We often imagine balance as a life in which nothing difficult happens.
But a life with upekkha, translated as equanimity, is not absent of disruption. It is having the capacity to remain steady and grounded while everything continues to move.
The Pali word upekkha suggests “looking on steadily” — meeting each experience with clarity rather than indifference.
Praise and blame, gain and loss, recognition and criticism, pleasure and pain: these winds are always blowing.
Equanimity does not ask us to avoid them, suppress our feelings, or become emotionally distant.
It helps us notice when we are being pulled too strongly towards what we like, or pushed away by what we dislike.
This steadiness matters especially when we care deeply. Without it, generosity can become depletion, determination can become strain, and compassion can become burnout.
With equanimity, we can offer care without being overly fixated on outcomes we cannot control.
The practice begins in ordinary moments: noticing pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral experiences without immediately grasping, resisting, or drifting away.
In other words, we learn to stay present without being swept away.
Balance is not standing still.
It is the quiet inner strength that allows us to respond wisely, offer care sustainably, and hold the results of our efforts a little more lightly each day.
At Take A Pause Live on Insight Timer over 18-19 July 2026, we practiced cultivating equanimity towards pleasant and unpleasant experiences. We closed the session with a reading of the poem Me Imperturbe by Walt Whitman.
Meditation Practice
Tap Play to Practice Together:
The Wholehearted Woman Retreat
A five-day mindfulness retreat into quiet wisdom and the light within
1-5 October 2026
Siem Reap, Cambodia
*Early Bird Offer till 31 August 2026
Led by Erin Lee
Power & Pause Retreat
A high-touch program supported by structured processes, guided practices, and reflective assignments
8 - 12 October 2026
Ubud, Bali
Led by Subba Sattvic and Erin Lee
Have a chat with Erin and Subba on the retreat program and details.
