublime qualities of vivid aliveness that are otherwise only glimpsed in moments of grace and peak experienee. Generally speaking, our attention is quite scattered and our lives fragmented. Our minds and bodies seem disconnected from each other. We are often lost in our thoughts and only superficially in touch with the reality and intensity of our inner and outer experiences. How often are our minds focused, calm, clear, or open enough to discern the exquisitely profound interplay of inspiration, intuition, and revelation that are a natural, though very subtle, part of our lives? How many valuable insights, breakthrough ideas, and inspirations have danced in our mind, shimmered for a moment in lucid clarity, only to vanish because the noise level in our mindbody was simply too high to discern these subtle and sublime whispers that are an ongoing function of our human life? How many problems might be avoided if we were more grounded in our wholeness and more present—“checked in” rather than “checked out”—and more in touch with ourselves, with others, and with our surroundings?
Though our bodies are really not very different from those of our ancestors, we live in a dramatically different and infinitely more demanding world. In a single day we may be challenged to respond to more information and make more decisions than one of our ancestors faced in a lifetime! Given the accelerating rate of change and uncertainty, the immensity of personal and global crises, and the staggering variety of choices and decisions that are a part of our daily lives, is it any wonder that we often feel overwhelmed and frustrated?
With so many people in our society needlessly suffering and dying of preventable stress-related diseases, is it any wonder that so much attention is being directed to investigating practical alternatives to current ways of living and working that have been so personally and globally destructive? We in modern times have much to learn about self-knowledge and self-mastery.
It is no surprise that so many people are seeking to get in touch with deeper, life-giving forces, and that skills in meditation and relaxation are becoming recognized as vital to our peace of mind and the quality of our health, work,