What is Meditation
What is Meditation?
This is something I ask all of my students. Everyone will have a different perception of what meditation is. There are no wrong answers. I ask this to bring awareness of our perception. Will it help you deal with stress? Yes. Will it bring you peace? Yes.
Meditation for me is becoming aware of all aspects of ourselves and learning how to work with those energies to understand them, to heal what needs healing and to elevate our human consciousness and experience so that we may live our truth with peace, purpose and compassion.
Meditation can be incredibly challenging, especially in the beginning or when we are going through a difficult situation. Because, in meditation we are sitting with ourselves. We are facing our thoughts, emotions, and physical discomfort. We are in essence becoming conscious of where our energies are.
Now from here we have an awareness of our challenges. You can not change what you do not acknowledge so first we must learn to sit with and work with ourselves where we are. Observe. In observance we do not judge and yet we must acknowledge all the judgments, fears and ill thoughts that arise. Each time a thought arises we observe it like watching a movie. We observe our physical and emotional reaction to it, and we keep pulling back and observing each thought upon thought until we find neutrality.
Energy needs a healthy expression. We neutrally observe to expand awareness. We bring in neutrality to understand the negative mind set. For when we are emotionally reactive, we do not think clearly. We bring in positivity to lift ourselves up, set goals and find happiness. We cultivate compassion and knowledge to shift our mode of operation and elevate our experience. Negative energy is always fear based. At its essence it is a protection mechanism. It is the fight or flight response to things we do not understand or are afraid of.
I suggest trying all kinds of meditations to find what works for you. Have several meditations in your tool kit and be able to pull out what you need at different times. Just as we eat seasonally and dress seasonally, we can have meditations for different circumstances to aid us.
Breath Work- In meditation there is breath work. There are many breathing techniques and so much to learn about breathing. This is the most important place to start. Breath work can immediately change your state of mind and bring the body into balance. Balancing the energy or life force also called qi or prana is key. Breathing commands, the mind. The minds thoughts create emotions. The Minds thoughts and emotions messages the body creating physiological reactions. Working with breath is key to healthy, happy, harmonious living. Breathing has been practiced in many cultures for millennia.
Mudra- In meditation we have mudras which are mostly hand positions. Mudras allow energy to travel via meridians for a specific purpose. Mudras affect the flow of energy throughout the body. Meridians also referred to as channels are like rivers or you may think of them as roads. There are intersections and on and off ramps that connect different organ systems and have different purposes. Acupuncture works through the meridian system as well. Think of a window and its shutter. You can open them fully to let light and air flow in or position them specifically to your requirements.
Sound & Mantras - Many meditations use sound. The use of gongs, bells or sound bowls resonate a vibration, as does listening to the ocean, rain or sounds of nature. Mantras are repeated phrases chanted or sung. They are akin to affirmations or prayer in that they are specific in their purpose. Our bodies are made up of mostly water as is the earth and sound vibration travels easily through water to create a very healing vibration. When we speak ill of others or ourselves, we manifest into the world a negative vibration. When we focus on specific sounds, mantras, and positive affirmations then we raise our vibration. We feel elevated. Observe what you say, how you say it and why you say it as best you can. It is not to judge yourself or others it is to start to command the vibration we put into our lives and the world in our spoken word.
Focus- We can focus our thoughts and eyes during a meditation for a particular affect. Meditation can be calming or activating. For example, we can focus on a particular chakra (energy center in the body) or focus on imagining ourselves at the beach. We can close our eyes and visualize an object like the sun or a tree in our mind. We can focus our eyes in a position during a meditation. We can direct our eyes to focus on the tip of our nose. We can open our eyes and focus on an object in front of us. There is a myriad of focus & visualization techniques.
Movement- movement in meditation is like moving through the asanas in yoga. It can be specific in posture and mudra or it can be like a free-flowing dance. The expression can be like boiling water or it can be fluid like a flowing brook. There are many aspects to movement in meditation just as there are many types of dance.
Starting out- Meditation is very vast and yet it’s quite simple. I start my students with simple long deep breathing in and out through the nose with equal length inhales and exhales. On the inhale the belly falls open like a balloon filling up. On the exhale we pull the navel in toward the spine. This engages the diaphragm muscle. It is simple but for so many who breathe shallowly or through the mouth they have to relearn how to breathe.
How we begin and end a meditation is important and helpful. Anytime you want to meditate it is the right time. However, I like very much to follow ancient traditions of meditating first thing in the morning. When we meditate before we start our day, we have a chance to get ahold of the mind before it gets ahold of us.
If you are interested in working with me on meditation you can contact me via my website www.acunora.com I am happy to work via zoom or facetime with individuals or families during the pandemic until I can teach groups in person again . There are also many wonderful meditation apps out there for your phone which will guide you. You can also look up different meditations on You Tube to find something you like.
Namaste
Nora
