 Soothing your spirit:
Reflection on meaning and purpose in your life
Do you find that you feel more hopeful after attending a worship service? Do you enjoy taking time to read a daily meditation? Many people find that taking the time to sing, pray, read and reflect on the meaning and purpose of life with like-minded people helps them face life's challenges.
Consider these examples:
Engage in prayer. The best known and most widely practiced example of meditation is prayer. Spoken and written prayers are found in most faith traditions. You can pray using your own words or read prayers written by others.
Check the self-help or 12-step-recovery section of your local bookstore for examples.
Talk with your rabbi, priest, pastor or other spiritual leader about resources.
You may also consider joining a prayer group.
Read or listen and take time to reflect. Many people report that they benefit from reading poems or sacred texts silently or aloud, and taking a few moments to quietly reflect on the meaning that the words bring to mind.
You can listen to sacred music, spoken words or any music you find relaxing or inspiring.
You may want to write your reflections in a journal or discuss them with a friend or spiritual leader.
Focus your attention on love and gratitude. In this type of meditation, you focus your attention on a sacred object or being, weaving feelings of love and gratitude into your thoughts. You can also close your eyes and use your imagination or gaze at representations of the object. The adoration of the Holy Eucharist is an example found in Roman Catholicism.
Getting started
Meditation can calm your mind, relax your body and soothe your spirit. If you're interested in meditation, consider these suggestions as you get started:
* Select a meditation technique that fits your lifestyle and belief system. Many people build meditation into their daily routine. For example, you can start your day with a prayer or take a 15-minute walking meditation break in the afternoon. At the end of your workday, you may find inner peace by attending a yoga or tai chi class at your community center.
* Set aside some time. Start with 5-minute meditation sessions once or twice a day and work up to 20 minutes each time. Unless you have an excellent innate sense of time, keep a clock nearby and glance at it occasionally, or set an alarm that's not jarring when it goes off.
* Keep trying. Be kind to yourself as you get started. If you're meditating to calm your mind and your attention wanders, slowly return to the object, sensation or movement you're focusing on. You can use an image to bring yourself back to your focus if you'd like.
Try this: Picture balloons floating away with your thoughts, or imagine your thoughts as pigeons and mentally clap your hands to get them to fly away. Apply this technique to your worries.
* Make meditation part of your life. Many people prefer to start and end their day with a period of meditation. Others prefer to take meditation breaks during the day. Experiment and you'll likely find out what works best for you.
Meditation is simple and inexpensive. It requires only your time and effort, and the risks are minimal. If you're interested in stress reduction, give meditation a try. Labels: anti-aging, meditation, stress reduction |
