PREVIOUSNEXT
山伏
キウイ
Think back to basics
When times get tough, you have to think back to basics. Are you eating properly? Are you exercising regularly? Are you checking in on yourself regularly (which I define as once a day)? Are you keeping contact with those you love? Are you expressing yourself in some way or another?
These are such normal parts of our lives that they are easy to forget at times. These are questions that you can always fall back on to help you get back on your feet soon. However, you should be doing these anyway to ward off any such disaster. Eat probably and get regular exercise, that should be easy enough.
To check in with yourself, there are many ways. You can try doing something creative, like writing or art (it doesn’t have to be published), or do something in which you absolutely must concentrate. For example, walking on an uneven terrain out in the forest, or in my case, making pour over coffee (who wants a bad cup of coffee?). Another good exercise is drawing a circle, an exercise from Zen Buddhism. Sounds simple, but it’s actually quite effective at showing your current state of mind. Only one, and only once, no repeats.
Whether you can do this well or not tells you where your mind is at, and let’s you know if you need to do something about it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hi, I’m Tim Bunting AKA the Kiwi Yamabushi, a New Zealander who became a Yamabushi Ascetic in the Dewa Sanzan mountains of north Japan. I’m part of the Yamabushido team, and we host life-altering Yamabushi training on the Dewa Sanzan (website link). People come to us for the ultimate mindfulness experience, to reach the next level, or simply connect with nature and themselves.
I’m on a mission to summit all 100 Famous Mountains of Yamagata Prefecture to spread the splendour of this fabulous location, and in dedication to all those who lost their lives out in nature, including my father.
On my daily blog I post thoughts of a practicing Yamabushi that I hope people can use to better themselves and live as fulfilling a life as possible.
Sign up to the weekly Mountains of Wisdom newsletter, follow me on social (Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, Clubhouse, all @kiwiyamabushi), or send me an email via the link below to stay in touch.
Tim.
MOUNTAINS OF WISDOM
Subscribe to my weekly yamabushi newsletter
RECENT BLOG POSTS
YAMABUSHI BLOG POSTS
RANDOM POSTS