Perhaps I am the only one who initially accepted a standard
impression of the term 'meditate' without thinking about it much. As a prerequisite
to meditating, I thought I needed to be able to sit cross-legged, in the lotus
position preferably, with eyes lightly closed, thumb and middle finger on
each hand gently touching while resting lightly on my knees (which were, of
course, very near the floor), probably dressed in orange or something! Tried,
got cramp, eventually got up, and gave up! Then other sources suggested, sitting
in a straight-backed chair, both feet firmly on the floor, arms relaxed and
eyes closed. So far, so good. But then there was that stuff about not eating
immediately before as digestion upsets energy flow. That blew that technique.
About the only time I get any peace is just after a meal, besides, I can't
concentrate on anything if I'm hungry! There is the idea of 'emptying the
mind' - well maybe some people can, but I'm afraid I am not one. If I try
to think of nothing, banish every stray thought as it pokes its nose out of
one of the cupboards in my brain, I feel myself mentally dashing around trying
to shut mental cupboards all over the place only to have others burst open
and spill their irrelevant contents onto my 'empty mind'. Then I tried 'candle'
meditation. That is pretty good. At least one has something to focus attention
on and can eventually clear other thoughts by forcing the mind back to concentrating
on the candle flame. But then, if I'm not careful, I end up thinking about
- candle flames - and that's all! So, I didn't think I could meditate. Then
I discovered a couple of things around the same time. You don't need to be
sitting down, or even standing still to meditate. Swimming is good, so is
walking, any rhythmic action - raking, hoeing, etc. Something repetitious
which you can do 'without thinking' actually allows the mind to clear to think
on deeper things. I also found that if I sat down in a comfy chair, (even
after a meal) lit a nice candle I specially used only for that purpose, at
roughly the same time every day, and did some of the basic relaxation techniques
all the books talk about - you know "Tense all the muscles in your left foot,
then relax, now your right foot, etc etc on up the body..." I began to be
able to find room for quiet thoughts. If one chooses a concept or statement
to start concentrating on - "All goddesses are aspects of the one Goddess*"
for example - it helps focus the mind in a particular direction. I have also
found, though, that there are times when I sit down to my own style of meditation
and mundane stuff just keeps distracting my thoughts. Well, I have come to
accept now, that on those days when that happens, the mundane stuff is where
my attention is needed and more esoteric spiritual thoughts will just have
to wait for another day. But still, if I tackle the mundane real life stuff
that distracted me, in a very deliberate and consciously 'pagan' or 'spiritual'
way - trying to see the value and joy in whatever it is that needs doing -
I sometimes end up feeling as good, at the end of the day, as when I have
had a spiritual insight in my 'meditation time'.
* one of the suggested meditations in "Pillar of Isis", by Vivienne
O'Regan
