World Cup and soccer players’ patience

Soccer ball

I have been watching a lot of soccer this week with the World Cup games.

Watching the players patiently apply their skills, forward thinking, but applying an amazing moment to moment concentration makes me think about some of the practice in Buddhist meditation where essentially a person is patiently concentrating and staying in the moment.

Wikipedia says patience “the state of endurance under difficult circumstances, which can mean persevering in the face of delay or provocation without acting on annoyance/anger in a negative way; or exhibiting forbearance when under strain, especially when faced with longer-term difficulties. It is also used to refer to the character trait of being steadfast.”

“In Buddhism, patience is one of the “perfections” that a bodhisattva trains in and practices to realize perfect enlightenment. In both Hinduism and Buddhism there is a particular emphasis on meditation, aspects of which lead to a natural state of mindfulness that is conducive to patient, effective and well-organised thought.”

So, I am enjoying watching the practive of patience of the World Cup players [of course you also see the frustrations some players will experience] as they work to achieve their goals.