That way our practice has to be complete. And it doesn’t matter how much time you have, it is very important before you start your practice to just sit down for at least half a minute and sit quietly. If one minute, two minutes, five minutes, then wonderful, but at least for half a minute and then you are ready, you are calm. Then you say refuge and bodhichitta and then you do the actual practice. Then when you finish your practice – after your dedication – then again, just sit for as long as possible. If you are very busy with things waiting or the phone is ringing or something, then half a minute. Otherwise it becomes like you are obliged – you are obliged to do this practice, now I’m finished, okay, I’ll get up. It’s like an obligation, obliged. I hope that makes sense.
My understanding of obliged is that you are not doing it from your heart, but somehow you have to do it because it is your duty or something, you have to do it because you say you will do it. But it should not be like that. It should be from your heart, you want to do it and you are happy to do it, therefore you do it completely. One example is that in our everyday behavior, it is very important to be mindful, it is very important to be thoughtful, it is very important to be polite, and it is very important to be nice. Don’t behave like a monkey caught from a forest and put in a house. Everything has its own way of doing things. For example, you start a conversation nicely, and you end a conversation nicely.
Tai Situ Rinpoche
from the book Shangpa Kagyu Teachings
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