Last week I started teaching again and it was a a wonderful experience.
The lady who coordinates the classes in the school told me to 'prepare... they will probably be a bit unsettled'. Instead they behaved like angels.
The program we had agreed for this term was to work on awareness of the senses, so I had planed to but some herbs in the supermarket before going to school. As it happens I was stuck at work until last minute. When I arrived to school check my watch... no time. With an uncharacteristic quick thinking I went to the school's canteen and asked for an orange that they did not have, an apple (neither)... I finally got a vegemite sandwich and a mandarine.
We first took refuge in the three jewels (Buddham Saranam Gachami, Dhammam Saranam Gachami and Sangham Saranam Gachami).
I explained why I like to do it in Pali, the language of Buddha. People has been doing it for 2500 years. Every time they do, people are putting a bit of effort into something. Millions of people do it every day, and have been doing it for centuries! how much effort has gone into this.
If we compare it with some of the 7 wonders of the world, with the Great Wall of China, buildings that took thousands of people decades to build.... how much more have we built with the Buddhist tradition. The fact that we can not see it, does not mean is not there. The effort goes into changing ourselves, not the nature outside, and interestingly enough this is more difficult. The kids were very interested with this idea.
We sat in our normal position' the legs crossed, the back straight, right hand over left hand'
And then did a bit of 'breath in.. breath out'. I asked them to keep their eyes closed until all had a chance to smell the objects hidden in my cloth bag. 'try to feel where you 'feel' the smell, i it in the tip of your nose or deep inside. Is it in your stomach? your mind?'
I walked around and let them get a sniff of the orange.
Most had an idea of what it was, but some confused it with other fruits.
We discussed what they felt? some actually wanted to eat it, and their 'mouth watered' so we discussed the response patterns we have. We smell some things and get hungry...
We then got a smell of the vegemite sandwich. Obviously most of them expressed their feelings loudly 'stink', 'o no!', 'disgusting', but very few recognized what it was.
We then discussed how some scents we feel attracted to and some we reject. How we do this to recognize things that can be harmful or things that can bring nutrition.
The important thing is not to recognize the object, the stimulus, it is to recognize what it triggers in our mind. I believe that when we learn to do this we would have fewer cases of eating disorders, marketing would have a much lower impact on us. We would be much wiser.
At the end of the session, as a joke I ate the vegemite sandwich (that I like), and they all laughed. Regrettably I was not mindful enough to notice that I would need it for the second class with the older kids. The exercise with them was similar but just discussing the 'attractive' fruit.
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