*The Way of Effortless Mindfulness - Loch Kelly

Partial excerpts (antilibrary)

Copyright

2019

Introduction

practice effortless mindfulness was completely different from the way it is now. Growing up, I was neither calm nor contemplative. I struggled with some form of dyslexia and ADD, and I had an underlying feeling that something wasn’t quite right, that something was missing or out of balance. The only time I experienced relief from this background anxiety was while engaged in sports, feeling myself in my body and in “the zone.”

My search eventually led me to graduate school in psychology and spirituality, where a new door opened

With one of these teachers, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, I was introduced to the advanced yet simple approach called effortless mindfulness, which is a different form of mindfulness from the kind that is so popular in the West today. Effortless mindfulness is a way of opening to a natural, wise, and loving awareness that is already present within us

This book is meant to be like a letter to a friend. It is an invitation. I am more of a coach or a guide than a preacher or a guru. I am here to share pointers and principles so you can find effortless mindfulness for yourself, as if to say, “Hey, the water is great! Come on in! Guess what? We can awaken together!”

A Different Form of Mindfulness

Effortless mindfulness is a unique form of mindfulness. What most people in the West know as mindfulness, I call deliberate mindfulness. The teachings of deliberate mindfulness stem primarily from the Theravada and Zen traditions

Deliberate mindfulness has also been brought into secular settings in the United States through mindfulness practices for physical and psychological treatment and stress reduction

I love these practices because they provide a way of cultivating calm, patience, and intentional lovingkindness

Effortless mindfulness, on the other hand, can be considered a different form of mindfulness, which is sometimes taught after having developed a deliberate mindfulness practice. It can also be a helpful alternative approach for those who have had difficulty with concentration practices or sitting meditation. Though often considered advanced, it can be a good starting place for people who are new to meditation.

Effortless mindfulness has its roots in the world’s wisdom traditions that are often described as direct path, essence traditions, or nondual traditions. The premise of the direct approach in all meditative traditions is that the awake loving nature we are seeking is already here within us and can be accessed immediately.

Sutra Mahamudra was primarily a movement of lay practitioners who developed a style of practice to facilitate awakening—a shift and upgrade of awareness, mind, and identity—in the midst of everyday life

Benefits of Effortless Mindfulness