Partaking in the contemplative practices is an interesting experience. I’ve found that it requires me to step back and not take myself too seriously. It’s kind of ridiculous in the same way that volunteering at a preschool is. Sometimes you have to do weird dances or walk like a bear with preschoolers, and I feel the same inhibitions in these instances as when I’m asked do contemplations in class. It takes a little bit of effort to let go and indulge in the activity.
But, as expected, if you take the time to slow down and reflect you’ll be able to come to certain realizations. In this current Western culture it seems that we are always pressed for time and always busy with something. This leaves little time for such reflections. Other cultures move a lot slower than we do, and traditionally practice different sorts of contemplation. And the people of these cultures often seem to have more insights, to be wiser.
The contemplative practices in class have at least given me the opportunity to slow down and realize the systemic, interconnected issues that impact even the most mundane activities; like eating a raisin. There is always a bigger picture, and maybe a little time to reflect is all we need to see this a little clearer.
Although these contemplative practices may seem unnecessary at times, they definitely don’t cause any harm. And it’s always nice to slow down a little bit, even if it is a little weird and awkward. I’m curious as to how contemplative practices could be used in other, non-traditional, settings? I also wonder how the impacts would be different in these other settings?
I have also noticed the difference between Western “fast-paced” cultures and traditional “slower” cultures, and how we view those cultures as wiser. It is so interesting to me that we feel awkward and uncomfortable when asked to reflect on our own thoughts. It’s as if we are taught to ignore our own feelings and ideas for the sake of not wasting any time. I always wonder, how do other people feel about these contemplative practices? Or, how do other cultures feel about contemplative practices? It seems like every other culture besides modern Westernized culture prioritizes individual thoughts, whereas the United States is more focused on standardization and the elimination of the individual. I wonder if the cultural dynamic in the United States (say for instance in our public schooling) would be different if we allowed students to openly contemplate, reflect, and share their own ideas and thoughts, instead of just teaching them a strict textbook curriculum. Great blog post!
It’s an interesting point that you make that we are always so focused on keeping things fast-paced, I’ve never really taken the time to think or contemplate about that until now. I’m not sure if you’ve taken much time to think about it yourself but it’s an interesting thought process.. Why are we so fixated on the future? Why don’t we focus more on the present and how to make the most of things NOW? The contemplative practice with our raisins shares a lot of similarities to our everyday lives. We don’t stop enough to take the time to think about things and savor the moment like we did with these raisins.
All of this just makes me think of an episode in the office where Andy says something along the lines of wishing we knew we were in the good ol days when they’re happening. If we don’t stop and appreciate these things in our lives in the now we’ll just end up missing them more in the future!