The Ethics of Meditation: Non-Possessiveness

“Behind violence, dishonesty, stealing & indulgence lies one clear objective: gaining greater control over the objects of our desire and eliminating those with the potential to stand in our way. This phenomenon can be described in one word: possessiveness. We want to have enough to fulfill our desires and our desire knows no limit.” - Pandit Rajmani Tigunait

The final teaching in our ethics series is the tenet of non-possessiveness - also referred to as non-attachment or non-clinging in many teachings. This tenet is all about uncovering our desires so that our desires don’t become obsessions and our obsessions don’t possess us. 

Desires usually fall into one of 3 categories:

• Family
• Material wealth
• Power & fame 

Left unchecked, our desires keep us stuck. We can’t see other options, we can’t try something new, and we can’t enjoy life because we are too busy obsessing over what we can’t have or didn’t get. And these obsessions lead us to violate the previous ethical teachings of violence, truthfulness, non-stealing and non-excess.  

Within our meditation practice, we can see our obsessive thoughts and desires, and we learn to cultivate the opposite thoughts. We name what we already have, what we love or enjoy. We say thank you. In short, the antidote to possessiveness is gratitude. 

Join me for today’s final installment of the Ethics of Meditation - we will discuss non-possessiveness and share in a 20-minute guided meditation. 

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