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Talk: 2011-07_24 The Way Of The Breath - Anapanasati as a complete meditation practice. #7.json Start_time: 01:06:18 Display_question: I find the greatest challenge in daily life is doing activities where I need to think. Keyword_search: daily life, dharma, think, correct action, email, attentive, conventional truth, rational work, awareness, silence, conflict Question_content: Questioner: So, putting the Dharma into practice, in daily life. Larry: Yes. Questioner: And one I see as a wonderful thing, but sometimes challenging… Larry: Sometimes, yes, go ahead. Questioner: The greatest challenge is, when I’m doing activities where, I explicitly need to think. So, for example... Larry: Absolutely Questioner: Sending emails, where I have to give people answers, and solve problems, and that's part of the task of what I have to do. I just want to stay mindful…. Larry: When it's time to think, think. It's not complicated. In other words, if let's say that's what I was trying to make the distinction between the capacity to think, and the compulsion to think. And also, what is correct action? If you're filling out your income tax, correct action is, knowing that one plus one equals two. It's not becoming creative about that, or I have to go into emptiness. In other words, there's a conventional truth. We live in a world that is also full of conventions, and also requirements, and skills. So that means you're totally attentive to the activity that is called for. In this case, thinking. Break_line: So, you don't need special instructions. Now, the practice even helps there, because let's say people who do writing, and thinking, often their emotional stuff accompanies it, like, am I doing this right? Or if I get this email, and I send it out, and they don't like it, I might lose my job, or whatever. So that the awareness can help see if there is, an emotional cost, that's accompanying rational work. In other words, rational work is a very beautiful human activity. No one's putting that down in its place. Break_line: So, we're learning how to know the limits of thinking, when it's useful, when it's called for, and to keep improving it. And when that isn't the skill that will really help us. This is something you'll have to test. See if what I say is true. As you start to taste the silence, your thought process improves. You become much more clear, less conflicted, and so forth. Many people report it. I found it. I used to have lots of conflicts, much less now. But does that make sense? If it's time to think, think. Questioner: Thank you. End_time: 01:08:42
