Sitting Quietly, Doing Nothing, Letting Everything Be Without Resistance

: By Barbara Berger

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Sitting quietly, doing nothing. But what’s the point, you ask? Why should I do this? Why should I waste my precious time sitting quietly doing nothing when there is so much to do, so much to accomplish and achieve?

And all I can reply is yes, there goes the mind again. Busy making plans and pulling us off in other directions by constantly telling us that being present in this moment is not that important! Which brings up the whole question of what this whole thing called life is all about. Because really, what is it all about?

This constant chase for happiness somewhere out there in the future if we just can perform well enough. Which I now have come to see is really such a cruel way to live our lives. Because we never allow ourselves to experience the absolute bliss, the absolute joy, of being totally present right now—without any thought of accomplishing anything or becoming anything or going anywhere or doing anything at all. And then we die! It’s really so cruel!

So yes, sit quietly and do nothing!

Give yourself the gift! Allow it to happen.

Be here now.

Be good to you!

Savor this moment. Do it for you!

Just Let Everything Be As It Is

Make up your mind to sit down and breathe and just let everything be as it is. Make the choice to do it. To pull back and let everything be. And just be present and watch.

Sounds like meditation you say?

And yes, well it is… but you can also say that this decision to be aware in this moment, is a decision we can make in every now moment—and not just when we sit down to meditate formally. In other words, we can also make the decision to be present in every now moment, but the reality is – most of us can’t or don’t do this. It’s just too difficult because our minds (and our lives) are just too busy. And that of course is why practicing formal meditation can help.

Meditation is the formal moment—the formal decision—when you say to yourself, OK I’m going to sit down now for 10 or 20 minutes and do nothing except focus my attention on being present now, on being aware of this moment. Meditation is the formal act where you pledge yourself to do this. And if you practice doing this every day at a designated time, you discover that you are actually cultivating the ability (the awareness) to be present. And then, sooner or later, this ability may well begin to spill over into the rest of your life.

Sit Quietly and Do Nothing (Meditate)

So yes, cultivate the ability to be present and aware in this moment. Practice being conscious of this moment. Because it does take practice. It doesn’t just happen automatically. So keep making the decision—over and over again—to actually see what is happening right in front of your nose, right now. And keep making the decision, over and over again.

And keep sitting there and keep bringing yourself back to this moment, over and over again. And keep coming back to now and experiencing this moment, this happening, this reality, this whatever it is, now.

When you do this, you are meditating, whether you are sitting formally or not.

Let Everything Be, Without Resisting Anything

Sitting Quietly, Doing Nothing, Letting Everything Be Without Resistance One of my favorite techniques or triggers when it comes to sitting and being present is to say to myself that now I am not going to resist this moment anymore. Now, for the moment, I am just going to let everything be. I am just going to let everything be as it is. I am not going to resist anything.

It is amazing what this does for me.

Just the thought—letting everything be—makes me blissfully happy!

I love it… just to let everything be.

I suggest you give it a try.

What happens when you just let everything be as it is? When you have no resistance to anything? When you just are…

How can I describe it?

Why don’t you try it for yourself and see what happens.

Why don’t you put this down right now and give it a try.

It’s simply so liberating. Also because when you let everything be and rest in this moment, you have no comparisons.

What Is Resistance?

Resistance is when you are comparing this moment, this something, to something else. This moment can only be “not good enough” if I compare it to something else. Without comparisons, everything is perfectly OK as it is. How could it be otherwise?

Without comparisons, I’m home free. Without comparisons there is just this. Just this. And what could be wrong with this without the thought of that?

Now you see it don’t you? Now you see that without the thought of something else, nothing can possibly be wrong with this. Without the thought of “if only”, this is always perfect. And that’s what I always discover when I decide to let everything be.

It’s the perfect meditation—always!

Because it’s just this!

So please give it a try. Just sit and keep coming back to that thought… and let everything be.

*Subtitles by InnerSelf

©2014 Barbara Berger. All Rights Reserved.
Reprinted with permission of the author.

Book by this Author

Are You Happy Now? 10 Ways to Live a Happy Life
by Barbara Berger.

What is preventing you from being happy now? Is it your partner, your health, your job, your financial situation or your weight? Or is it all the things you think you “should” do? Barbara Berger takes a look at all the things we think and do that prevent us from living happy lives now. Barbara presents 10 practical ways to use this understanding in your daily life, your relationships, at work and for your health.

Click here for more info or to order this book on Amazon. Also available as a Kindle edition.

About the Author

Barbara Berger, author of the book: Are You Happy Now?

Barbara Berger has written over 15 self-empowerment books, including her international bestsellers "The Road to Power / Fast Food for the Soul" (published in 30 languages) and "Are You Happy Now? 10 Ways to Live a Happy Life" (published in 21 languages). She is also the author of “The Awakening Human Being – A Guide to the Power of Mind” and “Find and Follow Your Inner Compass”. Barbara's latest books are “Healthy Models for Relationships – The Basic Principles Behind Good Relationships” and her autobiography “My Road to Power – Sex, Trauma & Higher Consciousness”..

American-born, Barbara now lives and works in Copenhagen, Denmark. In addition to her books, she offers private sessions to individuals who wish to work intensely with her (in her office in Copenhagen or on Zoom, Skype and telephone for people who live far away from Copenhagen).

For more about Barbara Berger, see her website: www.beamteam.com