Tag: monkey-mind

“I just can’t stop my mind from thinking…”

… is the usual response when I mention that I have a passion for meditation. People often believe they will only benefit if they sit for long periods with a chatter-free mind achieving buddhist monk status.

If you are working towards calming your ‘monkey-mind’ and extending your practice, just a few minutes daily will produce better results than a lengthy practice performed infrequently.

Tips to assist your meditation practice

• Find somewhere you won’t be disturbed. If possible, choose a regular spot each time. This supports your mind in building positive associations. We are aiming for calm relaxation with a gentle focus
• Take a few deep breaths to center yourself
• Use your out-breath to relax your muscles and let go
• As you breathe out empty your lungs completely for the first few breaths
• You can say a prayer or call upon your Higher Self/Guides/Source/God to bless and protect you as you meditate
  

   A simple guided meditation for clearing and connecting…

• Imagine you have roots or cords emerging from the soles of your feet. Visualize them descending deep into the earth, perhaps through layers of rocks and crystals
• In your mind’s eye, anchor these roots at the centre of the earth’s core
• Using your out-breath, send any excess energy along these roots and into the earth… negative thoughts, frustrations, anxiety. Visualize them and just let them go
• Then imagine you are drawing up the beautiful energy from Mother Earth. Let it flow up through your feet to fill your whole body. Feel these earth energies relaxing your ankles, calves, knees, up through your thighs to your hips etc
• You can visualize this energy flowing through, nourishing and activating your first three energy centers or chakras – root, sacral, solar plexus – and anchoring in your heart centre (see image below or find more information at What’s a chakra?)

• Now visualize a brilliant golden / white light beaming down from above. See it flowing in through your crown chakra
• Draw this light down into your third eye, your throat chakra, your heart
• See it infusing and bathing every cell in your body
• Imagine this light expanding out from your heart and forming a cocoon of golden/white light around you
• Call your Higher Self, your Guides or Source into your protective cocoon or bubble of light
• You can imagine yourself connecting this golden/white light from the heavens with the Mother Earth energy, forming a pillar of light within you that allows you to be both grounded and connected to the Divine

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• Bring your attention to your heart chakra in your chest
• Start by generating feelings of gratitude, joy or other positive emotions. As well as bringing you calm and focus, this practise can help raise the vibration of your energy field, assisting connection to your higher self and the Higher Realms, which vibrate at a faster frequency

When you visualize and meditate this way, you allow yourself to be infused with high frequency light from Source or the Divine, filled with wisdom, codes and spiritual information. It is this light that protects, nourishes and cleanses us whilst we meditate.

If I am guiding a meditation for others, I will now take the group or individual on a beautiful journey using guided imagery.

• You can bring your attention back to your chakras at any time, seen in the diagram above
• As you focus on each one in turn, visualize each chakra wheel opening and spinning, allowing the light to activate and cleanse these powerful vortices of energy. You could also imagine breathing in the corresponding colour for that chakra, depending how long you want to spend in meditation

If your mind wanders…

• As unwanted thoughts creep in, which they will, just observe without judgement. Let them go without attaching to any one in particular
• You can use your breath to focus your mind by locating the entry/exit point of the breath. Can you focus on the small sensation point where the air arrives as you inhale and leaves as you exhale? Each time your mind wanders, bring yourself back to this point at your nostrils
• You could also focus on a mantra to calm your thoughts. A word or phrase: ‘love,”peace,’ ‘I am calm,’ ‘I am that I am’
• Remain in this state, observing your breath, until you are ready to come back

Closing the meditation…

• Starting at the crown – see above, the chakra at the top of the head – one by one, imagine each of your chakras closing, like the petals of a flower
• Visualize your cocoon of white light around you and into this protective bubble draw in your precious energy
• Imagine disconnecting from Source / the Light above
• You can keep your roots descending into Mother Earth, to ensure you stay grounded
• Bring your attention to the sensations in your body, wriggle your toes and become aware of the sounds around you
• Welcome back Beautiful Soul!

And… repeat – regularly!