06.05.2026

Meditation in Ordinary Moments

Earlier this week, my co-worker Lilly asked me how often I meditate. Given that I work at Lion’s Roar, this isn’t an entirely unusual question, but even so, my reply didn’t come quickly. I think I initially said something like, “Hmmm, maybe three or four times a week, depending on what’s going on in my life… but sometimes less.”

As soon as the answer came out of my mouth, I noticed a bit of self-judgment. Shouldn’t I be meditating, like, every day? Isn’t part of being on this path dedicating myself to the benefits of practice?

Then the second part of my answer surfaced: “Well, on days I don't sit to do formal practice, meditation still shows up for me. There are times when I rely on “practice” beyond traditional meditation, but more in my approach to what's unfolding in the moment.”

I’ve come to appreciate that meditation isn’t limited to the times I’m sitting on the floor of my bedroom staring at the wall, or settled on my living room sofa early in the morning with the cat in my lap, noticing the natural rise and fall of my breath. My practice also lives in and through me in very ordinary, yet helpful ways.

In a meeting, when I notice my tendency to jump in with an answer to a colleague’s comment, sometimes — not all the time — I notice. I pause, inhale slowly, and with a small internal smile, I redirect my attention toward curiosity. Maybe just this one time I can work with openness and curiosity, instead of having all the answers.

Leaving work, tired, and wishing the long line of traffic on the main artery toward my neighbourhood was moving quicker, I can decide to redirect my attention, roll my window down as I sit in traffic, and feel the air and breeze on my face.

Recently, my family and I journeyed with my father through his final days. Time stretched on without definition; the division between day and night blurred. In those moments, my typical ways of relating to time dissolved. The emphasis slowly shifted to attending to small things that mattered to Dad: a cool cloth on his head, sharing a brief memory with my siblings, closing my eyes and sinking into the large chair beside his bed.

So, all to say, yes, for me meditation is the practice of learning to hang out with myself. It’s the working with what is arising; it’s the bringing of form to the practice of being present. It has helped me learn to be more porous, to let big feelings, difficult emotions, flow in and around and through me. It can be practiced at any moment.

Our tendency is to push away, distract ourselves, and avoid much of what unfolds in our day-to-day lives. We want what feels natural and comfortable. When we exert and learn to work with the practice of simply “being with,” it can help us bring awareness and the gift of being present into everyday, ordinary moments. Meditation has helped me show up for the day-to-day times when what I’m being asked to do is to be present. It’s helped me learn to trust that just being witness to what is unfolding is, in and unto itself, a practice.

In that way, meditation shows up in my life every day. It’s never perfect, always a work in progress, but I know I’m better for it. Below are three pieces that speak to bringing the mind of meditation and mindfulness into our daily lives. May they be of benefit.

—Beth Wallace, Associate Publisher, Finance & Operations, Lion’s Roar

Are There Other Ways to Practice Meditation?

You can bring the mind of meditation to any experience. Konda Mason explains how.

What happens with Vipassana meditation is oftentimes the opposite of peacefulness. The mind can become so busy in the so-called “stillness” that we feel we are doing it all wrong and would rather read about the dharma than actually meditate! If you hang in there, though, this busy mind can become the doorway to experience insight, which is what the word Vipassana actually means. Over time, as you bring your awareness first to the breath, followed by the body, feelings, and thoughts, insight into the present moment, absent of preference or judgment, begins to emerge in mini-increments.

The Miracle of Daily Mindfulness

When we practice mindfulness in our daily lives, says Thich Nhat Hanh, we open to the wonders of life and allow the world to heal and nourish us.

When we live mindfully, we try to live in such a way that we can generate the energies of mindfulness, concentration, and insight throughout the day. These are the energies that bring us happiness and the clarity that we call right view. When we have right view, we’re able to practice right thinking. Right thinking is based on right view; it’s thinking that’s characterized by nondiscrimination and nonduality. According to right view, there can be no happiness without suffering. Our thinking can make us suffer, but it can also make us free. We need right thinking to help us stop our suffering.

How to Drive Mindfully

Driving doesn’t have to be stressful. Roberval Oliveira offers mindfulness tips for cruise control, road rage, and more.

There are parallels between pushing away discomfort in meditation and doing the same while driving. If there’s a real need to move, go ahead and move to the other lane. But can you leave extra space between you and the car in front of you? That way, as speed fluctuates, you don’t have to brake often. If another driver moves into that large space, you can try slowing down to create more space. If not, mindfully notice how it feels in the body to tailgate and to keep braking as you drive close behind another car. Can you bring awareness to your body and notice physical discomfort? Can you relax and breathe in those uncomfortable areas?

JR East (East Japan Railway Company) melayani wilayah Jepang bagian timur, terutama kawasan Kantō dan Tōhoku, serta beberapa daerah di wilayah Koshinetsu. Jaringannya mencakup kota-kota besar, pegunungan, hingga pesisir.

Rincian wilayah layanan utamanya meliputi:

Wilayah Kantō: Termasuk Tokyo Raya, Kanagawa (Yokohama), Chiba, Saitama, Ibaraki, Tochigi, dan Gunma.
Wilayah Tōhoku: Meliputi perfektur Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi (Sendai), Akita, Yamagata, dan Fukushima.
Wilayah Koshinetsu & Sekitarnya: Sebagian jalur juga melayani area Nagano, Niigata, Yamanashi, hingga Shizuoka.
Jalur Shinkansen Utara: Mengoperasikan seluruh rute Shinkansen yang berangkat dari Tokyo ke arah utara, seperti Tōhoku Shinkansen, Jōetsu Shinkansen (termasuk GALA Yuzawa), Hokuriku Shinkansen (hingga Nagano), Yamagata Shinkansen, dan Akita Shinkansen.

Secara mandiri, wilayah pulau Hokkaido sebenarnya dilayani oleh perusahaan terpisah, yaitu JR Hokkaido. Namun, JR East bekerja sama secara resmi dengan JR Hokkaido untuk menghubungkan wilayah Jepang Timur langsung ke Hokkaido menggunakan Hokkaido Shinkansen.

Kerja sama ini melahirkan dua tiket terusan (rail pass) khusus yang sangat menguntungkan bagi wisatawan asing:

1. JR East-South Hokkaido Rail Pass

Cakupan Wilayah: Menghubungkan Tokyo (Kantō), wilayah Tōhoku, hingga wilayah selatan Hokkaido seperti Hakodate, Noboribetsu, Sapporo, dan Otaru.
Sangat Cocok Untuk: Anda yang ingin memulai perjalanan darat naik Shinkansen langsung dari Tokyo atau bandara (Haneda/Narita) menuju ke Sapporo.
Masa Berlaku: 6 hari berturut-turut.

2. JR Tohoku-South Hokkaido Rail Pass

Cakupan Wilayah: Hanya mencakup wilayah Tōhoku (Jepang Utara) dan wilayah selatan Hokkaido (Hakodate, Sapporo, Otaru). Tidak mencakup area Tokyo.
Sangat Cocok Untuk: Anda yang mendarat langsung di bandara wilayah utara (seperti Bandara Sendai atau Bandara Shin-Chitose Sapporo) dan ingin fokus menjelajahi sisi utara saja.
Masa Berlaku: 6 hari berturut-turut.

Kedua tiket terusan di atas sudah mencakup perjalanan menggunakan kereta cepat Hokkaido Shinkansen melewati terowongan bawah laut Seikan untuk menyeberang ke pulau Hokkaido.

Jubel

Tuesday, June 9, 2026