Bean in the Moment!

I am a big fan of David Lynch and I deeply respect him as a writer and director. Even though he has not been doing much in recent years as he used to, he is a true inspiration for me and my wife.

This is not only because of his fantastic, dreamy, psychedelic, puzzle-like movies which we love to contemplate and solve (our ritual:) right after seeing the movie, but also his sincere efforts to promote the practice of meditation.

He truly believes that meditation helps expand his consciousness and fosters his creative capabilities. He explains his thoughts and methods about this process in his popular book titled “Catching the Big Fish”.

On the other hand, he’s also known for his other obsession: Coffee. (Let alone Tobacco:). He even has his own David Lynch coffee brand, only sold in selective venues, IFC Center in New York, being of them.

In one of his interviews, he’s asked how his coffee consumption contributes to his meditation practice. Because, for starters, meditation is somewhat associated with putting you in a state of relaxation and peace while calming the mind, whereas coffee jazzes you up. So, one might naturally think that it is counter-intuitive to combine the two.

On the contrary, Lynch argues in 2012 interview with LA Times that coffee and meditation are quite compatible and they “go together like a horse and carriage”. 

On the other hand, I’ve come across other thoughts and articles that highlights how coffee, or caffeine for that matter, may distract your concentration because of its boosting adrenaline levels and causing jittery sensations. This article is just one of them by Matt Cartagena who argues these two may not go hand in hand and in harmony...

I think, in the end, it is more of a personal preference rather than objective truth whether it helps your meditation practice or not.

For me,  I would say, it’s kind of a trade-off. When I sit down to meditate after my morning joe or espresso, it helps my mind focuses and concentrates more, but at the same time, it may trigger my mind to fall off the path and lead me to other thoughts. But, isn't that the whole point? I mean to keep coming back to your breathing or your object of meditation. Isn’t the whole idea to be aware of your flickering thoughts and the state of your mind when you’re about to deviating from your focus? Isn't the whole point to train your brain muscle to be able to sense these distracting moments and then keep returning to where you're started? 

Therefore, I look at a sweet cup of coffee or an espresso drink as a helping hand to train my brain muscle to keep coming back to the original state of mind and help to be in the moment. With awareness,  my thoughts can come in and out of my mind more easily without attachment to them. 

So, what would your preference be? 

- Guniz