Louise Fisichella...
Louise Fisichella has studied Comparitive Religions,Yoga, nutrition and health for over 30 years
Yo Prayer and Meditation -
Part III
MEDITATION
Many times over the years it has been suggested to me that I would benefit from Meditation. And it seems that the excuses not to are never ending. Time and time again I would start and quit a meditation program of one kind or another. At one point in my practice of Magik I would do certain meditations that were related to whatever I had been working on. Then after I had accomplish what ever that was, I would stop. That is up until almost four years ago.
Around that time my husband began a daily, structured program of meditation with a school headquartered in New York City. And that is what made the difference for both of us. I guess I need the structure and accountability of a more formal education. Since I am a "goal orientated" person it is important for me to work within a structure of successes and measured progressions.
I am not here to promote my particular "school” or training. It seems to me that whatever form you might choose or whatever school you practice at, the point is to get started. Since I had some exposure to meditation in my past it wasn’t hard to tell what type of meditation I could adopt. If you are a beginner I suggest you try at least a half a dozen kinds before you start investing a lot of time and energy into any one system. So, you can go on line and check out different systems or you can check out some of the local schools in your area. If you feel pressure or someone is promising you "enlightenment", run! If you are not comfortable for any reason, go on to the next school or person until you find a place of comfort.
Meditation is a lifelong practice and when I started I was very patient with myself. Although I did commit to a daily schedule and set time to exercise. Yes, I said exercise. Because that is the way I looked at meditation in the very beginning. And it is an exercise for the brain and a challenge for the being. Most of my life I have felt hurried, hyped up on caffeine, or sugar, with poor sleeping habits, stress, drugs, general dis-function makes the thought of sitting still very difficult to imagine! Isn’t that the case with so many people or even most people. All these things make our lives seem out of control. For me, I did have to get the chemicals in my body out. Meditating on chemicals as mentioned above will make the process difficult if not impossible.
This is not the kind of news many people want to hear. The truth is that you won’t get the desired effects from your practice and will most likely abandon it. After all why would someone continue spending time and energy on an activity if they don’t get a benefit from it? If you smoke cigarettes meditation isn’t for you, why? Because every 20 minutes you’re going to want one and then the rest of the time you’ll spend “urging”. As is true with just about any chemical, but with cigarettes the time in between cravings is much shorter. So, there is another reason to quit!
It was quite a while into my practice that I actually felt the effects of meditation. Progressive Muscle Relaxation and the connection in the brain is something that takes time, once you get it down it happens automatically. That is one benefit which will improve your daily life. Being able to just think “relax” and it happens all over instantaneously! Just relax….wow, how many people would you like to say that to!? If everyone meditated it wouldn’t it be at least half as hard to live and work with each other?
At some point, I began to “leave” my feelings behind. In what is called by some “detachment”. The word itself is used in many different contexts and some of them are derogatory. It doesn’t mean you don’t care, it means you look at the emotion with logic and reason. So, in other words I can be logical and apply that to my emotions. This comes in very handy when you feel yourself getting over whelmed with a feeling, you can rise “above” it. This takes practice. How many times a day do you find yourself in the middle of some emotion wondering why you’re thinking about that again? Detachment gives you a chance to view it from a different angle and move past it so that your emotions don’t “own” what you’re thinking. You have trained your brain to do what you want it to with the daily practice of meditation!
The control of the body and brain leads to thinking in the “higher-mind” or “illumined mind”. This is the place you want to get to. It is where the deep feelings of peace, calm, centeredness begin. When people talk about the benefits they get from meditation it might seem a bit vague to many who haven’t been practicing. It is in the illumined mind where all the real changes occur, to get to that point took me years. Maybe I am a slow learner, maybe I had more pre-conceived ideas about meditation to let go of and maybe that is about average. I do not know. What is obvious to me is that given enough time and patience, I believe, anyone can benefit from a disciple program of meditation.
Eventually you will see the changes in your attitude, relationships, awareness, and calmness. The people around you will respond to you instead of react. Situations in public that used to turn your face red can now be seen as an opportunity to relax. The frustration with children, traffic, or work environment will not cause you the upset you may have experienced in the past. Reminding the body to relax regularly becomes second hand. With regular control over your body through meditation, just suggesting to yourself to relax will cause your muscles to release. In times of crisis, your calmness will fill the room and others will benefit from your presence.
In the meditations that I do there are opportunities toward the end to pray for the human race and send light, love and power to everyone Worldwide. I recently read a report where a group of people went into Washington, DC and meditated for the summer. The crime rate dropped 20%. So, they continued to other cities and in each case the crime rate in the area went down. Do I believe I alone can make a difference in my community just by meditating alone, yes! The answer is an affirmative. With enough individuals taking up meditating on a regular daily basis we can make a difference in the World. Our daily interactions with each other would be much easier if we all felt the life changing effects of calm, peace, and serenity in our own lives. Much of the problems in the World are based in fear and anger, neither of which would be so prevalent if we were all meditating!
So, what’s stopping you from benefitting from meditation? Let me know at Louise@Higher-ground.com.
As always you can e-mail me and I will help guide you towards more learning and exploration of alternatives to traditional Western eating!
Contact Louise at Go Figure Body Works
E-mail: Louise Fisichella
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