Joywork

Over the next two weeks, take time to reflect on Lojong Slogans 19 & 20 and how they relate to your own patterns of self-deception and defense mechanisms. The goal is not to judge or fix anything but to develop a compassionate awareness of your habitual responses.

Part 1: Daily Awareness Practice (Journaling Optional)

1. Noticing Solidification

   • Each day, pause and ask: Where am I making myself into a fixed identity today?

   • Notice when you feel attached to a particular role (e.g., “the helper,” “the strong one,” “the misunderstood one”).

   • How does this shape your behavior and interactions?

2. Tracking Defense Mechanisms in Real-Time

   • When discomfort arises, observe: How do I protect myself?

   • Do you seek approval (moving toward), assert control (moving against), or withdraw (moving away)?

   • If you can, take a deep breath and experiment with not engaging the usual reaction. Just pause and witness.

Part 2: Deep Contemplation (Pick One Per Week)

• Week of March 17th:

  • Set aside 20–30 minutes to reflect on this question: If I trusted my own wisdom as the ‘principal witness,’ what would I see?

  • Write freely in a journal or simply sit with this question in meditation.

• Week of March 24th:

  • Pay attention to the moment of the ‘gap’—the pause between urge (Link 8) and action (Link 9) in the 12 Links of Dependent Origination.

  • Choose one moment where you felt the impulse to react defensively but instead took a breath, paused, and just observed.

  • What did you notice? Was there space for a different response?

Optional Practice: Inquiry with a friend

If you have a trusted dharma friend, take 10 minutes each to share:

• One insight from your daily awareness practice.

• One moment where you caught yourself in a defense mechanism.

• What you learned from pausing in the gap.

• How does the meditative skill of witnessing help you self correct?

This is an invitation to gently, compassionately witness how we deceive ourselves, or reinforce a false self—and to explore the freedom that comes from loosening our grip. Be kind to yourself in this process.