Practiced correctly, meditation can be a powerful medicine to free us from countless illusions. However, practiced incorrectly, one can become more deeply entangled and imprisoned by the mind. This is why training with a skilled teacher is so important.
Though many see a teacher as inspirational and motivational, in reality, a true teacher often acts as an inhibitory force to one's misaligned ego. They do this by knowing when to skillfully say "no," "not yet," "error," "please try again," "you're trying too hard," "no fixed positions," "are you f*cking kidding me," "muuuu!", or ringing a small handbell, signaling that it is time for us to leave and return to the cushion, because the ingredients of who the brain tells us we are still need more turning in the compost bin... to many jagged pieces that need to soft and break down some more.
That said and above all else, at least in the beginning stages... say the first 20 to 30 years please make sure you have someone beside you to walk with. Why? A distorted sense of self cannot get out of the way of a distorted sense of self. Please do not believe every the mind thinks at you. Difficult roads are ahead!
一We Are the Practice Itself
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