I recently got a new pair of glasses, which showed me, quite literally, that I’d not been seeing reality clearly.  This realization came as a bit of a shocker as I soon began to see with more clarity all that I had been missing.

Getting these new glasses and beginning to see the world around me with increased precision reminded me of the five blockages (or hindrances) that the Buddha spoke of, which get in the way of us humans seeing reality clearly. 

According to Buddhist tradition, the five hindrances are the mental factors that hinder progress in meditation and in our daily lives. They include: kamacchanda (sensory desire); vyapada (ill will); thina-middha (sloth and torpor); uddhacca-kukkucca (restlessness and remorse); and vicikiccha (doubt).

The Buddha used the metaphor of water as an example for explaining clarity of mind. He also offered other conditions that water can take on to demonstrate just how easy it is to get caught in distortions and tangled up in ways of “seeing” that, essentially, leave us blind or, at the very least, cloudy, irritated and feeling and acting unpleasantly.

Water As Metaphor For Emotion  

I’ve been thinking a lot about water lately, and wrote about it in my last blog, Be Like Water: Increase Awareness and Cultivate a Fluidity of Being. That blog focused on the necessity of water to sustain life, its ability to purify and cleanse and its amazing versatility, which can serve as a powerful metaphor to remain adaptable and in the flow. However, water can also show us, again given its versatility, what can happen when our lenses, so to speak, are not clear. 

For instance, when we become restless and impatient, as us humans often do, we may find the world annoying and disappointing. The Buddha likened this mind state to a bowl of water, “stirred by the wind, rippling, swirling, churned into wavelets.”  In this condition, “a man with good sight … could not see reality as it really is.”  (Anguttara 5.193).

When we feel tired or unmotivated, it can be difficult to muster enough energy to engage in the world around us.  Our mind is like a bowl of water, “covered over with water plants and algae.”  Again, in this state, we are unable to see reality as it really is.

When we are filled with cravings and desire, our minds are like a bowl of water, “mixed with lac, turmeric, blue or crimson dye.”  We cannot see the clarity of the world around us when we are steeped in the craving state of desire. 

When we are angry, filled with greed or hatred, our mind is like a bowl of water, “being heated over a fire, bubbling and boiling.”  We become overheated and overcome by strong emotions and unpleasant thoughts. In this state, we surely can’t see reality for what it is. 

Finally, when we are filled with self-doubt and low self-worth, our mind is like a bowl of water that is “turbid, unsettled, muddy, and placed in the dark.” In this downtrodden state, it is difficult, and perhaps at times impossible, for us to see clearly the light within. 

A mind filled with turmoil leads to a heart that is suffering. And, a heart that is suffering leads to actions that are unskilled, unhealthy and unsettled. In any of these states, it becomes increasingly difficult to respond to those around us with compassion. And, we are also likely to struggle with responding to our own emotional state with self-compassion, clarity and kindness.

A Meditation For Clarity And Compassion 

In times when the mind is unclear, our meditation practice is there to help us, especially a meditation for clarity and compassion. When feeling clouded, uncertain and unkind, we can turn to compassion practices and make active choices to restore the water within us to its inherent sparkling clarity.  Like jumping into a clear lake to become refreshed, seeing reality as it really is can support us in making bold and courageous choices, as well as fostering a greater sense of inner peace and happiness. 

Here is a simple meditation for clarity and compassion practice that you can do anytime that you’re looking to see things with more clarity and fill your heart with compassion and kindness.

Get into a comfortable position and close your eyes. 

Notice your breath and feel it move in and through your body. Allow yourself to feel and settle into its gentle rhythm. 

Place your hands over your heart, if that feels comfortable for you, as a physical reminder through touch to call upon loving awareness. 

As you focus on loving awareness and the energy of kindness, visualize love and compassion flowing into every organ, every pore and every cell of your body, as if it were water. 

As you open to the awareness, gently ask for the ability to see with clarity and feel with compassion. 

Feel yourself being held and safe upon the Earth beneath you and the water within you. 

Know that this loving awareness that holds, soothes, strengthens and clears is tenderly, gently surrounding you inside and out.

Let that love, kindness and clarity wash upon you… 

Stay in this state of clarity, compassion, calmness and flow for as long as you feel called to. 

Expand Your Meditation, Healing And Growth Practices 

If you’re interested in learning meditation or deepening your meditation practice, I facilitate a biweekly, online, donation-based meditation group on Monday evenings. Learn more and register here. I also offer mindfulness meditation recordings, which are designed to help you grow your inner world, which are free for download on my website. 

If you’re interested in deeper, one-on-one work and are seeking psychotherapy that incorporates mindfulness and meditation philosophies and practices to call upon your inner wisdom and feel more connected, peaceful and self-aware, I offer mindfulness-based therapy. Passionate about weaving meditation, mindfulness and spirituality (whatever that looks and feels like for you) into therapy, as well as into my own life, this is the most fulfilling and impactful work I feel that we, as humans, can do. 

When we’re able to reduce or release suffering, we get to move through life with greater presence and ease, cultivate an increased capacity for compassion, and foster a deeper state of relaxation and connectedness—all which allow us to show up and live as our best and most contented and connected selves. We get to be like that clean, clear water, flowing freely, powerfully, and with a natural ease. 

Blessings on your journey, 
Karen