Happy Dog Meditation

A month ago, I was at Shalom Mountain, standing naked in the sun on a hill top, and fell into a state of joy and awareness of my surroundings. I let my attention be caught by any movement, any sound, any object. I was in a state of wordless joy for many minutes, and felt alive and at peace. I called it my "Happy Dog Meditation".

Picture a golden lab, fur rippling in the sunlight, alive, full of life. He is happy, tongue hanging, content. A bird passes overhead and his ears go up, his head whips around, and he is fully focused. Then he looks at you, happy again, wanting to play. You pick up a stick, and he goes wild, barking, jumping, eagerly waiting to run wherever you throw it. He whines with anticipation. There is no mind. There are no thoughts, no ponderings. There is no hesitation, no theorizing about the past or planning on the future. Everything is absorbed with eagerness, and he is happy.

So here's how to do the Happy Dog Meditation:

1. Observe everything. Don't control your attention, or focus on something to exclude other things - let everything grab your attention spontaneously, without any plan.

2. Empty your mind. Don't ask, "What was that?" Don't label what you see or hear, not even "Bird!" or "Squirrel!". Don't wonder why something is as it is. Let your mind rest.

3. Be happy. Let go of everything you think should be different than it is - don't wish for what is not, or resent what is. Be open to what you discover.

How do you know when you are no longer meditating?

1. There are words in your head. Every word will cause a fog to come over your eyes and ears, and you won't observe as clearly as before.

2. Your eyes blur or stop moving. When you are no longer looking or seeing what you are looking at, you have lost the present. Start looking again.

3. You become curious what something is, or why it is, or where it went, or how it might change. All these put limits on what you can see. Shed the limits, and observe.

Happy dog. Good dog.
Rub, rub.
Pant, pant.