The Guesthouse by Rumi This being human is a guesthouse.
Every morning a new arrival,
A joy,
A depression,
A meanness.
Some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all,
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture,
Still treat each guest honourably.
He may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thought,
The shame,
The malice,
Meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
Because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.
Rumi's famous poem The Guesthouse invites us to be with our experience just as it is.
It describes and acknowledges the transient nature of our experience and how mental events come and go.
It advocates the power in accepting things as they are,
As well as the possibilities that may come from opening to our experience exactly as it is.
This poem is included in the eight-week Mindfulness for Life course,
And when we teach it,
It's with the recognition that you may not be able to welcome all guests who arrive on your porch all of the time.
It's the gradual process of becoming a welcoming host to all that can come up in our experience.
We recommend using the safety chain before deciding to open the door fully,
As well as knowing perhaps when not to open the door at all.
We know that not all guesthouses are in a position to welcome all guests all of the time.
So with this cautionary guidance in mind,
I thought I might introduce a three-step breathing space and weave in the lines from this famous poem.
So inviting you now to adopt a position that's going to feel comfortable for you.
Feet on the floor,
Body in the chair.
Just arriving,
Coming home to your experience exactly as it is.
Sitting in a way that feels both upright but full of ease.
And allowing the eyes to close or lowering the gaze.
And as you come home to your experience,
Just becoming aware of whatever's here.
Noticing thoughts,
Emotions and moods,
Sensations in the body.
Maybe noticing any familiar patterns in your thinking.
Ruminating about the past,
Fantasizing about the future.
Just knowing there's no need to change anything,
No need to push anything away.
Knowing that this being human is a guesthouse and every morning is a new arrival.
Just returning to notice what thoughts are here,
What feelings are here.
And just as guests arrive at the guesthouse,
You might notice a joy,
A depression,
A meanness.
Maybe some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Just simply acknowledging these guests on your porch,
Allowing them to enter.
Maybe greeting them as best as you can.
And knowing that with some guests,
You may be cautious before you open the door.
And you have a choice as to which guests you fully entertain and the extent to which you entertain them.
A joy,
A depression,
A meanness.
Some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Just acknowledging what has arrived.
Maybe welcoming and entertaining them all,
Allowing whatever is here to be here.
And if the mind wanders,
Just acknowledging where it's gone and ever so gently bringing it back to these guests in your guesthouse.
As much as you're able to,
Welcoming and entertaining them all.
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows,
Still treating each guest honorably.
And inviting you now to identify in the body a steadying and grounding angle point.
So maybe the feet,
Any sensations in the feet.
Maybe the seat where it makes contact with the chair.
Maybe the hands and the range of sensations that can be found at the fingers.
Or perhaps the breath.
Whichever anchor you've decided on,
Just tuning in,
Noticing all the details of what's going on here.
Just resting your awareness in the tangible reality of these sensations.
Maybe noticing this alongside the breath if that's helpful.
Maybe aware of some of your guests as you do this.
Just as much as you're able to,
Just focusing your attention on sensations in your anchor point just as they arise and they pass away.
Maybe some of them are pleasant,
Some are unpleasant.
Just treating each guest honorably.
And when you're ready now,
Inviting your awareness to expand to take in the entirety of this body.
Maybe noticing the space around the body.
Maybe noticing a slight opening in the chest.
Noticing all and any sensations from the top of the head right down to the tips of the toes.
And as we bring this short practice to a close,
Just inviting you to sense into the possibility of meeting whatever's here with a little more space and a little more kindness.
Retaking a couple of deep breaths.
Feeling free to bring some movement back into the body now as we bring this short practice to a close.
