In our discussion last week during our Ethos Living Room Sessions we discussed in depth the topic of meditation. Moenau Rivera had some great personal experiences with this practice that I asked her to share. Here are some thoughts from my good friend Moenau Rivera.
“Meditation is one of the most powerful things you can do to progress on your spiritual path or spiritual growth. Meditation also has huge benefits for your health and wellbeing, for maintaining a positive mental state, and for providing insight into who you really are. I can honestly say that meditation has been one of the tools that has made a big difference in my life. It helped me when I felt alone, depressed, and lost. It built a lot of confidence in me, I felt more connected with myself.
Most people do not realize that there are many ways to meditate. Meditation is not religious. Meditation is about focusing within, to connect with ourselves as a physical beings. Here’s what I learned these past months and what I discovered about the many ways to meditate.
1. Contemplation– Contemplate an idea, a word or a thought. That’s a way to meditate. Most people think meditation is the absence of thought, and yes, this is one way to meditate, but so is using the power of thought to Contemplate the deeper meaning of love by gently holding the idea of love in your mind. Allow yourself to tune into the feeling of love, the vibration of love, and with practice to tune into deeper insight as to what love really means. The women’s group is actually working on a book called “you can heal yourself” and we talk about the power of thought. That’s exactly the type of meditation I’m talking about right here.
2. Mindfulness– Being fully present in the moment is being mindful, and yes, is a great way to meditate. Instead of judging or reacting, allow yourself to simply observe your very own thoughts, life situations, and ideas. To be mindful is to be aware, and through this you are able to quiet your ego mind and open yourself.
3. Focus/ Concentration is also another way to meditate. Calm your mind and focus fully on a task, a thing. Complete focus on what you are doing is a great way to meditate. You can meditate in this way while walking, folding laundry, driving, riding a bicycle, driving a car, doing dishes, or even eating. Release any chatter from the mind that pops up, and focus fully on what you are doing in the present moment.
4. Breathe– You breathe every day without thinking. However, by really focusing on your breathing, and mindfully taking each breath in while being fully aware of each breath out, you are meditating! Controlling your breathing will help you focus on your mind, and allow your heart to open and your spirit to lift.
5. Intently listen– Another way to meditate, listening and being receptive is a powerful form of meditation. With practice by quieting your mind, and using your inner senses to listen you are able to receive guidance, insight, frequency and even healing. I’m struggling to use this way of meditation, but I believe this is what my friend Danielle is doing when she works on people through physical therapy. Listening and feeling people’s bodies, their blood flow and sense their physical pain points are all part of listening.
6.Guided meditation is one of the most common ways to meditate. Guided meditation is a form of a listening meditation designed to calm your mind and to connect with your soul. Listening to guided meditations may combine several types of meditation by simply breathing, relaxing and listening you can gain full benefit, which will increase as you continue to practice.
7. Visualization– Here is another type of meditation which doesn’t involve shutting down your mind, but rather focusing. A lot of big achievers use this type of meditation on a daily basis. With visualization meditation, you’re able to create positive thoughts, and mental pictures of what you would like to see and experience in your life. This is a powerful way to send healing towards yourself.
8. Mantra– One of the most common ways to meditate is by repeating a mantra, or even a sound in your mind (or aloud) which can help you to shift away from the ego mind, and into deeper levels of awareness and connection with spirit. You can use a simple word or sentences and recite them over and over. For example: “Be the change you wish to see in the world”, “I Am who I Am” “Om mani padme Om….” Or you can simply use a sound like OMMM……or any other sound which calls to your soul. Some people use tools like mala beads or rosary, where you count the beads and recite a mantra as your fingers move along each bead.
9. Prayer/ Invocation- this way of meditating is an opportunity for you to call whoever you believe in, your God, the universe, the spirit or the angels, Buddha, mother Mary, etc… Practicing meditation, in whatever form you choose is key to experiencing the positive benefits. Create a rhythm of meditating every day, and you will be able to begin to watch the benefits manifest into all areas of your life. There are probably more ways to meditate, but these are the ones i know. I personally tried to work on the focus/concentration meditation and visualization meditation. Honestly it’s better to try all of them and find what works best for you.
Either way, meditation is a working progress. You need to turn this into a habit to be able to really see the benefits.
Hope this helps.
Moenau