Losar, the traditional start of the new lunar year for buddhists in the Tibetan tradition, offers us an opportunity for connecting with our heart of appreciation for our teachers, for the teachings, and for the support of our dharma community. Expressing that appreciation through generous actions can be a potent spiritual practice and part of our Path of Mindful Activity as we welcome the Year of the Water Rabbit.
Appreciation requires mindfulness–focusing our attention on how rich we are in terms of the dharma. Abundance can sometimes mean we start not noticing all we have, taking it for granted. One traditional practice when preparing for Losar is cleaning the shrine room at one’s local dharma center. Such practice brings us into close contact with the physical space that’s dedicated to connecting us with the “three jewels” of Buddha, dharma, and sangha.
Because cleaning is a physical activity, it’s a chance for us to embody our gratitude and put our bodies to use in a generous way. Because cleaning can sometimes involve tasks we don’t especially enjoy or even dislike, it’s a chance for us to practice letting go of attachment and aversion and just throw ourselves into addressing what’s needed. If we approach Losar cleaning of our Center with clear intention and engage in it mindfully, bringing our focus back to our intention and to the activity itself again and again, it can truly be a form of meditation in action. When approached not as a mundane chore, but as a practice of mindful, joyful effort, helping to clean our Center can be an opportunity to clarify obscurations and connect with our mind’s true nature.
For those of us who live far from our local Center or face other obstacles to being part of cleaning practice there and those who are connected with NB Akasha (which, as a virtual Center, is always clean!), caring for the 3 Jewels can take other forms. Cleaning one’s personal shrine area can be approached in a similar way. Reaching out to local Center leadership to offer our time and skills–on whatever basis is workable–is another excellent way of “paying forward” any sense of gratitude we feel for our connection with the dharma and our lineage. We are also encouraged to extend the activity of making a fresh, clean start to our homes and workplaces, so that these containers for so many of our activities can shine as well.
