Getting My Karma Out of the Garage

I recently finished a book called "A Path With Heart", which had been highly recommended from various Buddhist sources, and it absolutely lived up to the recommendations.

One of the more immediately useful ideas in it is the concept of getting away from compartmentalization. That is, the idea that some activities and places are spiritual and others are not. Theoretically, baking cookies or fixing your car can be spiritual activities if you approach them the right way. It wasn't the first time I've come across this idea, but it was the first time I've seen it discussed this extensively or seen this many examples of it in practice.

And so it was that I took that concept to work with me last week and tried to put it into practice, with my job as a spiritual activity. I really needed something to help me, since I'd gotten behind schedule due to being out sick for a couple of days the prior week. The main thing was that when the stress was getting to me, I'd busy out my phone, then pause and try to focus back into my meditative state from that morning so I could approach my work again with a spiritual focus and attitude. If I couldn't get calm enough to be able to focus on my own heartbeat and breath, I wasn't ready to take calls again just yet, no matter how much I had to do or what deadlines I was facing. I don't think it ever took more than two minutes for me to regain my focus, and I didn't lose my temper to any greater extent than the occasional grumble under my breath. Looks like a winning technique, but I won't know for sure until I try it with the pressure really cranked up.

The other main idea I put into practice was the concept of obstacle as teacher, rather than something that simply needed to be overcome. Again, not a new idea, just something to apply diffferently. By focusing on the lesson first, then on overcoming the obstacle, I seemed to be better able to get things done without frustration distracting me.

"A Path with Heart" and "Zen Wrapped in Karma Dipped in Chocolate" are very different books that helped me in the same way, which was by providing multiple applied examples of Buddhist concepts. Useful stuff!