How to Cultivate Equanimity
Let’s learn about what equanimity is, its many benefits, and how to get more of it.
Equanimity is a state of mental and emotional stability, calmness, and composure, especially in challenging situations. It’s maintaining a balanced and nonreactive mindset, regardless of external circumstances or internal thoughts and feelings. People who possess equanimity can face adversity with clarity, focus, and resilience, without being overwhelmed by emotions like fear, anger, or anxiety.
Why Might We Want Equanimity?
Equanimity is an enjoyable state and its benefits may include:
● Emotional resilience: Equanimity helps you maintain balance during challenging times. It helps you to reduce the intensity and duration of negative emotions (Desbordes et al., 2015). When you’re not being overwhelmed by negative emotions, you can approach difficulties with a clearer mind and make more effective decisions.
● Reduced stress and anxiety: When you react less intensely to situations, the overall level of stress in your life diminishes (Desbordes et al., 2015; Wongpakaran et al., 2021). This can lead to better physical and mental health.
● Improved relationships: Equanimity fosters a more compassionate, accepting, and understanding attitude toward others. This can strengthen your relationships by promoting effective communication and reducing conflict (Weber, 2020).
● Enhanced well-being: Overall, equanimity cultivates a sense of inner peace and contentment. You become less reliant on external circumstances for happiness and find stability within yourself (Desbordes et al., 2015).
How to Develop Equanimity
With regular practice, you can develop a more balanced and composed mind that is less susceptible to the ups and downs of life. Here are some ways to increase your equanimity:
Mindfulness
Many meditation practices emphasize mindfulness, which involves paying attention to the present moment without judgment. This allows you to observe your thoughts and emotions without getting swept away by them. With regular practice, equanimity develops along with mindful awareness as you learn to neither suppress nor fixate on what is arising in sensory experience from moment to moment (Vago & Silbersweig, 2012).
Acceptance
Acceptance includes a nonjudgmental perspective on yourself, others, and situations. This allows you to experience life's ups and downs with greater equanimity (Desbordes et al., 2015).
Emotional regulation techniques
Techniques like deep breathing and progressive muscle relaxation can help you manage intense emotions and prevent impulsive reactions. And by learning to regulate your emotions, you build a foundation for equanimity.
Reflective practices
Journaling and reflective questioning allow you to gain insights into your reactions and experiences, promoting self-awareness and the ability to respond to challenges with greater equanimity. Writing about your daily experiences, especially challenging ones, can provide insights into your reactions and how they can be more balanced. Some reflective questions include "What can this experience teach me?" and "How can I view this situation differently?"
Physical practices
Physical practices like yoga, tai chi, or qigong help integrate mind and body, promoting relaxation, balance, and a sense of inner peace conducive to cultivating equanimity.
Cultivating acceptance
Equanimity involves accepting things as they are, without judgment. Practices like repeating mantras such as "May I accept things just as they are" can help you approach situations with more openness.
Cognitive restructuring
Learning to identify and challenge unhelpful thought patterns can help in developing a more equanimous outlook. For example, you’re stuck in traffic and you’re going to be late for a meeting. You start thinking, “I’m such an idiot! I should have left earlier.” But instead of freaking out, you challenge the thought by asking, “Is getting upset helping?” and then switch to thinking, “Traffic happens. Getting flustered won’t change it. I’ll call ahead and explain I’m running late. While not ideal, it’s not the end of the world.” By reframing the situation and focusing on what you can control (your attitude and communication), you detach from negative emotions and maintain equanimity. This allows you to deal with the situation more effectively.
Try Yoga
Vinyasa, or flow yoga, connects the breath with movement. This focus on the breath helps bring the mind into the present moment, reducing mental chatter and emotional reactivity, both of which can disrupt equanimity (Yoga Journal, 2021).
Using Mantras for Equanimity
Equanimity mantras are short, powerful phrases or affirmations repeated to help cultivate a mental state of calm, stability, and emotional balance, especially in challenging situations. These are typically traditional phrases or sentences that have been used for centuries in various spiritual and meditation practices. They’re not personalized and carry a universal message of peace, acceptance, and detachment. They can be repeated during meditation or throughout the day as a reminder of the importance of maintaining equanimity in various situations. Here are some equanimity mantras you can use:
● May I accept things as they are.
● May I embrace change with stillness and calmness.
● May I remain calm and centered in all situations.
● May I release worry and embrace tranquility.
● May I trust in the flow of life and let go of resistance.
In Sum
By learning to approach life with equanimity, we can navigate difficult situations with greater resilience and find more peace in our daily lives. It’s important to remember that equanimity is a practice, a skill that we develop over time. Start small, with mindful moments throughout your day. With consistent effort, you'll find yourself responding to life's ups and downs with greater composure.
References
● Desbordes, G., Gard, T., Hoge, E. A., Hölzel, B. K., Kerr, C., Lazar, S. W., . . . & Vago, D. R. (2015). Moving beyond mindfulness: defining equanimity as an outcome measure in meditation and contemplative research. Mindfulness, 6, 356–372.
● Vago, D. R., & Silbersweig, D. A. (2012). Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 6, 296.
● Weber, J. (2020). The role of equanimity in facilitating positive mental states and mental wellbeing [Doctoral dissertation, University of Bolton].
● Wongpakaran, N., Wongpakaran, T., Wedding, D., Mirnics, Z., & Kövi, Z. (2021). Role of equanimity on the mediation model of neuroticism, perceived stress and depressive symptoms. Healthcare, 9(10), 1300.
● Yoga Journal. (2021, September 2). Calm within. https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/calm-within/