Our culture and our innate instinct seeks pleasure and avoids suffering and sorrow. We know that sorrow is difficult to endure. The Cloud of Unknowing and the Dark Night of the Soul both describe this spiritual and sensory aridity. We feel nothing is moving, yet we know we can’t go backwards. Rather than do something to avoid this spiritual winter by vacationing in a warm spot, we endure it, knowing that God is working deep within our spirit.

In achieving what we want in life, we often hear “go to the extremes.” Many spiritual traditions will say, “no, practice moderation.” We do all things with God in mind, including taking care of ourselves rather than our egos. We put sensory pleasures such as drinking, eating, or sex in their proper place. We carefully discern how they can interfere with our walk with God.

The Katha Upanishad recognizes the need for self-control. The world offers so many promises of sensual pleasure and liberation, but we have very little discipline over our desires and pleasures. If we don’t tighten the reins of our minds and use our discriminating intellect, our desires and pleasures can cause suffering for others and eventually ourselves. It only brings about imbalance. Instead, we engage in spiritual disciplines to cultivate self-control so that we drive our own chariot.

Many people who complain about being unable to meditate suffer from the overwhelming chatter in their heads. This excess chatter more than likely also continues off the meditation cushion, whether within the mind or in interacting with others. With practice and time, this chatter loses power. We find ourselves needing less words, and the words are much more effective. The Cloud of Unknowing even tells us that just one word will do, especially if it emerges from the silence.

The world lost a great teacher this past Thursday. Thich Nhat Hanh was a key influence on my understanding and welcoming Buddhist teachings into my life. We can honor him by living and sharing his teachings. Here is a short passage from Miracle of Mindfulness that tells us to look for the miracle in this moment.

When we move about the world without taking time to reflect, we might find ourselves merely reacting to the world from our unhealed past. We might try to glaze over it with a “positive mindset,” but that will only repress our reactions. Repression only creates more stress within us, and it will explode eventually. We must have the courage to look back at moments that angered us and let them go.

In Thomas Merton’s Asian Journals, the appendix includes some rich reading and reflection. In this episode, you’ll hear a closing prayer that emerged from the silence. He didn’t script it. It’s a call for unity among all people. It’s what happens when love speaks. Perhaps some our members of Congress need to hear this. No, everyone needs to hear this. It’s time for us to drop our swords of division and pick up universal, agape love.

Some circles will make being “a contemplative” sound like this exclusive club that God’s special chosen belong. That’s just pride talking. Being a contemplative is an approach, a process, and a life. According to Chapter 27 in The Cloud of Unknowing, it’s a matter of “forsaking the world.” Each moment, each day, we drop the attachments and aversions that keep us bound in a vicious cycle of craving and gratification. We have one aim alone—the desire for God.

The yoga and Christian traditions both teach purity. Purity of heart is clearing away any intentions of personal gain. In our prayers, meditations, or contemplations, we align our intentions towards the Divine, who seeks to bring harmony and balance to the world.

The Cloud of Unknowing is a text to be savored over time. In fact, it’s taken more than 15 years for it to blossom within me. Within it contains a simple yet challenging approach to devotion and some reassurance about the contemplative path. This passage from Daniel London’s The Cloud of Unknowing, Distilled provides comfort for those struggling with worry or anxiety. We place these worries in The Cloud of Forgetting and focus solely on God. If you’ve never read The Cloud of Unknowing, London’s “Cliff Notes” version is a heartwarming place to begin a contemplative journey.