MEDITATION Archives - Page 10 of 10

October 29, 2014 By Admin

How to Meditate – A Basic Reminder

Meditation Guide to Getting Started

Since just sitting in basic (mindfulness or vipassana) meditation is such an important practice on your way to emotional regulation – and possibly and eventually to Enlightenment – I decided to offer a quick review of this skilled practice. Practice every day!

1) Sit comfortably with your back softly errect on a chair or with legs crossed on a meditation cushion. You could also so this practice while lying on a mat. Intend to release any body or mental tension you are aware of.

2) Take a few deep, cleansing breaths. Notice your body contacting with the chair, cushion or mat. Thank your breath for keeping you alive in this precious human form (The Dalai Lama).

3) Begin non-evaluating, non-judging as a norm NOW.

4) Either close your eyes, or keep them slightly open with a downward gaze – or keep your eyes open if you are more comfortable that way. While sitting or lying, gently rest your open eyes while NOT paying much attention to objects in the room.

5) Gently bring your complete awareness to your breath as it is. Concentrate on the sensations of your breath as it breathes you – as it is in this present moment. Do not try to control your breathing. Just be one with it in full attention as it is. All of it is in the present moment of awareness.

6) Notice where you are feeling your breath. Is it at the nostrils, the throat, the chest, or the lower belly? Feel the sensation without evaluation. No grasping attachment or avoidance – just be with the breath as it is now. Stay in the present moment breathing in and breathing out.

7) When your mind wonders away from your breath, just notice without evaluation – and gently bring your attention back to your breath. Repeat this process as often as necessary.

8) You will also notice thoughts, sounds, sensations, emotions and other momentary phenomena. You may want to make the other phenomenon (other than breath) your present moment object of attention. Just notice and note it in the moment without evaluation, and gently bring your attention back to your breath. Do your best to stop storylines and internal conversations.

9) If your mind wonders off into the past (which you cannot change) or into the future (which you have no control over), simply and gently bring it back to awareness on your breath now. It is ONLY in the present moment of experience that you have choices.

10) Continue to do just this – paying attention to your breath in the present moment – and bringing attention back when your mind wonders off. Notice it all without evaluation, and simply continue to focus awareness on your breath.

11) To end you may want to do a short metta (loving kindness) meditation by saying to yourself: May I be safe; May I be healthy; May I be happy; and, May I live with ease. Now stop attending to your breath, and simply rest in the wonderful state of complete attention to your inner peace.

For more refer to Harris, S. (2014). Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion. New York: Simon and Schuster, pp. 39-40 and Quintiliani, A. (2014). Mindful Happiness…Shelburne, VT: Red Barn Books, pp. 22-23, 49-51.

By Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont

Author of Mindful Happiness

CLICK HERE to Order!

September 7, 2014 By Admin

Choice-Making Skills

Using Meditation, Yoga and Breathing…

You can Anchor your Choice Making

A key outcome of serious practice is that you now reduce auto-pilot reactivity to people, places, things, emotions, sensations, craving, and memories and at the same time notice your mind CAN BE in charge of your brain-body reactions. Yes, regular daily mindfulness practice allows you more mind-power to make decisions on how to respond to unhelpful events in life. You notice that you are less apt to react impulsively (with habits of anger, anxiety, depression, avoidance, aggression, self-medication, etc.) and more apt to respond thoughtfully, even compassionately. To enhance these changes in HOW you live your life, how your mindful-mind helps you to respond constructively to challenges, I will suggest several regular practices below.

In 1995 T. K. V. Desikachar noted that having the capacity to intentionally direct one’s mind is a fundamentally important core mindfulness skill. I have often reminded my own secular meditation students that “You are not your thoughts, emotions, behaviors, sensations, or memories. You are beyond, more than, these random firings of brain cells.” True, all these experiences may shape us in both positive and negative ways, and if unhelpful they may cause higher levels of stress, angst, and despair. However, mind training via regular meditation or yoga practice allows your mind to slow the impulsive reactions and to THINK about (contemplate) what an appropriate response might be. As you become more wise-mind skilled, your repeated and improved responses eventually compete with habitual impulsive reactions – thereby creating helpful brain plasticity for a calmer and happier life. These changes take time to normalize in our mind and body. It is very wise to use selective attention – paying more attention to neutral and positive/helpful experiences than to negative/unhelpful experiences. Do not avoid corrective changes you may need to make, but do not focus attention on unhelpful events and realities.

The practice of Samatha or calm abiding meditation, in which your single pointed concentration is on more positive/helpful thoughts, emotions, and memories may be helpful here. Likewise practicing various meditation and yoga breathing patterns will help calm your reactive body and center you mind’s attention. Often an effective mantra can be helpful: when I notice the arising of unhelpful energy in my mind or body I often say to myself “be calm, be kind.” What mantra self-talk might be helpful to you? Sometimes bringing your focus of attention to your soft heart energy can help. Many major spiritual traditions practice contemplating/imagining white or golden-white light coming from the heart area. It may help to gently place both hands over your heart. Try this, and allow the healing light to soothe you. Other helpful practices that reduce your suffering and may increase your joy are: thinking radical acceptance regarding things you cannot change; finding more personal meaning in your life; being more self-compassionate; practicing slow, full-body body scans; doing spiritual rituals; and, resting in shavasana (lying resting pose) or yoga nidra may comfort you.

Try some of these practices. on a regular basis.

See what improvements you notice.

By Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont

Author of Mindful Happiness

CLICK HERE to Order!

For more information refer to Nurries Stearns, M. and Nurries Stearns, R. (2013). Yoga for Emotional Trauma: Meditations and Practices for Healing Pain and Suffering. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger, pp. 170-191. See also Miller, R. (2005). Yoga Nidra: A Meditative Practice for Deep relaxation and Healing. Boulder, CO: Sounds True.

July 18, 2014 By Admin

Mindful Approaches for Enhanced Emotion Regulation

Practice Approaches to for Mindful and Enhanced Emotion Regulation

Brought to us by way of The Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont

Mindful Approaches for Enhanced Emotion Regulation; here are some approaches to practice.

1)In some ways you could understand the progression from auto-pilot mind to greater stability and equanimity of mind by observing your own path in the sequence noted below. Your progress is 100% dependent upon the regularity and duration of your meditation practice, and your own preferences regarding which practices produce less resistance and more motivation in daily practice. Therefore, sitting or walking mediation, yoga, tai chi, and qi gong are all worthwhile practices in mind training.

Intention leads to:

Practicing Attention on an object – breath,etc
Reorienting Attention Back to the Object as the Mind Moves Away Over and Over Again
(Dogen’s comments – this itself is realization
Eventually Settling Down so You Can Better Focus YOUR Attention
Concentration Skills Improve as You Do/Become Daily Regular Practice
Eventually Single-Pointed Concentration Develops
Now Mindfulness Comes Out of Your Regular Practice
Mindfulness Practice Improves Your Awareness – First in Practice, Then in Daily Life
Dramatically Improved Awareness is Now Your Norm in Both Formal Practice and Informal Practice
You Have Arrived at the First Building Blocks of Practice, perhaps of Enlightenment

2) Some formats for practice attention:
• Counting breaths on the exhalation up to ten – start over if necessary
• Imagine images of the numbers as you count them 1 to 10
• When you count be sure to continue the internal speech all the way to the end of the exhalation – prevents other thoughts from distracting your attention
• With or without counting (whichever works best for you), focus your attention as your breath passes in/out of the nostrils
• Then move your attention to your chest as it moves with the breath
• Then move your attention to the lower abdomen as it moves with the breath
• Simply be with the sensation of the moving breath
• Select one location and practice with that for a while

Each step above adds aspects of the attentional training to your practice.

3) Once you have discovered which approach works best for YOU, practice that one method for a few weeks. You may also experiment with other practices/skills as you move through the skills training process.

4) As you continue your practice, be gentle but sure to extend the time duration – AND be sure to do some practice every day. no self-criticism!!

By Anthony R. Quintiliani, Ph.D., LADC

Author of Mindful Happiness

CLICK HERE to Order!