What is
Reflection

An activity that doesn’t own up to its name

Reflection is a faculty that each of us has to greater or lesser degree — and one that can be enhanced. It is aligned with what might be called a horizontal True North of ourselves. It is, in the language of mechanics, a cylinder too often uninspected under the bonnet in the engine that drives us forward into life’s choices.

In our speeded-up world, it is time that reflection had a more recognised niche in our communal psyche.
We are what we have thought. We should think again.

“The mind of a perfect man is like a mirror. It grasps nothing. It expects nothing. It reflects but does not hold.”— Chuang Tzu

Not quite the same as meditation

People used to “meditate” — a respectable leisure pursuit — but the word has lately acquired a specialised meaning oriented towards the East. There are different ways of reflecting, just as there are in meditation. But Reflection can colonise the area vacated by the new vogue for Meditation. It makes for spiritual and mental growth, and there are practical advantages to it.

Thinking constructively, quietly, on your own or in company — is regarded as the traditional preserve of poets and authors. It is open to everyone. Reflection is a useful tool in your mental and emotional armoury. And there is a charm in it.

A Western tradition, long in the brew

The West has a vantage point on Reflection that has been long in development. Marcus Aurelius wrote what he called “Meditations” — but they can equally be described as Reflections. Aristotle placed Practical Wisdom — the examined life in action — at the top of his hierarchy of virtues. There is a vast corpus of philosophical literature in the West that goes to an understanding of how to reflect in the Western way.

We are not reinventing the wheel. We are naming something that has always been there.

What it is not

No one is asked to become a hermit, abandon their beliefs, or adopt a new set. Reflection here is secular and undogmatic. A “Western” aim of reflection need not be glamorous or ambitious.Common sense and contentment can take precedence over Bliss and Nirvana.

The goal is not to transport yourself out of your skin up to some Great Beyond — but to become more grounded in yourself. To deal better with the exigencies of life. To think, more carefully, for yourself.

“Are you really thinking for yourself? Learning to reflect can dramatically enrich your lifestyle.”

The dividends of a regular practice

The benefits are practical. Clearer thinking. Better decisions. Peace of mind. A more rounded perspective. The kind of equanimity that, once cultivated, permeates your waking actions and enables you to deal more calmly with whatever comes.

Reflection can be as brief as ten quiet minutes or as sustained as a long walk. It adapts to your life, not the other way around. It requires no mat, no app, no subscription — and no prior knowledge.