The Buddha identified three kinds of suffering: the dukkha of physical and emotional pain; the dukkha of constant change; and the dukkha of life’s compositional nature, which creates a kind of pressure and unease that is constantly present, even in the best of times.

The Buddha asked himself such questions 2,500 years ago, and he came to the following realization: The path to happiness and a sense of well-being in this very life lies not in avoiding suffering but in using the conscious, embodied, direct experience of it as a vehicle to gain deep insight into the true nature of life and your own existence. Instead of being a reactionary slave to the inevitable pain, frustration, stress, and sorrow in your life, which the Buddha called dukkha, you can free your mind such that you have a sense of well-being even when dukkha is present, and you create the possibility of finding complete freedom. Why not dance with the constant vicissitudes of life in a manner that is joyful and liberated, rather than feeling like a victim or being flooded with fear and stress? Reflect on what you have read in this chapter and ask yourself what you believe to be true about you and your identity. For example, which type of mistaken identity best describes the way you tend to think? Which type has caused you the most suffering in the past? Book Genre: Buddhism, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Psychology, Religion, Self Help, Spirituality, Unfinished

Emotional Chaos to Clarity

Dukkha, or unsatisfactoriness/suffering, is inevitable in our lives because we cannot control the arising of causes and conditions that surround us. However, we can choose how we choose to respond to dukkha, and how we respond is what Moffitt calls “dancing with life.” He reminds us that it is possible to respond to our suffering in a way whereby we are not defined by it; rather, suffering is simply part of our dance. Dancing with Life guides us in how to be a good dance partner, how to develop and hone our skills in this ongoing engagement that is life. No doubt you have felt the pain, confusion, and stress that this constant flux brings to your own life, with one moment being desirable and the next displeasing. The implications are vast: You make every single choice every day within this context. You cannot escape from the continuous dance. It is an impersonal, universal truth of life. None of us – not even the wealthiest, wisest, the most powerful – gets to be an exception. We all feel pain, we all lose loved ones, we all get ill, and we all die. Cessation is a path of practice, not a demand of yourself. You do not get to choose whether you achieve cessation; you (and your ego) need to be okay with that.

Your book has truly been a wonderful addition and catalyst for my new experience of “falling in love with the Dharma.” I look forward to experiencing your continued teaching and listening deeply to the Dharma … internalizing … certainly, my intention is set!” Building on a history of finding his way out of a meaningless, albeit successful, worldly life into a life of service, Phillip Moffitt has crafted a highly practical handbook for navigating the inevitable challenges that beset us. A marvelous tools to have handy when our better knowing is overwhelmed by those often mysterious interior storms, this book communicates a desperately needed feeling that we can indeed succeed in shaping lives of meaning.” Treat your ego with sympathy; this allows you to see which desires are worth keeping. We are all born with two wolves: the strongest wolf is the one you feed the most. You learn to speak only what is true, useful, and timely, even during moments of anger and outrage. Attachment and reactive mind states create an undesirable environment for making decisions. In contrast, the clarity that comes from knowing what’s really happening and the commitment to doing the right thing create an ideal environment for wise decision-making.

Truth #1: Dukkha (suffering) is present in life at every turn, and we must examine Dukkha consciously. Overcoming wholesome craving is harder: have morals, use meditation to cultivate wisdom, accept that all outcomes cannot be controlled. At the pinnacle of his success as chief executive and editor in chief of Esquire magazine, Phillip Moffitt walked away from it all—the glamour, the accolades, the punishing schedule—and chose instead to wake up each morning and breathe, to explore the mysteries he had always intuited. Read more Three types of happiness: progressive (conditions are right), happy during challenging times, and well-being that is full realization ("nirvana").

Moffitt wholeheartedly believes that it is mindfulness that allows us to set intentions through understanding what matters most (your values). Being grounded in intention and aligning one’s actions to those intentions “as best you are able is what provides integrity and unity in your life” (clarity). Again, dance seems to help with depression above and beyond just exercising or listening to music. In a 2007 study, 31 psychiatric patients with depression were split into three groups who danced to music, just listened to music, or rode on an exercise bike for three minutes. The first group danced to “Hava Nagila,” a joyful, upbeat song that involves holding hands and jumping. (The researchers actually chose this dance because there’s evidence that people who are depressed tend to move less vertically.) Keep beginner's mind at all times. The "I" no longer dominates. How can you add more to your teacup if it is already perfectly full? In a sense, then, you are already an expert on suffering. You remember it from your past, and you easily recognize it in yourself and others. You have an array of skills for averting it when possible and surviving it when it is unpreventable. But do you have a conscious relationship with your suffering? Do you utilize it to enrich your life? Or is it merely something you try to avoid? When you suffer, do you experience it as failure, an embarrassment, something shameful? If so, how much of your life is unacceptable or alien to you because it contains suffering? In addition to this in-depth investigation of the nature of consciousness, the book also includes a series of teachings in the form of twenty beautiful, mysterious illustrations that reveal the subtle aspects of consciousness along with instructions in how to use the illustrations in your meditation practice. Balyogi says he created these illustrations during a period of intense Samadhi when he had a series of revelations and visions about the structure of consciousness. I offer detailed interpretations of each illustration along with precise meditation instructions intended to guide one toward a particular state of consciousness.

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a good deal of studies involve teaching dance to older people. In many ways, dancing is the perfect antidote to the challenges of old age, such as declining health, balance, and social connections. And learning dance seems to be good for keeping the brain sharp. Before cessation: "chop wood and carry water." After cessation: "chop wood and carry water." I'm better now. I understood that I had never felt true love before and I discovered that I was able to give so much. I don't care about the outcome. I'm proud of myself and would do it again a thousand times,” she concluded. Dance has two things going for it that exercise typically doesn’t: music and (often) a dance partner. But what if people danced alone or in silence? Angela and Kai reprised their American smooth while 20-year-old EastEnders actor Bobby and his professional dance partner Dianne Buswell jived to Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go by Wham! before the judges unanimously voted to save Bobby and Dianne. Read More Related Articles