12.12.10

Shut up, thoughts!

Sitting and breathing is an art which is new to me.  It is a way to quiet your thoughts.  Many refer to it as meditation, but that intimidates people.  It intimidated me.  Others say it is praying to yourself.  But that doesn't work for me - praying involves thoughts.  The art of sitting, breathing and quieting thoughts is new to me.  Some argue that it takes a lifetime to 'master.'   Others, including me, say that there is no right, nor wrong, no good, nor bad when it comes to a meditation practice.  I think I have got a pretty good hold on it after just a few months of regular practice.  Why is there so much hype about sitting, breathing, and quieting your thoughts?  I was curious about this too, but the reason for the hype soon became clear to me.  Sitting, breathing, and quieting your thoughts fixes things.  It makes your life better.  Science continues to prove the benefits.

How is this possible?  I think that I have a short, sweet, and simple answer - Empowerment.  Being conscious of your ability to sit down, breathe, and quiet your thoughts at your own will gives a sense of self empowerment (What empowerment provides us is a whole other story, but in short, empowerment provides us anything we want).  Human beings are complicated and chaotic creatures.  Our complexity and chaos often causes stress.  Stress in my eyes is a broad term that defines anything that harms us - our bodies or souls.  Emotional harm, can lead to physical harm and vice versa.

If you don't meditate, you fit into one of three categories:

1 - "Meditation is 'weird'"
2 - "I don't have time to meditate"
3 - "I can't quiet my thoughts"

Resolution #1 - Meditation is not weird.
Resolution #2 - You do have time.
Resolution #3 - Slightly more difficult, but yes you can.

Now, I will leave you with a metaphor to help you if you have risen above reasons #1 and #2 for not meditating and find yourself having trouble quieting your thoughts...

Our breaths are like the waves in the ocean, our minds like the moon.  Thanks to our moon, our waves continue at a constant rate, breaking into the shore one after another.  Take a deep wave and let it crash completely.  Become aware of the ocean swells.  There is nothing that can stop these waves.  Fish (thoughts) can swim through them, surfers (noise) can ride them, but nothing inhibits their continuous cycle.

BA-out

2 comments:

  1. deleted? beyyyyonnnnnn i was just kidding.

    i was going to state my opinion on meditation, but restrained, for that i have never actually attempted to meditate. i give yay nor nay because i don't know. it's similar to yoga, i feel, in that you become much more connected to your body, to your reality, and to the vagueness of life.

    do you have any good resources that will teach me meditation, i'm interested.

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  2. i'm sure there is a ton of stuff out there about 'how to meditate' but i think its something to learn on your own since everyone is different. like i said there is no right or wrong, good or bad... sitting, lying, standing, walking. i personally think the key is focusing on breath. without focusing on something constant like that, our mind tends to do crazy things. at first seconds seem to tick by very slowly, but soon enough time moves faster. i also think that before you start its good to set some sort of intention. maybe something you'd like to do for the day, or for me its usually just positivity. good luck - let me know what you think.

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