Do You Act from Lack or from Fullness?

"I have periods when I meditate regularly, then drift into distraction. Is it okay for that to happen? Should I trust the cycle will come round again, or am I wasting time with bad habits? Rupert says: ‘If you notice yourself drifting off, pause. Try to get in touch with the feeling that’s initiating your activity – before you either sit on your cushion or engage in whatever you fear may be an escape. There are two essential possibilities. Is your action initiated by a sense of lack, or does it come from the fullness of yourself? Do you feel full and want to express it – creativity, sharing? Or is there a sense of lack so uncomfortable you want to avoid it? We avoid it by obvious ways – eating, entertainment – and subtler ways: watching spiritual YouTube clips, even formal meditation can be a virtuous way of avoiding the unbearable sense of lack. Pascal said all humanity’s problems arise because a person cannot sit alone in a room for five minutes without doing anything. If they do, what do they find? Usually some subtle dissatisfaction. We escape into thinking about past and future. So pause. If there are no demands and you find this unbearable emptiness – don’t distract yourself. Turn towards it. Welcome it. Befriend it."

From event 27 February - 01 March, 2026 The Nature of Consciousness – Online Weekend Retreat at Home 27 February–1 March 2026

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