You keep telling yourself:

“I’ll be okay when…”

But you’re already standing exactly where you need to be!

You’re waiting for the conditions to be right.

But what if this is the moment you’ve been waiting for?

Throughout your day, as you’re engaged in activity, there will be an occasional pause — an attempt to collect yourself and wait for the applause to come. Notice this is where your practice gets stuck.

You’re about to spend the day fixing things.

But what if you’re not seeing the whole picture?

Full reflection inside.

Your to-do list isn’t your life!

Full reflection inside…

You think if you give too much away, you’ll have nothing left. What if that math is wrong?

In this teishō on Book of Equanimity Case 21, “Ungan Sweeps the Ground,” Sensei Sōen Michael Brunner examines how our mental commentary replaces direct experience.

One of the most dangerous things on the spiritual path is blaming causes and conditions — or blaming other people — for our inability to practice. For our inability to function freely in our own lives.

You’ve been asked that question before —
usually as a correction.

But what if it’s the most important question you answer today?

You can think your way all the way to the edge — but you can’t think your way into intimacy with this moment.