Fri 21 Jul, 2017 05:46 am
I've decided to add some type of meditation to my morning routine. Jerry Seinfeld and David Lynch are big proponents of Transcendental Meditation; it sounded fabulous as I watched a few introductory videos, but soon began to seem a bit shady.
You are given a "secret mantra," and forced to sign a document stating you won't share secrets with newbies. Almost as many videos extolling TM attempt to debunk it. I decided that I can't pay $1000. to get my secret mantra so I can say 500 times every morning words which I don't know.
So, I thought about focused or guided thought. The type of meditation in which you are tasked to clear your mind of all thought is like daring me to not think of a pink elephant. I do want to have better control of my thought, but a more disciplined mind is an ultimate goal-not Day One material... I thought listening to Eckhart Tolle or Thich Nhat Hanh saying groovy things like "feel the energy in your hand" might be a nice awareness and calming way to start my day.
So, I wanted to check these guys out to judge whether they should occupy my dwindling head space, and I've been reading a bit of Eckhart Tolle's A New Earth. I like his philosophy. It actually has a lot of foundational anchors with mine. He definitely has an interesting perception of Jesus and a pretty great sense of humor.
As I've been reading, I think incorporating this type of book--inspirational, spiritual--is a positive addition to my morning routine; and in addition, I've signed up for Tai Chi. I think having distinct movements to focus on brings a degree of meditation or cognitive calm that I'm looking for.
There are no morning classes, but once I'm proficient, I can practice wherever and whenever I want.
I've been studying morning rituals. How they can really define who we are or the major direction our lives take.
Do you have a ritual that's important to you? Do you think it serves you?
@Lash,
My form of meditation may not have an official name. If it does, it has eluded me thus far.
It's simple really. I just sit and relax, let my mind and thoughts go where they may. No secret words or codes or dollars needed.
The length of time can be a few minutes or even a few hours, there is no forced time frame like those that require 30 minutes or some other exact amount of time. How can a time frame minimum be at all conducive to meditation? No alarms that will go off either, after a specified time frame is elapsed. If a time clock was involved I'd stop relaxing and exit the meditative state and start thinking about how jolting the alarm would be when my scheduled time was up.
@Lash,
a) There's a "meditation forum." Just type meditation into the forum search field.
b) This might assist:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/mindfulness
c) Mindfulness doesn't have the whole mantra thing. It rings true to me, since I do believe that many go through life on auto pilot, and we miss much of what experiencing life is all about. Stupid as it may sound, I think it enhances washing dishes.
@Sturgis,
Another "mantra" is to narrate what you are doing internally.
"I am breathing in, I am relaxed." "I am breathing out." "I am breathing in." etc... breath in slowly through your nose and exhale gently. Sit in a relaxed posture, can be in a chair or on the floor cross legged or not.
The idea is to clear your head of all the stuff and just be in the now. "I am breathing in, I am relaxed." "I am breathing out." "I am breathing in." etc...
Thank you guys! All very helpful!
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace