Incident at Gate 7
Posted: March 3, 2014 Filed under: Meditation, Yoga | Tags: balance, blogging, Buddhism, compassion, cycling, Equanimity, family, fitness, free range, freshly pressed, happiness, harmony, health, inspiration, kindness, life, love, lululemon, marathon, meditation, motivation, musings, natural, nature, Omaha, passion, perspective, pilates, running, walking, WOD, writing, yoga, Zen 12 CommentsNever let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present-
Note: Over the course of the next few posts, I am going to try to write about – equanimity – Key word being try. Personally, writing and discussing equanimity is tricky and this is where I need your help! I implore you to share your thoughts and insights on this very “tricky” topic. Thank you for your help in advance!
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Equanimity is not about being a doormat to others, the world. Nor is equanimity suppressing your emotions, your true spirit. So, what the hell is it?!?
Personally, as defined by yours truly – Equanimity means maintaining mental calmness, composure, an evenness of temper, during stressful situations. There are, throughout my day, certain folks or situations that trigger within me a deep-rooted sense of anger. Which, makes it rather difficult for me to be the cool dude people often think I am? What stops me from choke slamming an ignorant driver? Lashing out verbally at a yoga instructor who leaves a tired class in high plank, only to lament how tired and sore he is? Saving the best example for last … Thinking you are having a pleasant conversation with someone, only to find out they were not listening, enamored with their gadget instead.
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I have found equanimity to be my most calming state of mind, especially when interacting with people who rub me the wrong way and push my “buttons“.
Daily Meditation:
If you want to make it through the day with an inner sense of grace and calm, equanimity is going to take you a lot farther than hostility. Let’s play around with the wording … If you want to make it through a challenging power yoga class? Allow equanimity to guide you, instead of being a chump, a whining chump who spews hate and hostility having to do a plank for two minutes.
CultFit 
Dropping into my heart helps me deal with these anger or irritation invoking situations, as i realize the emotions arising come from within me. Not to say I’ve been particularly successful at this lately 🙂
It seems to take a certain balance so that I”m not just stuffing a reaction/emotion, and thus ending up hurting myself physically as it shows up in some ailment. Perhaps just loving myself for having the reaction, loving the reaction, can keep me in my heart about it without harming myself in the process.
I feel self love plays a critical part in finding equanimity in our lives. 🙂
I listened to a great talk yesterday entitled Metta for Difficult People on the Against the Stream podcast. Lots of stuff about equanimity. Thanks for writing!!
Peace.
I’m searching away using the old Google Machine as we speak – thank you so much for stopping over and sharing! Take care and be well!
I think equanimity for me in a left “high and dry” 2 minute plank pose is to pause, drop out of the pose and take an easier, more acceptable version or move into child’s pose. I think the idea of equanimity is not to allow others to control us – verbally, mentally, emotionally or physically when beyond our limits. Taking the reins over my own life is a great way to maintain composure and equanimity in challenging situations. Often, the only thing we can only change is our response to the stimuli.
Normally these moments roll right off of my back and out of my mind. Although, for whatever reason – I’m blaming the weather … They have stuck of late. Which is why I wanted to talk about equanimity. I receive a lot of dead eyes stares when I say training for “whatever” is easier than practicing equanimity. 😉
I do think the weather is wearing on everyone right now. I find myself being tired of being cold. FYI – I put the set of bags in the mail yesterday so you’ll be receiving them soon 🙂
I think your definition of equanimity is excellent. It’s all about how we respond to whatever’s going on in our lives, be it good or bad. To meet situations with an open mind, an open heart and just experience whatever it is we are meant to experience.
Perfect! Seriously, your words and thoughts are profound, yet moving – Or as I like to say: Easily digestible. Thank you!!!
Thanks so much, that means a lot coming from you 🙂
Well, here we are again. Strange how so often – in the collective subconscious kind of way – what you and I are writing at the same time seems to linked. ANYway – my tools are both common and strange. Aside from the standard – take a deep breath – I pause to remind myself of where I am, then I focus on gratitude for being there. Gratitude disarms a lot of crap for me. When a coworker is pissing me off – deep breath, are they pissing me off intentionally or is it just a function of the situation?, deep breath, this is the job that puts food on my table, these are the situations where I can be helpful, this complication is something I am good at handling – which is why it was brought to me – deep breath, fix the problem.
If its someone that regularly ticks me off and/or does it intentionally, when I can – & here is the strange – I meditate on them. I ask myself WHO ARE THEY? What creates this way they act? Most of the shitty things people do aren’t even about the situation or person – its because that’s how they’ve learned to function in their world and how they treat you is just the same as any other person. Then I feel bad for their misery rather than ticked off by them. My husband once told me ‘you don’t have to dislike someone, you just have to understand who they are’. When you know who someone is at their core, you begin to let go of a lot of frustration in the name of ‘they can’t help it – it’s who they are; it’s not my purpose to change them’.
If I sent you a draft for the post I have planned for tomorrow? It would read, almost word for word, like the awesome comment you just left – Seriously! And I can’t begin to thank you enough for your support and kindness, it truly is – pretty damn cool – In a real, tangible, brilliant kind of way!!!