The following is a collection of resources I’ve found useful in the journey of understanding my mind.
Books
Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind (PDF) (YouTube)
“If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything, it is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few.“
― Shunryū Suzuki
Who Am I? (PDF)
Happiness is the very nature of the Self; happiness and the Self are not different. There is no happiness in any object of the world. We imagine through our ignorance that we derive happiness from objects. When the mind goes out, it experiences misery. In truth, when its desires are fulfilled, it returns to its own place and enjoys the happiness that is the Self. Similarly, in the states of sleep, samadhi and fainting, and when the object desired is obtained or the object disliked is removed, the mind becomes inward-turned, and enjoys pure Self-Happiness.
―Sri Ramana Maharshi
I Am That (PDF)
“Wisdom is knowing I am nothing,
Love is knowing I am everything,
and between the two my life moves.”
― Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 2, Verse 47
karmaṇy-evādhikāras te mā phaleṣhu kadāchana
mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇiYou have a right to perform your prescribed duties, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, nor be attached to inaction.
Videos
“You are something the whole universe is doing in the same way that a wave is something that the whole ocean is doing.
The real you is not a puppet which life pushes around.
The real, deep down you is the whole universe.”―Alan Watts
The Story of the Chinese Farmer – Alan Watts
Stories
The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas – Ursula K. Le Guin (PDF)
Prayers
The Heart Sutra (Translation)
“This Body itself is Emptiness and Emptiness itself is this Body.
This Body is not other than Emptiness and Emptiness is not other than this Body.
The same is true of Feelings, Perceptions, Mental Formations, and Consciousness.”― Translation by Thich Nhat Hanh
Nirvana Shatakam (Lyrics PDF)
Meditation
Knowing The Mind – Sam Harris (Audio)
Waking Up – Sam Harris (Meditation App)
MBSR Meditation Instructions by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Food & Exercise
How Foods May Affect Our Sleep – NYTimes
Researchers have found that eating a diet that is high in sugar, saturated fat and processed carbohydrates can disrupt your sleep, while eating more plants, fiber and foods rich in unsaturated fat… seems to have the opposite effect, helping to promote sound sleep.
Bicycling Can Sharpen Your Thinking
“Study after study has shown that regular physical activity helps prevent or relieve stress, anxiety and depression. One study focused on people with depression that was being treated with antidepressants. After pedaling a stationary bike for just 15 minutes, their level of cortisol, a stress hormone, declined.
Cycling outdoors in natural surroundings only magnifies these benefits. That’s because spending time in nature can, in itself, reduce stress and decrease symptoms of depression and anxiety.”