I recently started teaching a weekly meditation class called Meditation 101. This idea was actually prompted by one of my clients who books energy healing sessions with me at least monthly. She found that she had hit an obstacle in her healing journey in that she could get nice and balanced on my table but then would leave back to her habitual negative thinking and get all out of balance again! This incredibly insightful woman decided that what she presently needs to get to the next level is to learn meditation.
We are our own worst enemy, right? Whether we are worrying about what might happen, being overly critical of ourselves, or coming up with excuses, it is our thoughts that keep us paralyzed and stagnant. As a society, we fail to understand and therefore, harness the creative power of our thoughts. We are what we think. Our thoughts about ourselves create an image which we present to the world.
There is amazing power in silence, the absence of thought. Complete presence, existing only in the current moment. A simple way to explain meditation is to concentrate your attention, and therefore your thoughts, on ONLY the current moment. Think not of anything before right now which is the past. Do not entertain any worry about later today, tomorrow or next year, which is the future. Notice your surroundings, the sights, the sounds, the smells. Just notice without judgement, observing.
Often people tell me they have tried to meditate and they just can’t. They can’t meditate because their mind is racing and they cannot stop their thoughts. They cannot see the irony in this statement! It is like someone saying, “I cannot lift 300lbs! I am not strong enough, I would hurt myself.” Well duh! You have to train to lift weight like that and most likely you would start small, lifting 20lbs and then 50lbs, etc. Same with meditation or any other skill you might like to learn. It takes practice.
Meditation is a practice. Meditation is part of my daily self-care routine. I rely on the practice of mediation to keep me calm and centered. I have no goal, no expectation when it comes to meditation. I set aside time every day, some days it is 5 minutes, some days it is an entire hour or more. Some days I slide easily into a meditative trance and travel to other dimensions. Some days I twiddle my thumbs and have a hard time not thinking. The point is I practice and I ultimately get better at holding my attention and sitting in stillness.
There are great benefits to meditation, especially once you get to a point of holding the mind and body in a state of grace, out of the normal fight or flight mode of Western Civilization. When we are in a state of constant worry, constant stress, our body lives in the sympathetic state of fight or flight. In order for the body to heal, it is important to get to the parasympathetic, or rest and digest, body state. Meditation can take us to this relaxed state.
To start a personal practice, I believe it is necessary to try different types of meditation to find what resonates with you. Personally, I enjoy chanting, music and guided meditation. At my class, I teach a different type every week. To my clients, I prescribe setting aside 2-5 minutes a day for practice. You can set a timer and practice sending thoughts away, focusing on your breath, a mantra, music or meditation of your choice.
Most importantly, there is no place for judgement in this mindful practice. Please set your timer with no expectation of how the practice will go. Notice and observe what works for you and what does not. Make changes as needed. Stick with it, notice the silence in between thoughts growing longer. Anyone can benefit from a consistent meditation practice.
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