The "Trick" to Meditation

Meditation is said to be one of the oldest and most effective ways to a life of health, peace, joy. "Sit and be still.", they say. "Sit and go that place where your Inner Being resides. Listen to the whispers of your Source. It is there you will hear the voices that will lead you to your Bliss."

Oh, but if only it were that easy. I'm not saying it's complicated; it is not. It's as simple as making a peanut butter sandwich. The challenge, it would seem, is getting to the quiet part. At least for this Blossoming Being it is. You see, my brain seems to work overtime. Non-stop. Constant jibber jabber goin' on all day and all night and even when I sleep. I'm talking the consummate Busy Body.

Gee. What a surprise.

So, for the past several years (yes. I said years!) I have been diligently sitting, nearly every day, with my headphones on and the phone turned off. The curtains drawn and the doors locked. I even made a sign for my front door that reads: Meditation in progress. Come back later.

I am happy to announce that my neighbors honor the sign and do, in fact, come back later. I am not usually interrupted as I sit comfortably with headphones on and proper music softly drifting into my ears, focused on my breathing and whatever mantra I have chosen for said meditation. Even the dog doesn't bug me. He seems to know this is 'Mom's quiet time' and snuggles in til I'm done.

Bless his curly little heart.

Anyway, for all the time I've been doing this, you'd think I'd have gotten the hang of it by now. Right?

Nope.

Still the chatter continues. Still my mind drifts to a million places.

Did I turn the burner off?

Did I feed the dog yet?

How come there's no eyes on that potato?

Where in the world is Katmandu?

Does Keith Urban wear steel-toed boots?

How many strings on a harp?

Does Oprah bring her dogs to Maui?

Does the President wear Nikes?

I'm tellin' ya...it's enough to drive a girl out of her mind.

Or maybe....

That is precisely the noise I'm going to hear until I have stopped trying to not hear the noise. Perhaps the whole "trick" here is to stop fighting whatever it is that is the Me That I Really Am and let the chatter continue until...I just don't hear it anymore.

For what it's worth...it does make me feel calmer. And happy. Even if I haven't yet found that Quiet Place Where Source Lives, I'm still happy to do it. And maybe one day...in the not-so-distant-future...I'll find myself in that very place.

Gee. Wonder if I'll find my Mind there too?

Go to sleep with it...wake up with it.

It's a strange and mysterious thing. That whatever we go to sleep with is precisely what we wake up with. I'm not talking about the man (or woman) beside you. I'm talking about those thoughts that are flyin' around in your head as you fall asleep. No matter how deeply you sleep or how many vivid dreams you may have, you're still going to wake up with whatever you were thinking about before you went off to LaLaLand.

There are some who believe that when we sleep we return to the Source from whence we came. Others believe slumber is nothing more than an unconscious state. And still others believe that sleeping is as close to death as we get while we're still here.

As far as I can tell, the jury is still out.

I like the "return to Source" one. Makes me happy to think about being able to "cross over" and come back again. Cool stuff. But then, consider the source (by that I mean the person who's writing this). I also believe in Santa Claus and magick. So it's not a stretch for me to grab hold of the crossing over thang. It's just fun to think about. And you know me...I'm all about the fun.

So then....let's say you lie down in bed and try to get your brain to stop whirring. You may have some little tricks you use to reach those ends. But still...it just keeps a-whirrin' and a-buzzin'; those pesky words you heard from a crabby neighbor or that spat you had with your bonehead roommate or the nasty confrontation you had with your boss. The words and the feelings they evoke just won't go away. Like gnats flyin' up your nose. ICK.

Finally, without a hint as to how or why, you fall asleep. And you dream. And dream. And dream.

And then you wake up....only to find those same thoughts right there at the forefront of your mind.

DANG IT!

OR....

You put on some soft music. And you slow down your breathing. And you just focus on that breath...in and out, in and out, in and out. You don't even have to try to stop your brain because you're so focused on the breathing and the lovely music and the coziness of your bed and that wonderful pillow you just bought that is absolutely perfect. There you are, lying in bed, with nary a thought about anything. And then ....ZZZZZZZ. Deep, restful slumber. When you wake up, you're refreshed and rested and happy to be alive. You hear the birds singing and the roosters cock-a-doodling (if you happen to be so lucky to have roosters nearby) and the trees whispering in the soft, morning wind. Your dog comes in with tail a-waggin', happy that you're awake. He jumps up on the bed and you snuggle for a little while, with a grin as big as a Cheshire cat. Your body is tingling. Your heart is full. Your new day has begun.

See the difference here?

breathe...1-2-3

Isn't it funny how sometimes after long and laborious searching we just kinda 'stumble' onto that very thing we've been searching for? Isn't it funny???

Well maybe not 'ha-ha' funny, but you know what I mean. You search and search and search some more until you're about to lose your mind...and then...WHAMMO! It shows up.

I think it's funny.

It's happened too many times for me to dismiss. In fact, in the past 4 or so years, it's happened a LOT. Every time I try...nothing seems to happen. The moment I throw up my hands and let go, the very thing shows up in the blink of an eye. What IS that?

I'll tell you what it is; (okay. remember: these are my perspectives, not some absolute 'law' thang. just reminding you about that part.) What it is is the Law in action. The Law being that Universal Truth that we so often overlook or dismiss or flat out push against. Everyone has a different name for it. The name doesn't matter. Whatever you call it, it's all around us all the time. If you're reading this now, you are, according to the common definition, "alive". If you're alive, you're living the Law, whether you know it or not. There's (the) "intentional living" and the "living by default". But either way, it's affecting you. Just like gravity. You get where I'm going with this, doncha?

But back to the point of all this...

As most of you (who read here regularly) know, I am most fond of telling a story to make my point (as opposed to the "how to" stuff). So the story goes like this:

For the past almost-4 years, I've been trying to meditate. You know...'sit down in a quiet space wearing comfortable clothes with no distractions and quiet your mind'. I've listened to countless recordings that were supposed to "guide" me through this process. I've read a gazillion books on the subject. I've talked with people who seem to do this with no effort whatsoever. I've prayed, begged, plead, whined, stomped my feet (oh yea. now there's a sure-fire way to get there, huh?), visualized, fantasized, written the words on paper (and subsequently burned them), well...you name it, I've tried it.

To no avail.

I'm an Ants-in-the-Pants kinda gal. I have a brain that goes fortygazillionmilesanhour. I am absolutely not the kind of person who does well sitting still in silence. (gee. what a surprise.) I've written about this stuff before...and shared with you the other ways I find my meditative state. Like gardening or cleaning my house. But I still wanted that sit-still-and-just-breath thing. The more I tried, the more I wasn't getting there. Finally, I just gave it up. I thought, "Well then Missy, maybe you're just not ready for that kinda thing. Leave it be. Quit banging your head on the wall. Move on to what you can do!"

Less than a week after I gave up the fight, something came to me (in an email) that got my heart dancing. From my friends Abraham (and the Hicks') a new meditation CD. Well, you know I had to get it. Just had to. The synchronicity of it all...and that it was Esther's voice (which I happen to love) on that CD was enough for me. "Besides," I thought, "if I don't like it, I can always give it to one of my friends." Went to Amazon and pre-ordered that baby. Got it 2 days after release and guess what?....I actually DID IT! I got my brain to be silent! I got my body to relax! I got in that space I've heard so much about. And all it took was....

"breath in 1-2-3, breath out 4-5-6-7-8" (and also some groovy music that helps you find that rhythm and, of course, Esther's voice in the back ground)

Now I want to tell you that I'm not here trying to promote the CD. I'm just sayin'...I gave up the 'fight' and the very thing I was searching for showed up. Almost instantly. And, to me, that is what the magic of The Law is all about. Do you think I'm pretty freakin' excited about now?

Yep.

Do you think it fortifies my beliefs?

Double Yep.

Do you think I'm going to ride this ride and YA-HOOOOOO my way through it?

Yep. Yep. Yep.

I'm thrilled that I found a way to be still for a whole 15 minutes.
I'm thrilled that this stillness actually does make me feel better.
I'm thrilled to share with you that YOU CAN DO IT TOO.
Just give up the 'fight'.
Let what you want come to you.


IT WILL.

back and forth

So how do you not think about the pain when the pain is so big? How do you not fight it? How do you move into the pain without having it consume you?

It's been said that our bodies know exactly how to heal themselves. That there is no malady nor injury we cannot completely recover from. The trick is to believe it. To actually feel it all the way to the core of our being...and just let go of the limiting thoughts that say "no you can't". I want to believe it. More than anything. Sometimes I actually do. Other times, not so much. The 'not so much' comes when the pain is so freakin' big that it immobilizes me. And that, in turn, just pisses me off.

So how does one get from "here" to "there"?

Maybe it's about the stillness. Maybe all that's required is to lie still, breath well, and let the energy of the whole splendid Universe do it's work. Maybe it's about laughing at it. Staring it right in the face and laughing at it for the jokester that it is. The laughter is healing...I do know this. And it's very effective when that freakin' pain is that freakin' big. So what's the mystery?

Today, as I vacillate between pain and humor, the warrior wants to fight; the goddess wants to soothe. The warrior is heading for her armory...to gather her weapons and don her suit of steel. The goddess is whispering loving endearments into my ears. Back and forth we go...until...it is time to just BE.