Adrienne opened the RAIN mindfulness practice with the poem The Guest House by Rumi.
The Guest House
by Jalaluddin Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
Some folk asked for more guidance on the RAIN practice so here it is, with thanks to
the Mindfulness Association
Step 1- Recognise what the presenting emotion/difficulty is and name it. This is like opening the door and acknowledging the guest that wants to come in.
Step 2 – Allow. Next, simply allow the emotion/difficulty to be present. This is like welcoming the guest and inviting it to take a seat inside your guesthouse.
Step 3 – Inquire. Then go back to resting your attention on the mindfulness support while knowing that the guest is present within your guesthouse. If you find that the guest persistently calls for your attention, then switch your focus to the presenting emotion/difficulty and make it the focus of your mindfulness practice. But do this in a particular way:
Mindfulness of body - First bring your attention to where the emotion or difficulty is held within your body. Notice what kind of sensations you are experiencing in this part of the body – maybe there is a tightness, contraction, heat, vibration…etc. Notice if you are resisting these sensations. Then notice what happens if you open to them with mindfulness and acceptance.
Mindfulness of feelings - Now bring your attention to the emotions and feelings connected with the experience. Notice what the primary feeling tone is and then observe what layers of feeling make up the experience. You may notice that the presenting emotion is not one feeling, but a constellation of feelings. Try to meet each of these feelings with mindfulness and acceptance.
Mindfulness of thoughts - Next, notice what kind of thoughts, stories or beliefs are spinning around the presenting emotion. Try to take a step back and look at these thoughts. Are they true or one sided? Are they permanent or changing moment by moment?
Mindfulness of underlying processes - Then notice how you are relating to your experience. Are you taking the emotion to be very solid and real? Are you seeing it as permanent? Are you clinging to it and contracting around it? And, are you identifying with it as who you are?
Step 4 – Nurture. This leads to the last stage of RAIN, in which you identify what you need to look after yourself when considering this emotion/difficulty.
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| Midmar Dam, South Africa - photo by Bobby Keal, submitted by Jo Saunders |
going far ahead of the road I have begun
Bev's writing prompt side-stepped the plethora of questionable poetry about rain (and its drops) but went in search of a similar balm to the confusion of this new dimension, more than a new reality we find as we tiptoe out of lockdown. The chosen prompt comes from the following poem:
A Walk
by Rainer Maria Rilke Translated by Robert Bly
My eyes already touch the sunny hill.
going far ahead of the road I have begun.
So we are grasped by what we cannot grasp;
it has inner light, even from a distance-
and changes us, even if we do not reach it,
into something else, which, hardly sensing it,
we already are; a gesture waves us on
answering our own wave...
but what we feel is the wind in our faces.
******************************************
I strain, facing into the ferocious wind,
going far ahead of the road I have begun;
agreeing to move forward, I do not allow myself to turn back.
I recognise this challenge hand-picked for me.
Like enormous hail-stones it fell from the sky this very day.
Light also shines, picking out new shades I did not see before.
How the not-knowing wanted to lock me out of my own guest-house,
but weeping I enter in, to give this stranger a bed.
An uneasy bed-fellow, but relief comes with
the naming of her, this tender, hurting child.
Sitting as a mountain in RAIN
by Joyce Nicholson
Schiehallion, Canisp, Suilven and Buachaille,
weathering sun, snow, smirr, and snell,
watching the flux of flora and fauna,
experiencing restlessness or sloth and torpor.
But, breathing, breathe, the gap, and possibility,
to notice and not respond, react, and be still, like mountains,
rooted in the heart of the earth.
Traversing guests, they come and go,
some more welcome than others and some surprise,
especially with the longevity of their stay.
I feel you here, poking and pointing in tender valleys,
I carry you on the ridges of my self,
And to try stay deeply rooted in the base of the mountain, me.
Thanks to you all...
Kay: excellent thankyou Adrienne so timely kx
Adrienne: Thanks Kay
Giovanna : Thank you Adrienne, I could listen to your voice all day! Can you remind me what I should be doing with the recognise and allow? thanks
Jo : Agree. Adrienne your voice is a meditation in itself.
Adrienne: Thanks Giovanna. Recognise is simply acknowledging the difficult issue that comes up time and again or is current for you. Allow is making the decision to explore the impact this issue has on you. Let me know if that is helpful?
Adrienne: Thanks Jo.
Hilaire: Very powerful, Adrienne - thank you
Adrienne: Thanks Hilaire.
Anja: Adrienne, thank you so much for today. I felt utterly safe and nurtured, just what I needed today and right now.
Hilaire: I’m here!
Joyce: we need a daily Adrienne meditation please x
Lapidus Scotland Bev : "going far ahead of the road I have begun" (writing prompt)
Jo : That German reading had shivers going through me. Thank you Bev and Anja
Hilaire: Discomfort is my greatest gift - spot on!
Kay: brilliant bev kx
Kay: thankyou beautiful kx
Hilaire: beautiful x
Giovanna : Thank you Anya, that was beautiful
Catrice: Fantastic!!!!
Catrice: Beautiful!!!!
Hilaire: Wonderful!
Catrice: Amazing! Such a wordsmith! Beautiful!
Hilaire: Great poem Kay
Catrice: Yes, those blue walls are gorgeous. Oceanic colors.
Kath : As usual the mindfulness practice took me straight to the heart
Catrice: Oh Britt, How lovely!
Catrice: Awww!, How sweet!
Lesley: Soul food, thank you everyone! xxx
Sand : Thank you both. This session has stilled my restlessness x
Louise : Dear lovely co mindful writers - thank you so much and to Bev & Adrienne for caring to do this!
Britt: Indeed. This was my thing for me in the middle of my work day. Made the rest sustainable.
Anja: Thank you to Bev and Adrienne and to all of you reading ad sharing. Such a beautiful safe space here.
Giovanna : Thank you Bev and Adrienne and all for another truly wonderful session. So much humanity here.
Anja: See you next week, hopefully, thank you.
Isabel: These sessions are so powerful! Thank you.
Phyllis: Very therapeutic session today, thanks everyone
Kay: hand on heart for everyone this sharing is so healing so powerful thankyou kx
Catrice: Thank you Adrienne. Thank you Bev. You ladies are amazing. Thank you for creating this space for us. See you again next week!
Terry: Relaxing and stimulating. brilliant.
Susan : Thank you everyone for another great session. The meetings great in so many ways.
Hilaire: Thank you this was so helpful today
Mo: thank you for admitting me into this enclosure of calm and restfulness which gets enriched and nourished by words and connection
Joyce: wonderful connecting sessions as always … a rare opportunity in these strange times xxx thankyou everyone xx
Eileen: thank you all for another wonderful session. RAIN so helpful x