Meditation (May 2008)

Mindfulness meditation

Mindfulness Meditation is the cornerstone of many therapies for deep change.  Not only does it provide practice for the capacity for quiet and stillness, it provides an ongoing inner forum for noticing.  Noticing what is truly going on.  Those thoughts, feelings, sensations and nuances that are often beneath the level of our conscious awareness, but the bed of which forms that space from which we act.  When we do or say something that we later reflect on with the wondering question of “Why did I do (or say) that?” it has arisen from this place of our unconscious.

Mindfulness meditation constantly brings us back into awareness.  Of the here.  The now.  Of what we are experiencing, inside and out.  It is about paying attention.  Not necessarily to every little detail of the complicated world, but to our inner landscape and the relationship we actually have with this world.  It is from here that we are most creating our experience, no matter what those outer details are.

The paradox, in fact, is that the more we practice Mindfulness Meditation, the less engrossed we are in the outer details.  We increasingly gain the wisdom of deep knowing that the outer elements are merely the tinker toys – the building blocks – from which we create our defined reality.  The real guiding force for this creation is our inner self.  As Christ said, “Seek ye first the kingdom within.”

There are three main elements to Mindfulness Meditation, each of which provides an added dimension to the overall experience and benefit of the exercise.

First is the focus on the breath.  Attending to the breath provides an anchor for stillness.  The breath is the single function of the body under both conscious (sympathetic nervous system) and unconscious (parasympathetic nervous system) control.  As such, it is a primary link between our cognitive (conscious) and automatic (subconscious) selves.  It is the first function that responds to situations.  When we are stressed, angered or afraid, the breath immediately changes.  So to be aware of the breath constantly, we provide ourselves both with a keen perceptual tool and a handy method for change.  Holding our breath is part and parcel of a state of tension; deep breathing helps to promote relaxation.

Daily practice of focusing on the breath – simply paying attention to it for several consecutive minutes – increases our capacity for this skill at any time.

The second part of Mindfulness Meditation is to become aware of the sensations of the body.  All too often we really don’t know how we are feeling because our attention is being drug along at light speed on the tail of our continuous thoughts.  So to come down into the awareness of what is going on in the body takes some effort and practice.  The language of the body is always reflective of a deeper state of truth.  We simply cannot seduce ourselves by the lies of the moment as far as the body is concerned.  We can, however, be trapped in a perceptual pattern of the past.  This is the level of awareness that our body invites us to.  So, for instance, if we have learned to expect that big burly men are associated with being hit and hurt, then the appearance of such a man may cause our body to go into an instant state of tension, fear and alert.  If we don’t exactly remember the circumstances of that original imprint, we may not know why we are reacting in such a way.  Learning to simply sit with the feelings in observation mode without reaction allows much of this to clear; to bring us back to a saner, simpler place.

It is even more complicated if we are not even aware of what our bodies are feeling.  Then we may lash out or react in some fearful way that nobody, including self, understands.  So, becoming aware of the body’s sensation is the first step in beginning to unravel the maladaptive patterns of the past.

It also brings us to a place, over time, in which we can learn to trust our bodies as excellent and accurate indicators for what is going on around us.  As we clear our own patterns, our bodies become marvelous “biofeedback” organs.

The third and critical step of Mindfulness Meditation is to use it as a tool to learn to recognize – deeply – the transient nature of all sensations.  Why is this so important?  All feelings and experiences come and go.  It is only when we are trapped in a recurrent loop of feeding an idea with our thoughts that we run into difficulty.  So, if we have accepted some maladaptive situation from the past as basic reality, any clue or cue that throws us back on that track repeats the cycle of that experience as a reality.  We then not only get confirmation one more time, but the track is etched ever deeper.  This is how we stay stuck.

To begin to break the hold of such deep patterning – whether we call it karma or psychological injury – involves giving ourselves some breathing room.  In focusing on the breath, noticing and simply observing the sensations and feelings that arise, and allowing them to pass through, we begin to understand the illusory nature of them.  A key to this is to avoid feeding the feeling with a rehearsal of the thoughts about “why” they are there to start with.  That is simply the ego’s ploy to hang on to the past.  Resist that urge and bring the focus back to the breath.  This allows the space needed for the sensation to simply pass on through.

Listening to the Mindfulness Meditation CD by this author can be very helpful in learning this meditation.  If you are doing it on your own, it is suggested that you set a time to allow yourself to completely focus on the meditation, itself.  Start with a minimum of 12 minutes; 20 minutes twice a day is good; and eventually working up to an hour twice a day when possible.

Here is the meditation:

Seat yourself in a comfortable position with spine straight.  Choose a position that you can fairly easily maintain for half an hour without moving or wiggling.

Pause

Bring your focus of attention to your breath.  Simply observe.
Breath in.  Breath out.
Notice the sensations – the feel – of your breath in your nostrils as it comes in – and goes out.  No effort.  Simply observe.

Pause

Continue this – simply noticing your breath – feel it coming in --- and going out ----- for a few minutes.

Pause

Now, bring your awareness to the top of your head.  Notice any sensations all along your scalp, from the very top of your head radiating down, along the front and back and sides of your head.

Pause

Notice the sensations of your forehead, around and behind your eyes, down along your cheeks, along on over your nose, around your mouth and lips, around your ears, into your jaw, and over your chin. 
Take your time.
Notice any sensation at all.  Coolness, warmth, tingling, the touch of air. 
Any sensation at all.

Pause

Now bring your awareness along the front of your throat, slowly moving down from chin to collarbone; noticing any sensations.
Then from the base of your skull, along the back and sides of the neck; all the way to your shoulders.
Slowly, moving your attention. 
Noticing any sensations.

Pause

Now bring your focus to the top of your chest and slowly, slowly, move your awareness down over your chest, your rib cage, your upper abdomen, around your belly button, and your lower abdomen.  All the way to your pelvis.
Take your time.
Notice any sensations at all.  The touch of your clothing, the feel of your breath moving your body, tingling.  Coolness.  Heat. Anything at all.

Pause

Now bring your awareness back up to your shoulders; and slowly bring your attention down both arms – the upper arms; the elbows; the lower arms --- the writs, hands and fingers.
Notice any sensations at all.
Take your time.

Pause

And again bring your awareness to the top of your back, and slowly trace down your back – along the spine, and out along the ribs from top to bottom – the upper back; middle back and lower back.
All the way to the tail bone and hips.
Slowly.
Take your time.
Notice any sensations that are there.  Tension, pain, discomfort, warmth.  Anything at all.

Pause

Now, starting at the tops of the thighs, bring your focus of awareness slowly down both legs – to the knees, the lower legs, the ankles, the feet and toes.  Al the way to the bottoms of the feet.
Notice any sensations at all.

Pause

Now, starting at the bottoms of the feet feel your awareness gliding up over your entire body at once to the top of the head; and from the top of the head back down to the bottoms of your feet.

Pause

Rest now, again focusing on your breath.  Imagine a sense of great compassion.  All Beings who have ever offered their life in service for love, helping you.  Open your heart to forgive all who have ever wronged you.  And ask forgiveness for all you have hurt.  Open your heart to receive love and forgiveness in your process of awakening. 

Wish this for all beings.

Pause

When you are ready, open your eyes.

You may repeat the sequence of scanning as many times as possible before the bell indicates to stop.  At that time, do the brief forgiveness and compassion exercise.  The point of this mediation is not only to become attuned to what is going on in the body at any given time, but to recognize its changing nature.  Wrapping the whole process in compassion keeps us on the track of healing.

Please note: this meditation is also found in the book, “Mindful Eating” by this same author.  Information about books, CDs and workshops offered by Dr. Wallace can be found at: www.maryannwallace.com.