Ways to Get a Daily Grip on Life via Meditation
As we all work, take care of loved ones, and field a hundred and one other challenges, most of us are also thinking of what we need to do next to resolve big decisions as they come up.
Sometimes choices are obvious, other times they lose out to minute to minute demands.
Deepak Chopra is an inspiring author/speaker, who brings direct approaches to the life questions we all face. He cuts right through, suggesting we go for clarity using meditation to put our minds in charge. He suggests using meditation to establish clear priorities, recognize time taking distractions, and organize thoughts. He says meditation is like a river that runs fast on top but becomes slow and steady at the bottom.
Finding Your Meditation Rivers
If you are already meditating you may be using its power to improve life. If you are thinking about meditation, and not sure where to start, trying a class could help you jump in. Either way, most people that I know, who try meditation, are glad they did.
For me it is a low key meditation on the patio, loosely following mindful meditation theory. As I take timeouts and simply sit still, absorbing the sun and the breeze, I let my thoughts walk by. The good, the bad and, all of the things in between, move through. Sometimes the parade is full of funny little happenings with friends, or more sobering thoughts about someone having serious health issues. Other times, the parade lets in straggling thoughts of past losses or richer joys. It does not matter who or what shows up. The idea is not to judge, but just let everything be observed.
Later, I find myself feeling more relaxed and thinking more clearly.
In other times, I walk in a nearby park or head to a small uncrowded beach. Just pausing in the early morning, or after the day’s rush, helps to give the mind some relief and a chance to regroup. Some mornings I join a Tai Chi class in the park and let the swaying movements become meditation. I always come away smiling with a fresher approach, knowing where I want to go next and what should come first.
As Chopra says, “By committing to the practice of meditation, you take your mind to this level where clarity is natural and effortless.” The clearer we can think the more we know who we are and what we want.
Used under Creative Commons Licensing courtesy of Mariana Heinz