It is
virtually impossible, and senseless anyway, to commit yourself to a daily
meditation practice without some view of why you are doing it, what its value
might be in your life, a sense of why this might be your way and not just
another tilting at imaginary windmills.
In traditional societies, this vision
was supplied and continually reinforced by the culture. If you were a Buddhist,
you might practice because the whole culture valued meditation as the path to
clarity, compassion, and Buddhahood, a path of wisdom leading to the
eradication of suffering.
But in the Western cultural mainstream, you will find
precious little support for choosing such a personal path of discipline and
constancy, especially such an unusual one involving effort but non-doing,
energy but no tangible “product.” What is more, any superficial or romantic
notions we might harbor of becoming a better person—more calm or more clear or
more compassionate—don’t endure for long when we face the turbulence of our
lives, our minds and bodies, or even the prospect of getting up early in the
morning when it is cold and dark to sit by yourself and be in the present
moment.
It’s too easily put off or seen as trivial or of secondary importance,
so it can always wait while you catch a little more sleep or at least stay warm
in bed.
--Jon Kabbat-Zinn, Wherever You Go, There You Are
