08/06/2026
Daily Life and Any Kind of Practice - Remain Present and Relaxed
The Buddha wanted us to understand that life itself is a big dream.
Thus, to do everything in our power does not mean that there is only one option: to sit somewhere and in some special position and meditate. Instead, it is extremely important to know how to relax. Then you can practice in any life situation; regardless of location, posture and environment.
Many people, when they practice only accumulate more tension in themselves. And instead of showing full realization at the end of the practice and in fact, they demonstrate some kind of nervous illness in the end or at least overexcitation.
Some people write me emails saying, "Please give me some advice. When I do a thun (session of practice), I get very nervous and agitated afterwards." Apparently, they think that practice makes them nervous and excited. The practices and methods itself cannot cause these problems of nervousness and irritability for anything and everything, for no reason. Practices and methods serve to overcome any tensions, not the other way around.
It's just that excessive concentration of effort and excessive diligence without proper relaxation create such problems. The problem here is the person himself! Which makes the practice wrong!
Instead of doing the practice in a relaxed way and untying with it in the presence they strain too much, concentrating on visualization, and thus, they create a new problem for themselves with such tension. So, it is important for all of us to know this, and to practice correctly while relaxing.
Some Teachers say that relaxation is not a practice, “It's a waste of precious time.” And this is essentially very correct and true, unless, of course, you are in the presence of the moment of relaxation. There is nothing good about relaxing with distractions!
It is necessary to be able to relax with presence and awareness. This is especially important when you practice – any kind of practice - and even in everyday life. If there are very complex visualizations, even then it is important and necessary to learn how to perform them, relax, practice without straining. Otherwise, those practices won't be of any real use to us, and it's even worse if they become a means of increasing our stress!
Chögyal Namkhai Norbu
