This week was a focus one the subtle mind.
Our meditation began with a focus on the breathing. Easy enough!!
However it took several attempts to actually succeed.
By successful, I mean able to calm my mind down enough to actually focus on breathing.
This is the week of mid-terms. My daughter, son in law and grandson are coming down.
I am actually taking a vacation next week,which means all my current clients must be taken care of, the future ones need to be scheduled and I need to be sure I have covered all my basis.
My son-in-law is training for a huge MMA competition and is wanting very healthy when he visits his mother-in-law , the wellness coach...who has time to breathe!!! My son does not drive, needs a ride to his odd-jobs and can't believe he is expected to be grateful!!
Life gets in the way of something as mundane as breathing.
BINGO !!!
The entire meaning behind this meditation.
When do we stop long enough for the body to simply breath??!
When I first saw our question, the answers were already formed in my mind. THEN I actually did the assignment.
Loving Kindness was much easier BUT Subtle mind was more rewarding.
I can't wait to combine these into one week.
I believe just taking the time to breathe is going to greatly impact my mental as well as my physical health.
I know I am looking forward to a peaceful sleep tonight!!!
I must admit that once I shut down enough to actually breathe,
the witness mind and calm abiding mind were simple.
Mind body and my mind accepted the quiet.
I was truly amazing!!
It is amazing how something as simple as breathing can change your whole outlook on your daily life. I have three toddlers who know how to get the best of me. I have noticed the more I do these breathing exercises, the more I am capable of calming myself during stressful moments. I agree that discovering the subtle mind was more rewarding that loving-kindness. I think loving-kindness is something we are all born with but lose over time. It is just a matter of finding it again. The subtle mind is something you have to truly work towards in order to find. It doesn't come as easy as loving-kindness.
ReplyDeleteSonya,
ReplyDeleteI think that one of the main reasons it was difficult to focus, and why myself, like you had to try it a few times to actually calm our minds down is because maybe we were treating it as an assignment. I was actually attempting to answer questions at the same time I was listening to it and my mind was wandering in both directions. Focus on the relaxation and focus on work. It created a good deal of frustration for me, but it was self-induced.
I do have to agree with you, once you get it, it truly helps.
As always, I love your posts.
Hi Sonya,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you have a full plate and I can most definitely relate. I love the sport of MMA. Is your son in law famous or someone I may know? I haven’t had much time to stop and take time off and do these exercises on a regular basis, but I do however use the breathing techniques throughout the day. They help me to relax and stay calm. For me I think the subtle mind was easier but the love and kindness was more rewarding. Have a great vacation and don’t forget to breath!
If you think that is hard, then go to a deprivation chamber. There are no sounds or light in a deprivation chamber and it is really easy to figure out just how loud we are mentally. I have gotten very good at being able to completely control myself both physically and mentally. However, I know I was far away from that several years ago. I have been using self-hypnosis for about 9 years now and I do it religiously. I do it everyday and about the same amount of time give or take a few extra minutes here and there. The more one does it the easier it becomes to just do it and the faster time moves when one is doing it. I remember one time where I meditated for over an hour and it seemed, like only about 10 minutes. I once also did some self-hypnosis that lasted several hours and it only felt, like maybe 20 minutes. I have gotten good enough that I almost come back out of it at a designated time that I choose before starting without even thinking about it again. However, I am not sure exactly how I started to be able to do that. I know once I am really in a meditative or hypnotic state that it is pretty much impossible to get me out of it until I am ready to come out. I also like to state that with practice it is almost like taking one of the best naps of your life and one comes back refreshed and ready to take the world on or at-least that is how it is for me.
ReplyDelete