Several years ago I meditated on a bowl of oatmeal. It just happened (no drugs were involved, promise). I focused on the oatmeal in my bowl, and every other thought was gone. I became aware of the miracle in my bowl. I thought of the enormous web of people involved in bringing the oatmeal to my table: the employees of the company that produced the seeds and the fertilizers, the steel and rubber plant employees that built the many different types of trucks that transported the seeds and other ingredients and made the machines that tilled the fields, the drivers, the thousands of people that worked to make the gasoline for those trucks, the plant that manufactured the paper, the inks, the glue for the packaging, the people that built and maintained the power lines for these factories. On and on. You get the picture. A cast of probably a hundred thousand at least, and the miracle of it all, to me, was that all of this was done for $1.39!! All of these people had worked a tiny fraction of their lives so I could have this oatmeal. I don't know if I can convey how amazing this was to me, but this is the power of meditation. It changes your perspective and deepens your understanding of everything in life.
I have been advocating, studying, and practicing different forms of mediation in my practice for 15 years because there is a great deal of evidence that it is a very health-promoting tool for living.
One book I often recommend to people is "The Eight Minute Meditation" by Victor Davich. This book is useful because it takes the reader on a tour of 8 different types of meditation-one per week. By the end of the program, you are likely to have found the style that suits you. Having found the approach that suits you, you can then dig your well deeply. There are many forms of meditation, but the practices seem to have at least two elements in common: a focusing of attention and relaxation.
Until recently, I have been mostly aware of the forms of meditation that focus on the breath, a mantra, music or progressive relaxation of the muscles-what I think of as an ‘empty' focus.
During the meditative experience, people nearly always notice that their mind becomes distracted from their chosen focus, by what I call the "thought generator". Like an automatic tennis ball machine, it serves up one thought after another, ignoring whether you engage the thought or not. It seems to have a life of its own. In fact, if you pay attention to it, you will notice that it's feeding you thoughts through out your day. Some might be innocuous. Some might cause you trouble (‘Jim doesn't like me') by subtly evoking disturbing feelings (hurt, anger, resentment). As you pay attention to this process more and more, you will begin to notice that much of your energy throughout the day goes towards dealing with these thoughts. You have an energy drain, courtesy of your mind. These thoughts, an aspect of your mind, are running you. In one sense, mediation is a method of dealing with this aspect of the mind.
Recently I have come across a form of mediation that might make a lot more sense for many people than the ‘empty focus' methods, and so I want to share it with you. Eknath Easwaran, in his book Conquest of Mind, describes this method. In this method, rather than focusing on your breath, your muscles, music or a mantra, your meditation is focused on specific prayers that contain wisdom for living.
So for example, one might mediate on the 23rd psalm.
Here is an example of how it works for me:
"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want."
For me, the Lord is that part of me that is my core, the essence of who I am. So when I think "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want", to me it means: IF I am centered enough in my life that I allow my self to follow my highest core self, then I shall not want, everything will fall into place. (By the way, meditation helps people find their higher self, the part that is spiritual, connected, and uniquely you)
"He makes me lie down in green pastures"
As I follow my highest self (He), I will automatically have creative (green=growth, creation), soul sustaining experiences, and I will be able to see long distances, unobstructed. I will have vision.
"He guides me besides the still waters"
As I live into my highest self, I will experience certain peace, calmness, and lack of turbulence, despite external events.
"He restores my soul."
There is no question that living in harmony with ones core self is restorative, and regenerative, and protective of health.
"He guides me along the path of righteousness, for the sake of his name."
Dedication to my highest self keeps me on a path of integrity, doing the right thing; And in doing so, and learning what this is like, I can honor the spiritual process, and model it for others.
Of course the psalm goes on, and other prayers have other foci (check out St France's Prayer of Peace), but you get the point. I think this method is brilliant: instead of an empty focus, you are really downloading software into your mind, activating your higher, core self. You still get the relaxation, but with this method, there is a bonus. You are programming health-inducing thoughts and behaviors which will help guide you through your day, help you stay on your chosen path, improve your relationships, and your self esteem.
To Life,
Dr. Hedaya
www.wholepsych.com
