Now we’re moving into the realm of taste and our meditation will be around that. You may want to have some coffee or a square of chocolate, something to explicitly excite the tongue. On the other hand, it’s also not necessary.
Maybe we’ll start with just the taste in our mouth. We bring our attention to the tongue and the taste. Maybe you feel the sides of your tongue or a flavor in your mouth. Notice how the mind might want to label it as pleasant or unpleasant or “That’s coffee” or whatever taste you identify. Noticing those thoughts in the light of day, welcome, unrepressed, unfixated, we return our attention to the kind bodhisattva of the tongue, the realm of taste. How does it feel when we rest in it? Resting right within the sense?
We’re increasing our sensitivity to the senses. With the subtler flavors, smells or sights, well, sight is so obvious, and sound is fairly present but can disappear at times a bit; maybe you hear something all the time, it depends on the environment, maybe you have an inner sound you hear. It’s amazing how some of us can think sounds. Many people can. When we move to smells there is this quality of maybe there is not a lot of stimulus but then again as we lower our threshold of what is important to even more subtle levels of “Well, maybe I can include more. Oh! There is something there!” Same thing with taste.
Then of course, you can move it over the top, placing something in your mouth or have a sip of something. Noticing the first taste, the middle taste, and then the after taste. Then how something that has some texture brings in touch with the tongue, we’re still focusing on taste, but they’re always together, as you can see, the tongue having touch to it as well. There is something unique about taste, even if it is related as a bridge between smell and body.
So remembering our daily practice, the 5/5/5, flashing on the senses. At a meal it’s a wonderful time to practice this. You don’t even have to do anything different, you can continue with your meal and just be fully present with the different senses. You could take a walk in nature or outside and connect with the five senses. You can do it in front of your computer screen. It’s really always available. Please remember to engage in that discipline. It does bring us more familiarity with the power, beauty and connective compassion and wisdom of the senses.
This is part of a whole series! Have a look…
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