Along our life, we go through an infinity of changes. But are you aware of the Stillness that lies within us?
The never ending story
Just like you, I was first a baby, then a kid, then a teenager, then a young adult, and later an adult. I’ll have to wait a bit but I hope to become an experienced adult, or a very experienced kid later. I was first a pupil, then a student, then an osteopath, and I recently decided to write and teach meditation online.
Other labels complete my story. Indeed, I am a son, a brother, a cousin, a friend, a colleague, a nephew and many other things. Some of those labels were applied on me from birth, others appeared later on.
I practiced or have been practicing judo, tennis, basketball, table tennis, golf, yoga. I have lived in France, then in Malaysia, I am currently living in Ireland and have been to several different countries around the world.
My body used to be tiny when I was a baby, and not that I am now a giant, but I am still a bit taller than I used to be. Some months I gain a bit of weight, and sometimes I lose a bit of weight. Technically, my body is always renewing itself so by the end of the article at least a part of it will be different. Sometimes I am sick, sometimes I am fine. Sometimes I am tired, sometimes I feel full of energy. It is a never ending dance. Things appear, things disappear, just like thoughts, tensions or emotions. But, what will you find if you turn around, look at what you see?
The stillness that lies within us
And still, a part of yourself was always there. A part that is nowhere to be found. Not in your head, not in your heart, not in your knee. Something that has been observing the world since the beginning. A very still witness of your universe.
This Stillness has no age. It is not French, Malaysian or Irish. It is not old or young. Nor is it linked to your role as a son, as a cousin or as a friend.
It was present when you were a baby, present when you were fifteen. That Stillness is present in health and in disease, in pain, in happiness. It is present when you start your yoga, when you light up a cigarette or when you have a drink. And being grounded, centered and aligned isn’t a requirement to operate from it. Any volition will take you away from it. But still, it is there, your silent partner.
Meditation is a way to first let it grow in us, to realise that this Stillness lies within us. And maybe, one day, to realise that we lie in it. By doing so, the intensity of life changes, without having to do more. This silence spreads and becomes a palpable texture, a presence from where you can operate.
You can do your yoga from there, meet your patients, or your partner from that Stillness. And your can meet anger, joy, sadness, success, tensions, pain, sickness or thoughts from that Stillness too.
And remember it lies within people too
More importantly, you can address that Silence that lies in everybody. You can help it grow, you can hold space for people. Once you have found it for yourself, you can help others to find it for themselves. And this makes a big difference. It might speak very softly to them, too softly as they do not know how to listen. Helping people to listen is what I do as I know it lies there, in them, beyond there age or their culture, their religion or their political ideas.
Whoever you are, I hope you know how to listen and that you are aware of the Stillness that lies within each of us. Take care.
About Jules Rampal
Meditation teacher and osteopathI am an online meditation teacher and an osteopath currently working in Gordes, France. My courses are for people who want to learn meditation with guided sessions, and for therapists who want to delve into the way they feel and the knowledge they can gather for their clients.
Book an osteopathic session here
Learn more about me here
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