← 03 · StillnessDay 15 of 40

Be still

Be still, and know that I am God.Psalm 46:10

The order matters. Be still, and then know. Not know and then be still, as though stillness were the reward for having understood. The knowing comes out of the stillness and cannot come any other way. This is the week the sitting deepens: longer, before dawn, fasting. The body is quiet after two weeks of lighter eating; the mind is readier than it was. You are not trying to achieve anything in the chair. You are agreeing to be present to something already happening.

Today's practice

Sit for twenty minutes this morning with a single word. When carried off, return. Do not evaluate the sit afterward. Just keep the hour.

The fast

Daily fast, Daniel table. Water on waking, then the sit, then coffee or tea if you like.

Kept on this device only.