Meditation is all the rage these days. What is it? Something like quiet the mind, stop the constant prattle of thought that seems to just never quit up there. Why? To come to center, you know, instead of being scattered, be still, so that my body can calm down, can rest my mind, rejuvenate. 20 minutes of meditation is equal to 2 hours of sleep. A common part of meditation methods is to ‘watch the breath’
What do I ‘watch’ when I watch the breath? Notice the in and the out, no need to change anything, just notice what it is doing as if it is not you doing it, just observe. Notice the nuances and tiny differences between each inhale/exhale and, this is important, do so without any opinion about how good or not the breath, or the noticing, is. Just watch. Come to where (Ronda says) you find answers
What kind of answers can we find via meditation? Start by noticing there is a ceaseless stream of yak in the mind. If I am seeking an important answer I need a bit of silence. Without quiet the mind bounces around like a baby puppy, won’t sit still. In meditation the yak quiets down and in the silence I can ‘sense’ the answer to my question. This inner knowing is the voice of my internal compass, my Spirit
So how do I calm this puppy down? Well, even though our brain is supposedly the biggest computer on the planet the conscious part can barely handle 2 things at once. Millie Grenough recommends that you look at, say, a rock or a paper clip or just your thumb nail, and get really curious about what nuances you can see. And, do it for a count of 10 breaths. Don’t change the breath, just count and look. Yak yak gone J
There are many ‘aids’ to meditation. One that I really like is extending breath. Notice the count of your in and out breathing, say, 3 in and 3 out. Just watch it, as you are walking along or as a passenger in a car. Watch and at some moment it will feel like going to 4 and 4. Let it. No forcing, just allow. It will go to 5 and 5 by itself, then 6, 7, etc. I have been up to 16. Yak yak near to gone. You? Refreshed
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