Guided meditation
Thoughts on meditation, shared during the Morning Meditation Series, November 2021
Prepare your meditation space, so that it awaits you when you need it. Have a regular time for meditation – dawn or dusk are ideal, but any time that works consistently for you is great. Shorter, more frequent meditations are of much greater value than longer, infrequent meditations.
The three “pillars of the mind” are: the breath, the third eye (that is, the space between the eyebrows and just a bit higher), and the mantra. We focus on these to help steady and calm the mind. But the point is not to perfect the art of concentration. The point is to calm the mind enough that we can move beyond the mind, to experience other aspects of our being.
Your meditation sessions will vary – some will be feel more scattered, others more focused. The mind varies from day to day, from moment to moment. But the practice remains the same. Don’t be disturbed by the fluctuations. Stay grounded in the practice.
In meditation, we move through the various koshas, or “layers” of our being. We begin with the body – then beyond that to our breath and prana, or energy – then beyond that to the mind – beyond that to our inner wisdom – beyond that to our blissful essence – and beyond that to something beyond words or concepts. These inner layers are always there in the background. It’s a matter of learning to tune into them, to sense and feel them. Bring the background to the foreground.
Look for the subtle feelings of spaciousness, silence, stillness – rather than expecting a big revelation or vision.
The sound/word OM or AUM is actually composed of four sounds: the A, the U, the M, and the silence that follows. There are many interpretations of AUM. One of these is that the A represents our waking state; the U, our dreaming state; the M, our state of deep sleep; and the silence, our state of oneness with our Self (“dwelling in our own true nature”). Meditation moves us through these different states. Can you sense it? There’s our ordinary state of consciousness at the beginning – awareness of the place we’re in, the time of day, etc. – then a feeling of dreaminess, a feeling of no thoughts of all… and then… something else…
The Sanskrit word mantra is composed of two roots: man comes from the root word for mind, and tra comes from the root word “to cross over” or “to transcend.” Thus, mantra is something that helps to cross over the mind, or to transcend the mind.
~ Zofia Kumas
Inspirational verses
I have arrived
I am home
in the here
in the now
I am solid
I am free
In the ultimate
I dwell
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
Yoga is the cessation of the waves of the mind. Then the Seer dwells in his own true nature.
~ The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, 1.2-1.3
The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honourably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.Be grateful for whoever comes,
~ Rumi
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.