Mindfulness Practice May Destroy Your Common Sense
In A Good Way
In this issue:
Mindfulness and Common Sense
Zen of Coaching: An Online Course For Executive Coaches
What I’m Reading - Why Buddhism Is True
Mindful Leadership Podcast
What I’m Watching - NPR Tiny Desk
A famous scientist (often said to be Bertrand Russell or William James) is giving a public lecture on astronomy, explaining how the Earth orbits the sun and is part of a solar system in a vast universe. A skeptical elderly woman in the audience interrupts and says:
“That’s nonsense. The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant turtle.”
The scientist asks, “What is the turtle standing on?”
She replies, “You’re very clever, young man, but it’s turtles all the way down.”
This story reminds me of a statement from Zen teacher Shunryu Suzuki: “Buddhism wants to destroy your common sense.”
Well, of course we need our common sense. We could probably use a lot more common sense!
I think Shunryu Suzuki is suggesting that there is more, much more to this human life, and that perhaps the world is not what it seems. He is opening the door to not be limited by our common sense; to not be limited and driven by fear, scarcity, to-do lists, survival, and the immediate concerns of the day.
I love his expression: “Don’t be a “board-carrying fellow” -- where the board on our shoulder prevents us from seeing the poetic, the sacred; seeing ourselves, our world, birth, life, and death from a variety of wondrous perspectives; a place where we find some hope and inspiration in “turtles all the way down.”
I have a strong belief that common sense and going beyond common sense is a powerful and important combination.
Here is a poem that beautifully captures the practical and the poetic; held by love, pleasure, and an invitation to live beyond our common sense.
The Word
~ Tony Hoagland, from Sweet Ruin (1992)
Down near the bottom
of the crossed-out list
of things you have to do today,
between “green thread”
and “broccoli” you find
that you have penciled “sunlight.”
Resting on the page, the word
is as beautiful, it touches you
as if you had a friend
and sunlight were a present
he had sent you from some place distant
as this morning — to cheer you up,
and to remind you that,
among your duties, pleasure
is a thing,
that also needs accomplishing
Do you remember?
that time and light are kinds
of love, and love
is no less practical
than a coffee grinder
or a safe spare tire?
Tomorrow you may be utterly
without a clue
but today you get a telegram,
from the heart in exile
proclaiming that the kingdom
still exists,
the king and queen alive,
still speaking to their children,
–to any one among them
who can find the time,
to sit out in the sun and listen.
Practices:
Explore looking at your hand, with a sense of curiosity and wonder. How did this thing I call a part of “my” body come to be? How does this influence how you see yourself, others, and the world?
Put “sunlight” and “pleasure” and reading poetry on your to-do list.
Zen of Coaching: For Executive Coaches: Transforming Others, Becoming Your Best Self, Changing The World
I’m excited to introduce this online course, beginning October 24th:
Zen of Coaching is a transformational program for executive coaches and leaders who want to deepen their presence, expand their impact, and build a coaching practice rooted in wisdom, not just performance. Blending Zen principles, mindfulness, and real-world leadership experience, this course—created by Marc Lesser, the Zen teacher and CEO who helped bring mindful leadership to Google—supports you in cultivating stillness, navigating complexity, and coaching with greater authenticity, clarity, and purpose.
To register and for more information.
What I’m Reading
Why Buddhism Is True, by Robert Wright - explores how core Buddhist teachings—like mindfulness, non-self, and meditation—align with evolutionary psychology and neuroscience to reduce suffering and enhance well-being in modern life.
Recent interviews with David Whyte, Oliver Burkeman, and Jiryu Rutschman-Byler, and practice sessions.
What I”m Watching
NPR Tiny Desk. Andrea Gibson performs MAGA Hat In The Chemo Room - Powerful and Moving
Warmest regards,
Marc