Guided Meditation • Visualization • Mindfulness

During this weeks classes we discussed how we can move beyond our egos.  Some students, however, felt strongly that we need our egos.  The most common concerns were,  ego is necessary for human consciousness to evolve on this planet, without ego we would be too passive to create anything, ego is helpful in creating strong personal (and national) boundaries, and ego is what makes us unique individuals.

An argument can be made that without ego human consciousness would not have evolved as it is now.  However, the question is, is the ego useful to the continued evolvement of consciousness on this planet, and if not, can we let it go?

All of the hurt and dysfunction in our lives and the lives of others are the result of unchecked ego.

Your true nature is whole, perfect, and complete.  Ego is simply a condition that arises when humans are separate from their true, perfectly good, natures.

Ego is sustained by a wanting that can never be satiated. The ego wants love, power, and immortality.  The more divided we are from our true nature the more prevalent ego is in our lives.

We chase after love hoping to feed our emptiness.  We deny love to those whom we feel aren’t worthy of it.  Egoic love is conditional and conditional love is ephemeral and painful.

Poverty and hunger are the manifestations of the ego’s insatiable need for power.

Arguments and violent conflict in the home and between nations arise from our personal and collective need to be right, an extension of the need for power.

In the west we have an unhealthy denial of death, and as a result we are obsessed with youth and vitality and eschew the wisdom that comes with age.

The ego keeps us blind to the truth that we are an interdependent species; we thrive as individuals when we are harmonious in our communities.

Ego only serves me if I wish to continue to create suffering for myself and others.  Inner peace and ego are mutually exclusive. They cannot occupy the same space.

More next week

Shanti, Shalom, Salaam, Peace

—Read, “The New Earth,” by Eckhart Tolle

Sit in a comfortable position.  Lightly, close your eyes, open and close your mouth to relax your jaw, and move your shoulders away from your ears. Breathe.  When you become aware that you are thinking, move your attention back into the body. Breathe. This is meditation.

You are at work and a colleague is speaking to you. Breathe. While she is still speaking, you notice that you are thinking about the next thing you want to say.  Let the conversation in your head go and come back into your body. Breathe.  This is meditation.

You are at home and you are angry with your teenage child.  Breathe. You notice the sensation of anger in your belly.  Your face, neck, and shoulders are tense.  You do not have to let go of the anger.  Just Breathe.  Come back to your body, consciously relax the face, and move the shoulders away from the ears.  Breathe.  This is meditation.

Shanti, Shalom, Salaam, Peace

Join me for a special meditation service at the Redondo Beach Center for Spiritual Living.

The theme is, “Healing Relationships, Healing the World.” Come, and together we will cultivate inner peace that will heal our relationships and the world.

Where: RBCSL

907 Knob Hill Ave., Redondo Beach, CA 90277

Phone: 310-540-5080   Web: http://redondocrs.org

Cost: Love Donation

What you think about yourself is vital to your mental, physical, and spiritual well-being.  What you think about yourself is proportional to how race, socio-economic class, gender, and  level of education are interpreted in the society in which you live.  Another very important factor is how well loved you were as a child.

All of this cultural and personal ”stuff” has created an unconscious image that you refer to as your “self. ” How you interpret this “stuff,” either as positive or negative, will determine your personal level of happiness.

Over-coming the belief that you are powerless in the face of external circumstances is the most difficult aspect of any spiritual or self-development path.

Perhaps you were not well loved as a child, you live in a culture where you are considered a second class citizen, or you are hungry for food, shelter, warmth, love.  Your external reality may indeed be a source of pain and suffering.

However, the question you need to ask yourself is this, “Am I going to continue to be vicitmized by being in mental agreement with what my parents, society, or circumstances say about who I am and what I am capable?  Or am I going to live an empowered happy life?”

Here are three things you can do today to change your thinking and empower yourself:

1. Listen to your thoughts and challenge your negative beliefs.  Ask yourself, “Is this thought serving me?”  “Is it empowering?” “Is it helpful?”  If not, then consciously choose another thought that does serve you, that is empowering, that is helpful.

2. Read a short story about a person who has overcome a similar circumstance.  Then tell yourself, “If she could do it, then so can I.” Keep this story handy so you can look at it when you feel unsure.

3. Take one situation that isn’t working the way you would like it to, and re-write it to reflect how you would like it to be.  In this re-write paint yourself as the hero, say what you  want, do what you need to, and be the person who triumphs!

Shanti, Shalom, Peace

Hold the cup in your hands.  Feel how its warmth radiates in your palms and fingers.  Inhale.  Feel the steam.  Inhale again and follow its scent.  Can you taste the coffee on the back of your palette when you inhale deeply?   Slowly sip your coffee, taste it, and follow the smooth warm liquid.  Can you feel it in your chest?  Can you feel it in your stomach? Inhale deeply and take another moment to give thanks for the earth, sun, and rain.  Give thanks for the growers, harvesters, and truck drivers.  Imagine all the people that were involved in bringing you your one cup of coffee.  Give thanks.  Feel blessed.  The Folger’s Coffee commercial is right, this is a great way to start your day.

Shanti, Shalom, Peace

I have been journaling on and off since my early twenties.  I have used it as a tool for stress relief and insight.  My journaling practice has been as valuable to my personal well-being and the evolution of my consciousness as meditation and in this article I’m going to teach you how to journal.

I employ two types of journaling practice:  The first is called free-writing and the second is called contemplative journaling.

Free-writing is stream of consciousness writing.  Many professional writer’s employ free-writing as a warm-up tool but I feel it is invaluable on its own.  The purpose is, is that if you write long enough you will by-pass “thinking-mind,” or conditioned thought, and enter into a new and fresh perspective.  Free-writing is therapeutic because you are able to dump all of the stress and mental chatter onto the page.   During every class, there is at least one student who is astounded by her own depth and creativity and you will be too.

Here’s how you do it:  Set the kitchen timer or your phone for 5 to 15 minutes (the longer the better) and write down the first thought, image, or feeling that comes into your head.  If you don’t know what to write, write, “I don’t know what to write…” If you think the assignment is too meaningless, write, “This assignment is meaningless, it’s…” During class, I will give the students a sentence to use as a writing prompt.  At home, take a book off the shelf, open it up randomly, and write down the first sentence you see.  This will also help to get you started.

The most important aspects of free-writing are:  write continuously, write exactly what comes into your mind no matter how absurd, and give yourself the freedom of misspelled words and poor grammar.  The point is not to over think what you are writing, just write, just be free.

Shanti, Shalom, Peace!

Relaxation is only the beginning of meditation, relaxation is not meditation. 

 Meditation is an opportunity for you to connect with the well-spring of peace, love, and joy within.  It is the practice where you cultivate a meaningful relationship with your authentic Self.  At its best, meditation is a practice where you learn the art of  listening with your entire self…mind, body, and spirit.  

The beginning of your practice should always be to relax the body consciously, then you wait.  You wait upon the still small voice within to “speak” to you.  It will.  It may come to you as a gentle breeze that caresses the skin, the sound of birds singing outside of your window, or as a wonderful coincidence sometime during your day.  It may speak as an inner knowing, a deep feeling of release, or as an inner sigh. 

Give yourself enough time for your practice, at least three minutes after relaxation, to wait and listen.  Accept the invitation  to go deeper into the nature of Being.

Shanti

Hello,

Spring 2011 classes start tomorrow at the Redondo Beach Center for Spiritual Living.  Hope to see you all there!