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“We could say that meditation doesn’t have a reason or doesn’t have a purpose. In this respect it’s unlike almost all other things we do except perhaps making music and dancing. When we make music we don’t do it in order to reach a certain point, such as the end of the composition. If that were the purpose of music then obviously the fastest players would be the best. Also, when we are dancing we are not aiming to arrive at a particular place on the floor as in a journey. When we dance, the journey itself is the point, as when we play music the playing itself is the point. And exactly the same thing is true in meditation. Meditation is the discovery that the point of life is always arrived at in the immediate moment.”

~~~ Alan Watts

In last week’s article, we began a discussion about meditation and how it can be used to produce a deep state of relaxation and a tranquil mind. We also talked about using meditation as a means to help with various health issues. This week, let’s pursue how you can bring the gift of meditation into your own life.

In Buddhism, we refer to our meditation time as a practice, or a sitting practice. There is truth in that because you will learn, as you begin meditation, that it does take practice. It is something that needs to be practiced every day — or at the very least — as often as possible.

You can find everyday opportunities to meditate wherever you happen to be. You can also make meditation as formal or informal as you like – whatever suits your lifestyle and situation. Some people build meditation into their daily routine. For example, they may start and end each day with an hour of meditation. If you’re short on time, all you really need is a few minutes.

“You are never alone or helpless. The force that guides the stars guides you too.”

~~~ Shrii Shrii Anandamurti

Here are some ways you can practice meditation on your own.

* Breathe deeply. This technique is good for beginners because breathing is a natural function. Even though I’ve been practicing meditation for many years, I still find that focusing on the breath is my favorite technique. Focus all attention on your breathing. Concentrate on feeling and listening as you inhale and exhale through your nostrils. Breathe deeply and slowly. When you feel your attention wander, gently return your focus to your breathing.

* Scan your body. When using this technique, focus attention on different parts of your body. Become aware of your body’s various sensations, whether that’s pain, tension, warmth or relaxation. Combine body scanning with breathing exercises and imagine breathing heat or relaxation into and out of different parts of your body.

* Repeat a sacred name or phrase. A mantra is the name of a sacred deity or a sacred phrase that you repeat silently or aloud. You can create your own mantra. I often use the word, “Peace” as a mantra. Lately, I’ve been using “Ham-sa”. In sanscrit, Ham-sa means, “I am that”. Mantras are the building blocks of transcendental meditation. Examples of religious mantras include a Jesus prayer in the Christian tradition, the holy name of God in Judaism, or the Om mantra of Hinduism, Buddhism and other Eastern religions.

* Walking meditation. Combining a walk with meditation is an efficient and healthy way to relax. You can use this technique anywhere you’re walking – in a tranquil forest, on a city sidewalk or at the mall. I have done this while walking in a labyrinth. When you use this method, slow down the pace of walking so that you can focus on each movement of your legs or feet. Don’t focus on a particular destination. Concentrate on your legs and feet, repeating action words in your mind such as lifting, moving and placing as you lift each foot, move your leg forward and place your foot on the ground. It’s also good to walk in your bare feet, if possible, so you can be aware of your foot coming into contact with the earth.

* Engage in prayer. Prayer is the best known and most widely practiced example of meditation. Spoken and written prayers are found in most faith traditions. You can pray using your own words or read prayers written by others. Talk with your rabbi, priest, pastor or other spiritual leader about resources.

* Read or listen and take time to reflect. Many people report that they benefit from reading poems or sacred texts silently or aloud, and taking a few moments to quietly reflect on the meaning that the words bring to mind. You can listen to sacred music, spoken words or any music you find relaxing or inspiring. There are also guided meditations on CD that you can use to help you meditate. You may want to write your reflections in a journal or discuss them with a friend or spiritual leader.

* Focus your love and gratitude. In this type of meditation, you focus your attention on a sacred object or a fellow human being, weaving feelings of love and gratitude into your thoughts. This way of meditating can open your heart as you cultivate a deep sense of caring for all of creation.

“Meditation is the life of the soul: Action, the soul of meditation, and honor the reward of action.”

~~~ Francis Quarles

Be kind to yourself as you get started with meditation. It’s common for the mind to wander during meditation, no matter how long you’ve been practicing meditation, and that’s OK. I can attest to this. In Buddhism, we refer to this as the “monkey-mind”. Many people also call this “mind-chatter”. If you’re meditating to calm your mind and your attention wanders, slowly return to the object, sensation or movement you’re focusing on. You can use an image to bring yourself back to your focus if you’d like. Try this: Picture balloons floating away with your thoughts, or imagine your thoughts as pigeons and mentally clap your hands to get them to fly away. I will often use the image of white clouds in a blue sky. The clouds are the thoughts and I just watch them gently float away.

Experiment, and you’ll likely find out what types of meditation work best for you. Adapt meditation to whatever your needs are at the moment. Remember, there’s no right way or wrong way to meditate. What matters is that you make this an important part of your daily life.

Remember that true wisdom resides in the silence — not in the chatter of our ego-mind. Meditation is crucial for teaching serenity. It can really save your life. It teaches you how to quiet your mind.

“Meditation is the dissolution of thoughts in Eternal awareness or Pure consciousness without objectification, knowing without thinking, merging finitude in infinity.”

~~~ Swami Sivananda

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are the most precious gift you can give yourself. Every day look in the mirror and say, “I’m available to more good than I have experienced, realized or imagined ever before in my life!” Do this every day while you look into your own eyes.

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”

~~~ Buddha

~~~ DBL-R

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
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As you know, I do practice sitting, silent meditation every day in my life. Recently, I did a podcast about this for another blog that I read. Take a moment and click this link to hear what meditation means to me and what it does for me.

My Meditation Podcast

In my meditation I use what I truly believe is the most powerful personal growth and mind development tool on earth. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels —

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution

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[tags]peace, inner self, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]

“Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance. Know well what leads you forward and what hold you back, and choose the path that leads to wisdom.”

~~~ Buddha

Back in early December, I heard about a Buddhist meditation group that would be meeting at a local Unitarian Universalist church here in Ohio. I have been studying Buddhism for several years and have been meditating ever since the 1980s — but have had very little experience with group meditation. I was delighted to hear about this group forming and didn’t hesitate to get involved. Meditating with a group — and learning and discussing Buddhist teachings has been a wonderful spiritual experience. (Note: If you live in the Dayton, Ohio area, don’t hesitate to contact me about this if you’re interested. Just add a comment here and give me a way to get in touch with you.)

With this uppermost in my mind these days, I’d like to spend a couple of weeks here talking about meditation, and why I recommend it so highly to all of you. My goal with these articles is to encourage as many of you as possible to begin a daily practice of meditation in your lives.

Even though meditation has been practiced for thousands of years, it has become more and more popular in the Western societies over the past ten or twenty years. In the Eastern societies of the world, meditation is a common practice. It was originally meant to help people deepen their understanding of the sacred and mystical forces of life. These days, the practice of meditation, especially in the Western countries, has become not only a spiritual practice, but also a way for people to find stress reduction and relaxation.

Meditation is meant to produce a deep state of relaxation as well as a tranquil mind. The idea is that when you take a few moments to stop the busy-ness of your life, it becomes possible to turn off the thinking — the mind-chatter — and feel the inner peace of being in the present moment. This “in the moment” place is one of calm, peace, and emotional stability. One of the fringe benefits is that this state of mind doesn’t just turn off when you’re finished meditating, but rather it can have lasting effects on your emotional and physical well-being.

“Some people think that meditation takes time away from physical accomplishment. Taken to extremes, of course, that’s true. Most people, however, find that meditation creates more time than it takes.”

~~~ Peter McWilliams

Many people shy away from learning how to meditate because they think of it as some sort of “new-agey” thing and will often consider it to be a waste of their time. Nothing could be further from the truth. If you could see the make-up of the people in this Buddhist meditation group that I’m in, you’d be amazed. We have every age group from the young to the old — different backgrounds and lifestyles, and yet, the group feels like we’re all one.

Anyone can practice meditation. It’s not something to fear and it’s a lot less expensive than therapy or anti-depressants. It doesn’t require any special equipment and is not hard to learn how to do. You can spend a few moments in meditation most anywhere — except I don’t recommend closing your eyes while driving, please! If you’re at work, out for a walk, riding the bus or the train, doing the laundry or waiting in the dentist’s office, you can meditate.

Many healthy people use meditation as a way to relax the body and reduce stress, or to advance their spiritual life. But meditation may also be useful if you have a medical disease or condition, especially one that may be worsened by stress. There is quite a bit of scientific research being done about the benefits of meditation at this time. Some of this research has shown that meditation can help such conditions as:

* Allergies
* Anxiety
* Arthritis
* Asthma
* Cancer
* Chronic pain
* Depression
* High blood pressure
* Heart disease

As I always stress, be sure to talk to your health care professional about the pros and cons of using meditation if you have any of these or other medical conditions. I’m not advocating that meditation be used as a replacement for traditional medical treatment. However, it is possible it could be an excellent addition to whatever you’re doing now.

One of the many purposes of meditation is to clear away all the information clutter that builds up in our minds every day. While you’re meditating, you’re clearing your mind of distracting thoughts and worries. You’ll find yourself becoming more aware. You’ll learn to focus on the here and now rather than on the events of your past and the worries about your future.

“If you want to find God, hang out in the space
between your thoughts.”

~~~ Alan Cohen

While there are many different ways to meditate, the goal is the same – inner peace. You may have heard about transcendental meditation, Zen meditation, walking meditation and other forms of meditation. However, one of the reasons why so many people either don’t start to meditate — or who don’t continue once they do start — is that they’re stressing about doing it “right”. Please, don’t let this happen with you. There is no right or wrong with meditation. If you can sit quietly for a few moments and relax your mind and your body, you’re on your way. Sure, you can certainly attend special meditation centers or group classes led by trained instructors to practice such forms of meditation as:

* Yoga
* Tai chi
* Guided meditation
* Qi gong

These are all excellent forms of meditation and can accomplish what you’re seeking. But you can also learn to do this powerful practice on your own. That’s where we’ll pick this up next week. Until then, remember ….

“Meditation is the tongue of the soul and the language of our spirit”

~~~ Jeremy Taylor

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are the most precious gift you can give yourself. Every day look in the mirror and say, “I’m available to more good than I have experienced, realized or imagined ever before in my life!” Do this every day while you look into your own eyes.

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”

~~~ Buddha

~~~ DBL-R

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
As you know, I do practice sitting, silent meditation every day in my life. Recently, I did a podcast about this for another blog that I read. Take a moment and click this link to hear what meditation means to me and what it does for me.

My Meditation Podcast

In my meditation I use what I truly believe is the most powerful personal growth and mind development tool on earth. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels —

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution

====================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]

“Fears are nothing more than a state of mind”

~~~ Napoleon Hill

Have you ever felt like you were really losing it? Or, better yet, have you ever gone through a period in your life where you had that, “I’ve completely lost any resemblance of the person I thought I was!” Not only did you lose “It” — you also lost “You”!

I know I have — on both those counts!

Here’s what we all need to be telling ourselves — “You Are Not Crazy!”

There probably isn’t one person reading this who doesn’t feel a little crazy from time to time. When we get into periods of high stress it’s only natural to feel like we’re losing it. This can also happen when we’re being surrounded by people whose values are quite different from our own. Think back to the times when you’ve lost a relationship that was significant. Or, how about any of those times when you’ve moved into an entirely different life situation. Did you feel a bit off kilter then? I’ll bet you did.

Let’s face it — when we’re here on this planet — in this life — we’re going to learn that “stuff” happens! And, when “stuff” happens it’s going to have some affect on our mental stability. Goofy things will start to occur — like having absolutely no idea where in the world you put the car keys — or — wondering if you’re seeing the same thing as others when everyone around you seems to see the world differently than you.

“Perfectionism is a dangerous state of mind in an imperfect world”

~~~ Robert Hillyer

What can we do to get through these times?

For most of us, the key to survival at times like these is to step back, take a few deep breaths, and regain our composure. Then we can decide what course of action to take.

Don’t hesitate to take a time out. If something in your life is making you feel out of it, take a day off from whatever is causing it. Just do something different than the norm. Read a book. Go to a movie. Invite some friends over. Sometimes, just talking with a good friend can help. I know that for me, meditation seems to help.

“The forgiving state of mind is a magnetic power for attracting good.”

~~~ Catherine Ponder

Most of the time, these “time-outs” will help us to see what it is about the situation that destabilizes us, and we can make changes from there. If you believe in things like spirit guides or you have a spiritual counselor, then ask them for guidance to bring you back to a state of mind where you can begin to make whatever changes are needed. You need to see your own goodness — you need to see that you are actually okay.

When you find yourself in that state of mind where you’re thinking you’ve gone crazy, just realize that this is nothing more than a wake-up call to let you know that something in your life is out of balance. Remind yourself that you are capable of living in a peaceful reality. Remember too, that most people have felt that they are losing it at some time or other in their lives.

You are a worthy person. You are not crazy. Just take a step or two back and see whatever is going on as being outside yourself. Then, make the choices you need to make to get your state of mind where you will be in balance once again.

“Put yourself in a state of mind where you say to yourself, “Here is an opportunity for you to celebrate like never before, my own power, my own ability to get myself to do whatever is necessary.”

~~~ Anthony Robbins

Namaste!

And, as I always say in closing — remember these words …

You are the most precious gift you can give yourself. Every day look in the mirror and say, “I’m available to more good than I have experienced, realized or imagined ever before in my life!” Do this every day while you look into your own eyes.

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”

~~~ Buddha

~~~ DBL-R

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically, whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
As you know, I do practice sitting, silent meditation every day in my life. Recently, I did a podcast about this for another blog that I read. Take a moment and click this link to hear what meditation means to me and what it does for me.

My Meditation Podcast

In my meditation I use what I truly believe is the most powerful personal growth and mind development tool on earth. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels —

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution

====================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life[/tags]