Christmas Meditation

A FESTIVE SEASON MEDITATIVE EXERCISE

Meditative Exercises are brief and simple practices that provide us with an opportunity to simple PAUSE .. BREATHE .. and LET GO.   In this way we apply the apply the skill of meditation into the busy-ness of every day life.

The festive season can be an extremely stressful and anxious time for many people. There is lots to be done, the shops and streets are too busy, we find ourselves constantly spending money and worrying subconsciously about how much, there is cooking, cleaning and organising to do.

This is when our regular meditation practice can be put into the 'not enough time' basket .. which only makes us feel more frantic and out of touch.

Meditative Exercises can fill the gap until you settle yourself and find some time for your usual meditation practice.

What we need however is a mindfulness bell .. the bell that tolls at retreat to remind us to pause and observe body and mind, to take a breath and reconnect. 

Christmas carols can be your mindfulness bell!

Each time you are notice a Christmas carol (or festive music) .. stop what you are doing and bring your awareness right into the present moment.   

PAUSE what you are doing

NOTICE where is your body .. where is your mind?

RELEASE your shoulders, your jaw, your face and allow a moment to scan through your body noticing any areas that you can relax and soften

BREATHE slow, gentle and long. Take your inhalation through the nose and feel the cool air .. take your exhalation through your mouth, allowing the breath to simply fall out of the body

OBSERVE how simple and relaxing it is to just breath and pause a moment. And in this moment everything is manageable and ok.

GIVE thanks for this breath, this moment, this day.

SMILE to yourself and to others to share the spirit of the season.

By practicing this technique regularly over the coming weeks, little by little, a subtle relaxed alertness will begin to weave into your day. When you know that you can access this relaxation at any time you will begin to feel more in control and in touch with your life. Even on the busiest of days (or perhaps, especially on the busiest of days) you can always find a moment to pause and breathe.

"In the clarity of a quiet mind,

there is room for all that is actually happening

 and whatever else might also be possible."

(Ram Dass)

The Soothing Rain Meditation

Ah the rain!

At this time of year in our meditation classes we often experience the loudness and urgency of Mother Nature while meditating.  

A few years ago I held classes in this amazing space that sat right on the edge of the beach, right on the sea wall where there was little protection from the elements or the gale force winds that batter the windows. 

Once inside we felt sheltered and safe, but we connected most beautifully with the rains urgency, the pounding on the tin roof, and the wind singing through the sail rigging on the balcony.

At home I sleep with the sound of rain on the tin roof carport .. since a child I have loved this soundscape, and certainly sleep better listening to the pitter-patter, serenaded by mother nature while she waters our parched earth and gardens.

All ‘grist for the mill’ as I say in class. There is nothing like the immediacy of a raging storm to anchor our attention in the present moment.

Wherever we find ourselves .. in any moment .. there is always a unique soundscape to observe .. which brings an invitation to listen, to notice, to feel.

As an organic, present moment meditation simply brig your awareness into this present moment and notice the arrival and departure of sounds around you.

And if it rains .. allow the arrival of rain to be your trigger .. to remind you to stop a moment and really listen. Open the window, breath in and smell the colour 'green', and watch the gentle falling of water from the heavens down to earth. Rest your gaze on the water sliding down the window, or falling on your garden, hear the soothing music, pay attention, listen.

And notice your posture, the way you are holding your body .. notice your mind, and the way you are holding your thoughts.

“May you always have walls for the winds, a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire, laughter to cheer you, those you love near you and all your heart might desire.” [Irish Blessing]

Pebble for Your Pocket Meditation

Mindfulness is an ancient practice that simply requires us to attend non-judgementally to the present moment (rather than bouncing around between past, present and future .. the open spaceland of non attention).

When we rest our focus in the present moment .. everything seems to slow down, we really ‘see’ what is happening in our life, we can be more open in heart and mind. Mindfulness practices teach us how to simply focus on being present .. to the breath, the movement of our body as we walk, the wind in our hair, the sun on our face .. the sounds around us.

In this mindfulness practice Thich Nhat Hahn, the Zen Buddhist monk suggests that we go for a walk and find a pebble that we like, and then sit quietly for a while with the pebble in our hand:

"Dear Buddha,

Here is my pebble. I am going to practice with it when things go wrong during the day. Whenever I am angry or upset, I will take the pebble in my hand and breathe deeply. I will do this until I calm down."

(of course you don't have to include the Buddha or anyone else if you don't wish to .. trust in what feels right for you.)

We place our pebble in our pocket and it travels with us wherever we go. At any time during the day, if we find ourselves stressed, angry or upset, we put our hand in our pocket, take hold of the pebble, and remind ourselves to just breathe .. “Breathing in, I notice that I feel stress. Breathing out, I release all stress and holding and invite in ease and calmness”.

This YouTube meditation from Thich Nhat Hahn includes four pebbles :

#1 : reminds us to be ‘fresh like a flower’ : breathing in ‘fresh’ and breathing out ‘I am a flower’

#2 : reminds us that we can choose to be stable and solid in mind, emotions, thoughts and love : breathing in ‘solid’ and breathing out ‘like a mountain’

#3 : reminds us of the power of still water, that our mind are like a still lake reflecting all our actions, thoughts and anxieties. It is when we are still of mind and body that we are able to see what is really happening within us: breathing in ‘water/stillness’ and breathing out ‘reflecting’

#4 : reminds us of spaciousness, a quality that we can rest within and offer to others : breathing in ‘spaciousness’ within and around us and breathing out ‘I am free’.

I really like the inclusion of touch awareness in meditation .. carrying your pebbles (each carrying an intention .. a reminder) so that you have something solid and ‘at hand’ for your journey.

You can find loads of meditations from Thich Nhat Hahn on YouTube, or search out his many books , or visit his website Plum Village.  [Picture Stack Stones by etcwhatever]