Back to Meditation - Day #8

Yogis,

So one week of meditation already!  How is everyone doing out there?

Hopefully it is beginning to feel a little more like part of your day.  But don’t be frustrated if you are finding it challenging.  That is quite normal.   We have had our whole lives to bring the mind to the busy state it is in now, so it will take some time and patience to gradually settle it.  But know that where you are headed is back to your natural state. 

Our mind can feel like a turbulent ocean, with one wave coming right after another.  Making it hard to sit still, feel at peace and have clarity……

 

But as we “sit” we ever so slowly begin to see that the waves - the thoughts – are not us.  Through our exhales we can settle in as if we are sitting at the bottom of the deep end of the pool, just watching the activity above.  And the more we detach from the stream of thoughts, the less energy we give them……until finally they settle.

 

And here is where we find clarity.  Everyone together - Aaaahhhhhhhhh………….!

 

Every day……..at least 10 minutes.

Following my exhales into the void,

SARAH

Back to Meditation - Day #7

Meditating Yogis,

Exhaling completely……completely……….nothing to hold on to.  Letting everything go. 

Learn how to exhale, the inhale will take care of itself.       ~Carla Melucci Ardito

 

As you become  quiet and watch your breath, notice the pause between the breaths.  The gap that exists between the bottom of the exhale and the rise of the new inhale.   It is already there.  It is always there.  You just have to become still enough to notice.  Spend time there.

We too should make ourselves empty, that the great soul of the universe may fill us with its breath.

~Laurence Binyon

Every day……..at least 10 minutes.

Surrendering to the breath,

SARAH

Back to Meditation - Day #6

Yogis,

We have spent the last 5 days getting acquainted with our breath.   So simple, yet the study and practice of breath, pranayama, is a path in and of itself, and has the power to be life changing.

 

For the next several days  we will explore the technique of entering the void….the gap….the space between the breaths. 

When I began meditating I used this technique for quite a while.

·         Begin by settling into your seat – both physically and emotionally.  Bringing yourself right here, noticing the space around you.

·         Find your alignment by rooting down with your tailbone and sit bones to lengthen and stack the spine.  Chin is level, shoulders dropped and crown of the head reaching. 

·         Take a slow scan of the body starting with the crown and moving all the way down to the feet checking for areas of holding – common culprits being the jaw, shoulders, hands, belly and feet.   If you find any place of tension, bring your mind there and ask it to relax. 

·         Tune into your breath.  Watching the rise of the inhale and fall of the exhale.   Relax into the rhythm of the breath.  Allow your exhales to be complete.

·         Now begin to notice the slight pause at the end of the exhale.  First simply notice it.  The pause between breaths.  It is always there.

·         Then over time begin to lengthen it.   No struggle.   Just following your exhales down with your awareness all the way into this void….this space….. being there as long as is comfortable.  Floating there. 

·         And as soon as the body has the need for breath, allow yourself to be filled with the next inhale. 

The void is a place which contains nothing…yet contains the potential for everything.  In this gap between the breaths is a profound stillness. 

It is a place you want to get to know well!

So grateful to have you all on this journey with me,

SARAH

Back to Meditation - Day #5

From the Yoga Sutras by Patanjali:

I, 2

Yoga

is experienced

in that mind

which has

ceased

to identify itself

with its

vacillating waves of perception.

 

Once we have arrived in stillness in our meditation, we can begin to “see” our thoughts.  Taking a small step back to watch them.   Becoming the observer.  We are not our thoughts.  Thoughts are just waves and we can learn to ride them, direct them, choose them….. or let them go completely. 

I, 12

The vacillating waves of perceptions

are stilled through consistent earnest practice

and

dispassionate non-attachment.

I, 13

That practice

is indeed firmly grounded

when it is pursued incessantly,

with reverence,

for a long time.

 

Every day…..at least 10 minutes.

Tomorrow I will introduce a new technique to work with.  I welcome any feedback that you have on your experiences as well as any questions.

Breathing in, breathing out,

SARAH

Back to Meditation - Day #4

Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet. It’s a way of entering into the quiet that’s already there – buried under the 50,000 thoughts the average person thinks every day.

– Deepak Chopra

 

We will each find that we favor one or the other – the inhale or the exhale.  And even just this simple act of noticing is meditation. 

The inhale is a form of receiving.  Through the exhale we give.  Softening so that we can be open to both…………. 

Every day…..at least 10 minutes.

 

Breathing in, and breathing out,

SARAH

Back to Meditation - Day #3

Meditative Yogis,

Stop whatever you are doing right now.  Just stop completely.  Become aware of your surroundings – the objects, the colors, the temperature, the sounds, your posture.   Your heartbeat.   Meditation is simply stopping to notice. 

These next few days we will continue with the simple watching of the breath. 

Notice the rise of the inhale ……………….. lengthening, lifting, life affirming, filling

       The fall of the exhale………. relaxing, releasing, allowing, letting go

Every breath unique.  Every breath an opportunity for something amazing.

 

Stopping to notice.

Every day……at least 10 minutes.

AAaaaaaahhhhhhhh………………

SARAH

Back to Meditation - Day #2

Meditating Yogis,

By now most of you have had one, or maybe two meditations.  Just checking in!

 

 

I have heard from a few of you, and could feel the rest of you in my morning meditation this morning.  Our meditation virtual community is now 45 strong.  Think of all of that amazing calming energy.  Feel it around you as you do your daily “sit”, knowing that you are supported.   It is as if we are weaving a web of peace.  And not only will it help you, but those around us will sense it too.  How could they not?

Simple.  Breathing in. Breathing out.

Every day…….  At least 10 minutes…….

Some days will seem easy, and some will challenge you.  Simply watch that.  Let each one be as it is supposed to be. No expectations.

Intimate with my breath,

SARAH