A
helpful acronym for very earthy mindfulness work is RAIN. It’s useful both as a
challenging version of formal meditation and an on-the-hoof practice whenever
we’re strongly hooked, stuck, frustrated, angry, melancholy, anxious, envious,
puffed-up, etc., etc.
RAIN
stands for: Recognition, Acceptance, Investigation, and Non-Identification.
R We can practice RECOGNIZING whenever
we’re hooked. The word recognize means ‘to indentify
something from having encountered it before.’ It’s a great word for the way we learn
to work with unhelpful, habitual responses to life. It reminds us we have the
capacity to develop transforming habits of mindfulness right in the many places
where we’re working with unhelpful habits of our minds.
A We can
practice ACCEPTING what’s going on with us every time we remember to. We learn
to look our own experience in the face. This practice is the opposite of
denial. Accepting means we do our best to be aware of exactly what’s happening
without judging ourselves. ACCEPTANCE is more than gritting our teeth and
bearing the unbearable. It suggests roominess, generosity, kindness, a
welcoming spirit. Inhaling is a good a metaphor—the diaphragm making room for
what keeps us alive.
I We
practice INVESTIGATING the ‘stuff’ we’re noticing and welcoming. Are there
bodily sensations? Where in the body do we sense it? Is it a pain? A numbness?
More like cold or heat? Tightness? What about feelings? Are they pleasant (or
not)? Does this particular experience come with sadness, happiness, fear,
frustration, etc.? What exactly do those feelings feel like? Where in the body
are they lodged? (Don’t forgot ACCEPTANCE here—with every feeling we notice we
do our very best to hold it with kind attention.) And what about memories—do
memories come up? What narratives surface with them? Is a story being told?
What’s it about? Who seems to be telling it? Who’s listening? Is it possible to
listen objectively—and kindly?
N We
practice NON-IDENTIFICATION. All spiritual traditions recommend distinguishing
between small self and big self, false self and true self, non-self and
more-than-self, dying to self in order to be fully alive. NOT IDENTIFYING with
our narratives, not mistaking the stories we tell about ourselves for who we
truly are is a powerful way of embodying the wisdom of these traditions. DON’T
INDENTIFY may sound like a command, but it’s better seen as wise, helpful,
healthy practice. We DON’T CONFUSE the feelings, thoughts, memories, moods,
stories or predictions about ourselves for who we most truly are. RAIN work often exposes us to the very sticky
feelings and stories we do identify and suffer with, but all the while, as we
slowly grow in practical skill and gracious discernment, we’re seeing for ourselves
the truer self—and the more-than-self knows and rejoices in the difference.
For
a better understanding of RAIN work, read Jack Kornfield’s, The Wise Heart, p. 101 ff
