Category Archives: Meditation Tips

How To Listen To God

Jesus taught his followers that, when they had made their prayers to the Father, they should remain for a time in silent receptivity to afford the indwelling spirit the better opportunity to speak to the listening soul.The Urantia Papers

an imperative

No matter how life is going for us there’s an essential need to connect with ‘All That Is’. God provides the strength we need to live through tough times as well the perspective we need when things are going really well. Let’s not forget what’s most important. Let’s attempt to connect daily…

prayer –> stillness = connection

God speaks to us, he does so constantly. Prayer allows us to make that connection. Immediately after our mental effort to speak to the Father Of All in prayer, we should relax and just sit in still receptivity. This is the most powerful way to connect with divinity and ultimate reality. God sustains us all…

Daily Affirmation: Today I AM still and receive God’s love for me…

Recommendation: The Urantia Papers

The Urantia Book: Indexed Version with free Audio Book on DVD (Can only be played on a computer with a DVD drive.)Kindle Fire, Full Color 7

Why Desire A Quiet Mind?

The memory of God comes to the quiet mind.A Course in Miracles (ACIM)

FYI: Hosted site is acting up lately, so you’re not receiving blogs via subscriptions… fix promised soon!

a still mind

Why is a still mind desirable? Only from the vantage point of a quiet and still mind can we begin to understand. We can understand what’s going on and where we might venture next…

stillness

Imagine standing in front of a clear, still and reflective pond. The pond reflects a perfect blue sky, the evergreen trees and snow-capped mountains around it. It also allows one to peer into its depths. Such a pond can our mind be. It takes just 10 minutes, twice a day. Will we do it?

Daily Affirmation: Today I AM still.

Recommendation: A Course in Miracles by Dr. Helen Schucman

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What Is True Meditation?

Meditation is the dissolution of thoughts in Eternal awareness or Pure consciousness without objectification, knowing without thinking, merging finitude in infinity. Voltaire

so far

I’ve had the pleasure to share with you several meditation approaches on this page. In general I like to view meditation as ‘relaxed awareness’ a certain consciousness which allows us to watch self. It starts with physical relaxation followed by mental relaxation and goes into a thoughtless awareness mode. Some view this as an end state, an end in itself. It is that, in some ways, because when we’re in that state we can feel a certain peace, a well being that cannot easily be matched by any other experience of the mind. In this blog I attempt to take this level of meditation to the next step, as I understand it…


Previous Tips:


Tip # 1: Connecting with your deep self


Tip # 2: Stretch your wings out


Tip # 3: Arise out of fear!


Tip # 4: Do Nothing!


Tip # 5: Sitting!


Tip # 6: Just Be


Tip # 7: FLaG It!


Tip # 8: Let It Be


Tip # 9: What Is True Meditation?

 

true meditation

So what is true meditation? The next level of meditation is to go beyond the ‘relaxed awareness’ state and make contact with Universal Intelligence, with God, the Creator, the Architect and Parent of All That Is….

Here are the suggested steps:

  1. Read: Do some spiritual reading, this will help us get into the right frame of mind.
  2. Breathe: Breathe 3 deep breaths, relax, see this tip for more: Do Nothing!
  3. Visualize: Visualize being in a beautiful relaxing place, like a beach or a mountain resort, smell the air, feel the sand with the fingers, try and truly be there!
  4. Ask: Ask God for help to meditate, tell him what’s on your mind, just chat…While doing so FLaG It! This includes an exercise in forgiveness and gratitude, a piece that is super important.
  5. Receive: Finally ask him for his love. Sit back and receive God’s love because undoubtedly with just a little practice you’ll palpably experience God’s love…simply receive…
  6. Journal: If you’d like to deepen this experience and continue this practice, start journaling, more here…Emotional Freedom!. At this point we can receive inspiration from the Creator. This voice will exhort us to love, to forgive and to trust…..

Daily Affirmation: Today I AM still.

Recommendation: Meditation for Beginners by Jack Kornfield

Meditation for BeginnersKindle Wireless Reading Device, Wi-Fi, 6

What Is Meditation?

So meditation is a process of freeing the mind from systems, and of giving attention without either being absorbed or making an effort to concentrate.Krishnamurti

conditioning

We are thoroughly conditioned beings. We get conditioned by our surroundings, our culture, our parents, friends and innumerable other sources. We think in certain ways and find it hard to break out of our self-created molds. When we start becoming aware of such conditioning then meditation is truly happening.

effortless awareness = meditation

Krishnamurti describes meditation very beautifully and succinctly in this quote. If we can practice awareness, full awareness, without any effort then we’re in the state of stillness. This is the state in which transformation of self can occur. Transformation happens as we become more aware of our conditioning and also when we readily receive divine inspiration during meditation. Armed with what needs to change and how, all we need to do is act on this knowledge!

Daily Affirmation: Today I AM blissfully aware!

Recommendation: Awakening of Intelligence by Jiddu Krishnamurti

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How To Live A Full Life…

The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are. Marcus Aurelius

tackling life

These two principles are all we need to live life fully. We ought to keep our equanimity, which becomes possible after much practice and meditation plus we ought to be able to look at life objectively. When we’re calm we’re able to receive divine help, we’re able to make better decisions and we’re more easily headed in the right direction.

practice

To gain equanimity practice is essential. Here are some stillness practices. The basic idea is simple:

  • Find 5 minutes 2-3 times a day to be with self
  • Relax your body and mind
  • Focus attention on breathing

Self-knowledge is required if we’re to face life squarely. Self-knowledge comes from attention. Attention to how we react to events and attention on why we do what we do. Marry these two principles and we have the perfect recipe for handling any situation!

Daily Affirmation: Today I AM still and attentive.

Recommendation: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

Meditations (Penguin Classics)Kindle Wireless Reading Device, Wi-Fi, 6

What Is Meditation?

Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet. It’s a way of entering into the quiet that’s already there—buried under the 50,000 thoughts the average person thinks every day.Deepak Chopra

essentials

There are numerous definitions of meditation. One popular idea is that thoughts must cease for us to enter a meditative state. Certainly that could be classified as meditation; however for me meditation consists of 2 essentials:

  1. Discovering and resting in the peace that resides within us
  2. Making direct contact with God

stillness & inspiration

This peace that is nestled just under our stream of thoughts is very approachable. The trick is to be in a state of non-judgmental relaxed awareness. That means we just sit and be. We become relaxed in body and mind. We stay alert, i.e. not fall asleep and maintain awareness of all that goes on inside us, without manufacturing new thoughts about any of it.

Once we experience this peace it’s a great opportunity to:

  • Pray and make direct contact with God
  • Seek inspiration, which appears in the form of sudden thoughts an d ideas
  • Do creative thinking and planning

Here are some more tips from my site.

Daily Affirmation: Today I AM.

Recommendation: Moments in Between: The Art of the Quiet Mind
by David Kundtz

Moments in Between: The Art of the Quiet MindKindle Wireless Reading Device, Wi-Fi, 6

Let It Be…

Let be and be still, and know that I am God.Psalm 46:10

let be

This is a famous Psalm and very often quoted. The standard translation is ‘Be still and know that I am God’. I love the translation above because it encapsulates meditation and even life itself!

When sitting for meditation just let be.

  • Allow your breathing to slow down
  • Let all body tension melt away. Allow your body to relax completely.
  • The mind should stay alert and not dwell on any thought. Let the thoughts arise and let them be.
  • Whenever you notice anything, a discomfort, a thought, a feeling, just let it be, don’t entertain it, let it disappear due to a lack of attention to it.

be still

When you just let be stillness occurs. You can now find yourself in a very calm and alert state. This can take a while, but it does happen with practice. You’ll be amazed and ecstatic when it does! Stay here for a while. This is stillness, a form of meditation.

know god

In this alert and calm state, joy emerges. You will experience peace as you never otherwise know it. In this eternal present moment, all creativity is possible, but greater still, God is present. Experience it and know.

Daily Affirmation: Today I will let life be, I will inhabit the NOW moment!

Recommendation: God Is Closer Than You Think by John Ortberg

 

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