I once attended a pleasure-seminar. "Woah, what's that?" You ask?
We literally talked about ways to make being alive more pleasurable. As someone who likes to bulldoze through tasks and "just get things done," this seminar was honestly life-changing. The simplest of tips brought awareness to how tensely, uncomfortably and unsustainably I was spending most of my life. I obliviously lived by, "suffer now, enjoy later."
Little by little I made a point to sprinkle even the dullest, dryest, darkest moments with pleasure and everything became so much more bearable. I stopped rushing so much and I stepped into the only one and only moment: the present.
Using the five senses (taste, touch, smell, sight, sound), I not only learned to drop into the here and now, but to enjoy it. This became a heavy passion of mine. Curiously, my name, Kama, means "pleasure of the five senses" in Sanskrit.
Use the checklist below for inspiration on how you can incorporate pleasure and joy into your day. Find your Kama. (Haha, weird...)
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Taste: eat healthy, fresh delicious food that excites and nourishes you, use cocoa butter as lip balm, sip lemon water, brush your teeth
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Touch: stress ball, fuzzy throw, cushion for desk chair, wrist-rest, soft clothing, zen-garden, step out into the sun, touch nature (leaves, dirt, bark, snow, water), pet your pets, a loved one
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Smell: diffuser, essential oils, candle, incense at home, your favorite natural perfume/cologne, lotion, flowers
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Sight: pictures, desktop/phone background that inspires you, things/decorations that spark joy, organized space, look out the window
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Sounds: soft music, nature sounds, meditative landscape (soundbowls, chants)
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Let's stop suffering where we don't need to suffer. Let's just enjoy being here while we're here.
