The Importance of Having a Spiritual Practice
And how to design one for beginners
Spirituality Is Like Brushing Your Teeth
Rarely, someone like the Buddha can just sit under a tree and meditate for a few days and then suddenly become enlightened and stay that way for the rest of their life. But that’s not something you can really control. That kind of enlightenment comes to you on its own.
What’s easier and more likely to be meaningful is to treat spirituality like hygiene, and have a daily practice. Your teeth aren’t ever permanently clean. You can’t brush your teeth under a Bodhi tree once and have them clean forever. It’s something that naturally needs to be cleaned every day.
Your mind and spirit are the same. One big meditation session will probably leave you feeling great, but its effects will quickly wear off as your daily life patterns suck you back under them. A consistent spiritual practice keeps our mind and spirit clean, free of dis-ease and functioning well.
In other words, the importance of having a spiritual practice is that it clears our minds of worry, attachments, and noise, freeing us up to experience the beauty and joy inherent in every moment we experience.
