The Business of Is-nessThe Earth is a magical place. In this sense, nothing has changed. And yet so much has changed… Or is it the outer rim of the Earth, the World we created, that has changed? What if, just for a few moments in time, we remember who we are and what we are capable of. How I remember — first I STOP being automatic in my habitual doing and thinking; that way, I create space to witness... Long ago, in a rural small town in Germany, my great-grandmother taught my grandmother, who taught my mother, who passed on to me, some simple natural ways of living in Happiness and Joy. It starts with the morning routine, with the simple pleasure of waking. We all are coming back to our senses through our ears being receptive to sound — hearing comes in first, then we become aware of it, so thinking happens after. Our sensing has cellular memory from the day we were born — when our eyes were blind to the outside world and we were passively receiving, no sense of separation yet. Every night, we return to that state and wake up out of that state. NOW — what if I have left my phone in my living room, so I am not habitually grabbing that phone next to my bed! AHHHH yes — the sweet moment of the body waking up, when I actually have space for mindless witnessing. But wait — my mind wants to grab me and take me on that journey of business! Meanwhile, witnessing wants me on board, just watching thoughts like clouds in my coffee melting. I am the boss of this moment, am I not? The moment is mine. Distancing myself from the business — the constant jabber in my mind — the plan of the day and the list of tasks will not get my attention quite yet. And guess what? It feels good to let myself have the moment of truly waking up to my body “holding me.” I feel back in the Geborgenheit — my sense of belonging — and all I have to DO is BE. “Of course,” I hear my grandmother say. “Where else are you but wherever you are?” It feels like my body is shifting into first gear. And how do I feel, now that this mental jabber is not so loud? “Gefühlsdusselei,” I hear my grandmother say. “There are more important tasks to be tackled.” Gefühlsdusselei: mindless indulging in your feelings. She learned that word from my great-grandmother, who was after all a single parent back then and ran her own business. She took the early morning train to the Münsterland, a farmer’s paradise then and today, to fetch fresh produce, chickens and cheese, butter and wine, and deliver it by late morning to restaurants and private households in the upper part of town. She used to sing often: “I am my own business, I am dependent on me.” Like a mantra, it is still resonating in my ears. "This is a new morning, not like any other morning. Why? Because every morning is different, is it not?” she would say. “The dew is on the fields, the air cold and fresh... I do my part, and therefore everyone has enough to eat today, including us.” “Is-ness is my business,” she claimed. Ahhhh. 60 seconds have passed, and now I’m back in this reality. Do I need to catch my breath — oh wait I am “being breathed” — or am I really catching it? I’d better get going. Get dressed, do the morning routine. Stepping out, the wind starts dancing with my hair. It feels like a silky glove on my arms and face. I remember — I am catching my moment of being exactly where I am in my body, being breathed and doing what I do in it. My whole day already feels different. I feel different in it. I am in my body — aware and alert. My mind — working, thinking, planning, receiving, visualizing. My heart — joyful, happy to be alive. “Is-ness is my business.” That truth still works through me, so it must be in you as well... Let us remember throughout the day. I am forever grateful to my great-grandmother, Martha; my grandmother, Else; my mother, Ingrid, and to all the Mothers and Fathers of this Earth and their children. For more information, go within… ;) With Love Always, Satyam
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