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MeditationBy: Derek O’Neal and Courtney Roberts
MeditationPractice and process of paying
attention and focusing your awareness
Interesting
Familiar
Sensual
Productive
Natural
Powerful
Beginning the Meditation Journey
Secret of meditation begins with developing, focusing, and directing your awareness
Build concentration-block out distractions and focus on awareness
Be open to receptive awareness-loosens and extends the mind’s boundaries and embraces every experience that presents itself
Use contemplation for greater insight-allows room for freedom and creative expression
Cultivate positive, healing states of mind-helps you transform inner life by withdrawing energy from mind-states that are negative or self-defeating
Why Meditate?Physiological Benefits
Decreased heart rate and lower blood pressure
Quicker recovery from stress
Decrease in beta and increase in alpha, delta, and gamma brain waves
Enhanced synchronization-correlates with creativity
Fewer heart attacks and strokes
Increased longevity
Reduced cholesterol levels
Decreased consumption of energy and need for oxygen
Deeper, slower breathing and muscle relaxation
Reduction in the intensity of pain
Psychological Benefits More happiness and peace of
mind
Greater enjoyment of the present moment
Less emotional reactivity
More loving relationships
Increased empathy
Enhanced creativity and self-actualization
Heightened perceptual clarity and sensitivity
Reductions in acute and chronic anxiety
Complement to psychotherapy
Why Meditate? Teaches you to slow down and take each moment as it comes; the
present moment is all that matters
Learn to welcome every experience and facet of your being without judgment
Helps you to accept others the way they are and opens up your abilities for a deeper love and intimacy
Relaxing the mind relaxes the body
Encourages an inner mental spaciousness where concerns no longer seem so threatening
Can lead to more happiness and help you focus on the important things in life
Enhances work and play performances
Increases appreciation, gratitude, and love
Discover how to achieve a deeper sense of purpose
Helps you feel more centered, grounded, and balanced
A Beginner’s MindHave an open mind to whatever arises
Freedom from all expectations and preconceptions
Spacious and spontaneous mind
Original awareness
Innocent, don’t-know spirit
Exploring What Motivates You
What you bring to it is what you get out of it
1. Improving you life Primary concern is to fix yourself
2. Understanding and accepting yourself Developing self-awareness and self-acceptance
3. Realizing your true nature Finding your identity
4. Awakening others See others as no different from yourself and put their needs
before your own
5. Expressing your innate perfection Express your “true nature”; confidence in the peace and
happiness you already have
Living in Harmony Be mindful of cause and
effect
Reflect on impermanence and the preciousness of life
Realize the limitations of worldly success
Practice nonattachment
Cultivate patience and perseverance
Simplify your life
Live with honesty and integrity
Face situations with the courage of a warrior
Trust the technology of meditation
Dedicate your practice to the benefit of others
How the Mind Stresses You Out
Preoccupation with past and future
Resistance to the way things are
A judging and comparing mind
Learned helplessness and pessimism
Overwhelming emotions
Fixation of attention
Clinging to a separate self
How Meditation Relieves Stress
Develops focus and meditation Stabilizes concentration,
returns to the present moment, cultivates positive emotions
Allows spontaneous release Negative thoughts and feelings
naturally disappear
Penetrates your experience with insight Become aware of your inner
experience, become aware of your story and how it confused you, change your story, see beyond your story to who you really are, free yourself from your story
Becoming Aware of the Here and Now
Turn attention inward
Relax your body
Develop mindfulnessMoment-to-moment awareness of your
experiences as they occur
Focus on your breath
Expand to sensations
Welcome whatever arises
Control your wandering mind
Meditation Poses
Full Lotus
Kneeling
Half Lotus
Quarter Lotus
The Practical Stuff What to wear: choose comfort over fashion
When to meditate: any time is the best time
How long to meditate: anywhere from 5 minutes to an hour; it’s up to you!
Where to meditate: create a sacred space Avoid the busy spots in your house, stay away from areas of work, find
a quiet place that is not too dark or too light, and is close to nature and fresh air
Meditate in the same place each time Fewer distractions, good vibes, peaceful memories Can meditate while doing dishes, at the computer, driving, talking on
the phone, watching TV, working out
Before you meditate… Eat lightly or wait an hour after a big meal and avoid mind-altering
substances
Just Do It Practice meditation again and
again
Make and keep a commitment to yourself
Be consistent
Restrain yourself
Give 100% of your energy
Apply yourself earnestly
Make an effortless effort
Suspend judgment and be accepting
Let go, unmask, and surrender yourself
Factors that Close Our Hearts
Fear of being attacked, criticized, manipulated, or overwhelmed
Resentment-bitterness builds up
Unresolved grief-constantly mulling over your losses
Jealousy-label self as inferior
Pain
Grasping and attachment- fear of losing what you’re attached to
Self-clinging leads to separation from others
Opening Your HeartBenefits of love: energy, peace, well-being, good
health, belonging, interconnectedness, and spiritual awakening
The factors of a happy and fulfilling life1. Lovingkindness: feeling of goodwill toward all
2. Compassion: feel others’ suffering and want to help
3. Sympathetic Joy: happy feelings that arise inresponse to the happiness of others
4. Equanimity: don’t allow what happened to youupset you
Generate compassion
Common Roadblocks to Meditation
Sleepiness
Restlessness
Boredom
Fear
Doubt
Procrastination
Self-judgment
Attachment and desire
Pride
Avoidance
Bypassing
Develop a Practice That Works For You
Know your motivation
Play to your strengths and fill in the gaps
Experiment, trust intuition, and then settle down
Create a regular practice
Meditate with others-join or form a group
Attend a workshop or retreat
Being Happy with Meditation
Happier people: more energetic, generous, better-liked, self-confident, more likely to have fulfilling relationships, more effective at work, have stronger immune systems
Accept what life brings Feel and express gratitude for the good things in life Savor the pleasures life offers Dwell as much as possible in the present moment Don’t let the inevitable ups and downs disturb their equanimity
Savor the moment
Foster flow
Develop gratitude
Learn to forgive
Cultivate optimism
Using Meditation for Healing
Healing=returning to an intrinsic state of wholeness
Ways meditation works:Love and connectedness, relief of tension and
stress, restore alignment and balance, opening and softening, creating space for emotions, harmony and joy, freedom from self-clinging, awakening
Increased focus, minimal distractions, free from expectations, enhanced clarity, greater endurance, flow experience, capacity to see things multidimensionally, self-acceptance, compassion
Types of Meditations Practicing relaxation
Find a quiet & undisturbed spot, sit in a comfortable position, choose an object to concentrate on, maintain a receptive attitude
Practicing a half smile Form lips into a half smile, hold this for at least 10 minutes while
doing an ordinary activity, practice this the next time you feel your spirits sagging
Walking meditation Walk at usual pace while following breath, coordinate breathing
with walking, be aware of feet and legs as you move them, enjoy mindful walking for as long as you want
Peaceful place Sit comfortably, close eyes, take a few breaths, imagine yourself
in a safe and protected place, take your time, allow yourself to rest in feelings of comfort, safety & tranquility, spend as much time as you want here