How Vipassana Transformed Me: From Aimless to Determined
The new year is about to start, and I am over-flooded with enthusiasm to set new goals. However overwhelming it may sound, I do my best to keep up with my schedule. I love to run this race against my otherwise lazy mind.
Shifting gears and pacing up is something I enjoy. I love the possibility of newer achievements in my life, personal and professional both. I run, I walk, I jump, I crawl, I fly… and yet sometimes I feel overwhelmed by all the things I want to do and all the things I think I can magically start doing just because the new calendar has begun.
Just like many, I’m one of those people who believes I can miraculously reach all my goals overnight. Phew!
My friend Dhenu almost every time we meet, repeats to me, “Vinita, the new year seems a new beginning, but it is always tricky because we write these big, life-changing goals, and then we wonder why nothing changes… hahaha!”
Dhenu got me thinking a bit more this time. Although the theatre has taught me to be disciplined in life and that it is a muscle I need to train and strengthen, however, I know we progress when small things are done repeatedly.
I started 2022 with a goal of publishing a minimum of one blog post every week, and as you know, I couldn’t keep up with the promise I made to myself. Dhenu’s words rather forced me to refocus my thinking. As always, I zoomed out to zoom in and observe.
And I went within. As I sat with this question and meditated, answers started surfacing.
The 20-Minute Adhishthan Rule
Write More, Think Less — Write at least one new blog post weekly, my seemingly tiny little goal.
I revisited. I had to, and I am sure you know why because, although I have been living this goal in my head every day for the last few months, I was nowhere close to achieving it.
I am clear now, though. Instead of setting aside at least 2 hours and buying some new stationery to reinforce this new habit of writing every day, I better choose to start with what I have. I simply pulled a diary from last year with almost half of it still unused, and I set the timer on my phone for 20 minutes.
Now, you might think, why 20 minutes? So here’s why simply because I am used to sitting for my Vipassana practice for at least 20 minutes whenever I do. My mind is already programmed for 20 minutes. That certainly helps my mind get into a comfort zone, however uncomfortable I might feel with the task at hand.
Also, I realised that the “write more, think less” goal is how most of my life needs to operate — in 20-minute increments.
I call it the “20-minute Adhishthan in Life.”
Adhishthan is a practice I learned in my Vipassana course, which simply means establishment or abode, wherein the practitioner takes up a comfortable position and homes there with no movement for the stipulated period. It strengthens one’s determination.
Vipassana teachers encourage an hour of Adhishthan. I invite you to adopt the practice in your everyday life and live with more determination in every task you want to accomplish. It is that simple. You basically set the timer and begin a conscious journey.
Twenty minutes of a nature walk.
Twenty minutes of meditation to clear my mind and pen down my thoughts in my favourite success journal.
Twenty minutes to write my blog post.
Most of us can easily spare or instead create twenty minutes.
Dhenu bluntly said to me, “You may say you have a busy schedule, but I know you know you could find that space, Vinita!”
She is right. I could give the phone some rest, reduce binge-watching, and definitely wake up a few minutes earlier.
I think, like many of us, I, too, buy the lie my brain tells me I need an entire hour or a whopping day to invest in a task I care to complete. And only then would I feel like I am moving forward. But I’m afraid that will only delay the gratification of experiencing the task. We will keep waiting on those hours or days-long blocks only to find the morning never shows up.
Vipassana taught me it is not just a practice. It is a way of life. I may never find the time, but I have to create it and consciously decide that even the smallest actions matter. Even a 5-minute meditation in Adhishthan contributes to my confidence in more significant victories ahead.
On days when I feel overwhelmed by the tasks on my to-do list, I set a timer for 20 minutes and start my act. I remind myself: I can do anything for 20 minutes. It is just an Adhishthan session for me. And the daunting task suddenly seems so simple to me.
Begin With the Small Pebbles, and Rocks Will Start Feeling Like Pebbles.
As cliché as it may sound, with just 20 minutes of focused attention, I choose to make small wins in a direction that matters to me. I consciously decide to change the landscape around me and get closer to the goals that matter to me.
It’s simply looking for that tiny little thread within a larger task and beginning to pull.
I have wanted to be a regular in writing blogs. The idea has been housed in my brain for so long, and with each passing day, I was bullied by my lazy thoughts. But as my father always says, “if you feel you don’t know how to start the machine, it may be time to take a Conscious Pause, Revisit the charts, Re-Realise, and simply Readjust.”
And the same works with your life too. To be more productive or stay on the course of your goals, you don’t need to make enormous investments or buy fancy gadgets. Of course, you don’t need to add more to your already full plate.
You simply need Adhishthan!
Think about it.
That was the ‘aha’ moment for me. Instantly, I pulled up a blank notepad on my laptop screen and set the timer to 20 minutes. These 20 minutes were a life-altering experience for me. There was something about those 20 minutes that lit a fire in me.
However small, I knew it was a meaningful step in the right direction. I was amazed to see how it felt like coming back to me. I firmly continued fueling the fire that always lay within me.
It’s not just about forming a productivity habit. It is about strengthening your determination to be true to who you want to be. And I knew I was progressing even with just small steps.
A simple meditation technique taught me a huge life lesson. Be in Adhishthan for just twenty minutes, and I am at least half a step ahead of where I was yesterday.
Now, that’s huge because it is movement!
