There’s a passage in the Metta Sutra that caught my attention this morning, “Standing or walking, sitting or lying down, in each moment may we remain mindful of this heart and this way of living that is the best in all the world.
May this sublime abiding, holding no fixed views, obtain pure hearted clarity of vision and freedom
from sensual desires. In this state one is free from the cycle of rebirth and death.”
From chant-book.pdf
It hit me that here they’re saying that in being mindful, “one is free from the cycle of rebirth and death.” But to be free from the cycle of rebirth and death, one needs to be somewhat dead, right? Being mindful frees you from the cycle of rebirth and death? Hmmm… Being mindful means being aware and also means living in the moment–not dwelling in the past, and worrying about the future. Hmmm… When you dwell in the past, you’re reliving the past. Over and over and over again. Okay, this is starting to fit. When you worry about the future, or when you are attached to the future, you live the future over and over again. You attach to it in the now, and then you live it, often with disappointing results. Over and over and over again. That fits too. So you can break free from the cycle of rebirth and death (Samsara) by living in the moment. Wow! Live the moment once, and live it to the fullest, and then let it go. That sounds like breaking from a cycle.
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