Shenpa is the Tibetan word for attachment. Shenpa is thinking and reacting from the momentum of bad habits. The practice is to recognize it as soon as it starts and then to react differently from habit. Don't let anger or fear build. Don't let it gain momentum.
Pause. Breathe.
Do something, anything, different. Dance, stand on your head, twirl around, smile, standup.
Make a game of it. Be excited when shenpa starts to appear and see how soon you can catch it and how you can react differently. Say "Hello Shenpa. I know you. You're not going to get me this time."
We need to equate refraining indulging in shenpa with giving ourselves love and kindness.
Pause. Breathe.
Pema Chödrön on shenpa, or the urge, the hook, that triggers our habitual tendency to close down. We get hooked in that moment of tightening when we reach for relief. To get unhooked, we begin by recognizing that moment of unease and learn to relax in that moment.
Shenpa is a tight feeling has the power to hook us into self-denigration, blame, anger, jealousy and other emotions which lead to words and actions that end up poisoning us.
Sitting practice teaches us how to open and relax to whatever arises, without picking and choosing.
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