Once there lived a village of creatures along the bottom of a great crystal river. Each creature in its own manner clung tightly to the twigs and rocks of the river bottom, for clinging was their way of life, and resisting the current was what each had learned from birth. But one creature said at last, "I trust that the current knows where it is going. I shall let go, and let it take me where it will. Clinging, I shall die of boredom."

The other creatures laughed and said, "Fool! Let go, and that current you worship will throw you tumbled and smashed across the rocks, and you will die quicker than of boredom!"

But the one heeded them not, and taking a breath did let go, and at once was tumbled and smashed by the current across the rocks. Yet, in time, as the creature refused to cling again, the current lifted him free from the bottom, and he was bruised and hurt no more.

And the creatures downstream, to whom he was a stranger, cried, "See a miracle! A creature like ourselves, yet he flies! See the Messiah, come to save us all!" And the one carried in the current said, "I am no more Messiah than you. The river delights to lift us free, if only we dare let go. Our true work is this voyage, this adventure."

But they cried the more, "Saviour!" all the while clinging to the rocks, making legends of a Saviour.

Richard Bach 

Applause everyboday. Applause. We all must bow down. For this is a very wise story. A parody of our modern life. Of religion. Brilliant!

This thought is after all my personal thoughts, and it is a analysis of what I have found to be useful in my life, The power of 'Stillness'. It is not meant to be preachy to anyone, so NO ONE dare accuse me of that!

Apart from that disclaimer, here are my thoughts about what is Stillness. That word has been occuring lot lately in this blog (and I have been blogging alot lately here.... maybe it's just a phase, whatever it is, it is the present moment ... now let me step into this!)

Okay Stillness, how would I describe it? I came upon this word 2 years ago, didn't know what it was, never cared. Last year I heard it again, in Dharma talks, in the book - 'The Power of Now' - by Eckhart Tolle and also a lot in other forms of Dharma medium. It appeared many times in different words, such as, present moment, the NOW, silence or just mindfulness. Back then, I didn't know what it meant, just some spiritual word, that one uses once in a while to sound 'cool' and 'spiritual' ---- Until these pass few months. Something popped up in my mind, my own whirlpool of thoughts and idle chatter, the word, 'stillness' popped up, and this time it meant something, it meant a lot in a way that it was calming. Now let me explain! It was not until today that I thoroughly grasped what it meant, and it was the first time I didn't try to intellectualise with it or struggle mentally with it, probably maybe I've did that so much it had losts all its meaning and cliches' --- Today I found some peace - some foundation of a peaceful mind.

Like always, I woked up in the morning with a sense of dread, a desire to not die but near the point of just waiting to die, feeling my life slowly and painfully wasting away in my bed - ahh... the dread of it. This just happens every morning, maybe because I live alone, maybe I'm going through some phase or maybe I'm just sensitive to things - I let things affect - the wars, the other people's problems, my family - their problems and my responsibility to them - but never ever my own problems, I'm 'cool' with myself, I am thankful I can become who I am today - (thank you to my best friend - I am loving the person I am) - but there are other people, and also my 'pasts' haunts me, how in damnation I was before! I did a lot of bad things. ahh... Karma was coming back ... in a moral sense that is - guilt I guess.... Sorry ... for getting side tracked.

Where was I again? Oh yes. My waking dread! How awful! However with a little use of the age old eastern philosophy and a cross validation with western philosophy and some common sense (no more dogmatism please! those stuff don't work!!!) I managed to get myself calm again. What did I do?

I told myself that whatever happened, is what already happened, I can't go back to change it, and nothing in anyway that I could try to find the fifth side to the squre, I am unable to change what has happened. So then I accept it. YES.

And then now what? I'm still feeling 'crap' - with that bloody mental chatter inside my head - then the word 'stillness' came up - and I knew what to do!

I just told myself to freeze and listen to the 'stillness', try to listen to the stillness outside, and move my attention away from my inner noise - innner chatter and apparently it worked. A bit of Psychiatry 101 on myself, hehehe ... today I could differentiate what was mental noise and actual noise. Usually the surrounding is very peaceful and calming, however sometimes we make so much noise in our heads, we miss those serene moments.

As I practice that more and more, I am getting more and more calmer, I am starting to listen to the silence now - it's really loud - quite a paradox - that the silence is actually loud. Well, it resounds very loudly in me, it feels really peaceful, my troubles (atm studying for my finals) is just but a background noise to this silence.

While my mind tries to remind me of my problems and blah blah blah... yada yada ..such and such .... the silence that I am tuning into now just makes me ignore all that 'crap'.

This is rather a long and garbage posts to those who are reading, but I don't care, I rather posts whatever then not posts at all. My english is getting quite rusty, or it has already been for a long time ... ahahah...

I'm up for another poem.

Wait. Let me enter the 'Stillness'

The world as it is. Always in flux.

From day to night. Night to day.

I witness such beauty. We witness such beauty.

Only when one steps outside their inner head.

Breath in. Breath out. The flow of change.

Accept. Don't resists. What is, is what is.

Listen intently. The silence is loud.

Drowing out the inner noise. The mental chatter.

When problems were once problems. They are not.

They are just noise in one's head.

When silent. One becomes aware.

Stillness. Calms the heart.

hehehe. WOW! I'm loving poetry!

Thanks for reading!

Stillness

---------------

Stillness. Echoes on the wall.

Stand still. Listen. Mental noise stopped.

Hear it. Don't just listen. Starts off ...

Ringing in your ears.

Now. Step into it.

Stillness. Peace.

No-mind.