try going into a desert

The deserts provide another environment, another huge field of energy which we can explore, like the mountains and the oceans and the forests. The desert energy is one of spaciousness and silence. There's not a lot happening in the desert. There is a stillness.

And these aspects, these characteristics of the desert – of spaciousness and silence and stillness – are also the characteristics of the very core of our being. When we touch our essence, we find ourselves in a space of stillness and silence. And so by going to the desert and spending time there, we can more easily touch that space within ourself. It resonates with the desert itself.

It is no coincidence that the desert pops up in spiritual texts. Abraham wandered around in the desert, as did Moses. They were seeking the promised land. That promised land is our buddha nature. It's the divine being within us.

And by going to the desert, we are turning our back on all the entertainment and distractions of modern life; and even the more active, lively parts of the natural world. The desert is a simple place. It offers the least distractions of any place on earth.

So try it: try going into a desert and spending some days there; not doing anything; just being there; feeling the space; feeling the silence; feeling the stillness. For you won't only be feeling it on the outside. You will be feeling it on the inside too.