Meditation -- Choices

Everyday we can wake up and get out of bed making the choice to live consciously each moment or live life on automatic (asleep). What's your choice?

 

Wherever You Go, There You Are, is the title of a book written by jon kabat-zinn, a Zen teacher. He offers many great lessons on learning how to be present in this moment.

A consistent practice of being mindfully aware of your body and sensations helps stop the mind from being so busy thinking,projecting and worrying. When your mind is quiet, there is space for you to learn something new and be aware of so much more. An open and empty mind has vast spaciousness to receive a deeper knowing, more complete knowing and far greater clarity.

You may want to try the following practice:

When you open your eyes, stir and realize you are waking up, do you complete the task and become really awake or just go back into sleep, as you clamber out of bed. You know, mind on automatic, worrying, planning, grumping, etc., never really focusing on this moment and this breath.

 

Just this one morning, try really waking up.

• Focus on your body, no other thoughts.
• Wiggle your toes and really feel them, then your feet, your ankles, then your calves, knees and on up the body.
• Pay careful attention to each body part.
• Breath deeply into your abdomen, and really be aware of your body and breath.
• As you carefully and slowly rise out of bed, notice each movement of your hands, elbows, when your feet touch the floor, the sensations of the cold floor or cushy carpet or whatever your feet touch.
• Really pay attention to your micro-movements without thinking any thoughts to distract you from this 1 - 2 minute waking up practice. All your thoughts, worries and plans can wait for that length of time.
• Then get on with your day as you normally would.

  See what happens when you make a wide awake, conscious choice to begin your day this way. And if you can, try it for at least a week. Be faithful.

  During the day, when you remember this:
• Every hour or so, take 30 seconds to 1 minute to focus inward. And,
• stop and sense your body, your sensations just for a few moments,
• stop all your thinking and activity.
• Focus on your breath and your body, deeply breathing into your belly. See what happens to your day. Are there any changes in your attitude about stressful things.

Please write me and let me know the results of your experiment with choosing to "wake up" and be present to your own body and breath.

 

If this practice interests you and you want to know more about the spiritual underpinnings of this form of practice I recommend the following book for further research:

Kabat-Zinn , J. 1994, Wherever you go, There You Are: mindfulness meditation
in everyday life. New York, Shambhala

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