Why do we meditate? During these days we may be experiencing continued angst, confusion and uncertainty - concerning the health of the world, the health and wellbeing of family friends and ourselves. We may indeed ask ourselves why do we bother to practice - as it takes time , effort, commitment and quite frankly energy that some of us feel we do not have!
Meditation has to do with opening what is closed, constricted or contracted in us, balancing what is reactive, and exploring and investigating what may be hidden. That is the why of practice. We practice to open, expand, balance, and explore. How is it in our bodies right now? Are we feeling constricted? Agitated? How is it in our minds right now? Are we lost in thought, in judgment, in fantasy, and in daydreams so that we do not pay attention to the direct experience of our senses—to sight and sound, to smell and taste, to sensations of the body. Because our attention is often scattered, perceptions are clouded. But as we sit in awareness and attention we may find we spend less time lost in thought, and we may notice calm, sensitivity and discernment.
We also begin to open the body. Often there is not a free flow of energy in the body, and as we direct our awareness inward, we experience in a very clear and intimate way the accumulated tensions, knots, and holdings that are present. There are several different kinds of painful feelings that we might experience, and learning to distinguish and allow. Awareness of these feelings of discomfort, pain, emotion - or even the lack of any of these, are an important part of meditation practice, because it is one of the very first things that we open to as our practice develops. How is it in our heart right now?
For me and for so many in the community of those who practice and/or spend time in prayer… Bringing meditation and loving awareness to this moment and to this world right now is not an option. As Jon Kabat Zinn says, “We practice as if our life depends on it - because it actually does”.
Meditation Practice: June 30th, 2020
Stay safe and be well,