First Impressions: The Circle Begins

Aside

After reading class 1 on my “learn meditation page” of choice, I decided to go ahead and incorporate the exercise in my own way.

Fresh from the resolve, and eager to get going, I hunkered down that night for my five minutes before bed. I looked at the time, set my intention for five minutes and settled down to the first of the first steps. Breathe in and out at least 7 times. I don’t really know how many times I actually did so, I was concentrating on breathing in the life force and love, and breathing out my frustrations and negativity. I noticed a slight tendency to hyper ventilate and adjusted my in breath to less long. Which then meant I had to shorten my out breath as I did not have enough air in me to breathe out. Sigh! Then, of course, there was the noise. The trucks rolling past on the highway, the last of the neighbours hunkering down for the nights, and finishing up in their kitchens, and a host of other noises that I normally do not notice.

Aha! I am supposed to notice them, and let them go, so I did. I did not think there was any reduction to the noise level, but my breath calmed down, and the tightness in my chest softened. And all of a sudden I thought, “That would be five minutes” and my eyes popped open. Feeling a little “hmm… need to learn a bit more”, I looked at the time, and what do you know? Exactly five minutes!  So I must be doing something right!

I had the heaviest, deepest sleep that night for a long time. My limbs felt heavy, and even in my sleep I was aware of a heaviness. Let us not forget the dreams! The dreams were vivid, and scary and adventurous. I had trouble waking up in the morning…

So my morning was rushed and chores grabbed me before I could settle down and meditate. But I got that bit done before that 7:20 am hit its mark and the need to madly rush out into the day manifested.

All through the day I felt removed. I had a standard 21st Century muddle of a day mixed with work, friends, family and chores, with its attendant pulls, pushes and drags.  But I did not feel like those things quite touched me. Not that I was unemotional, but it felt like the emotions were an outer part of me, and hence something that I observed and let go, rather than get gripped by them. It was a wonderful, liberating feeling.

I think I am going to love this. I think I am going to be able to carry this on.

Have you joined us on the Bodhi Circle yet?

PS: this morning, during the time I meditated, I did not notice any back ground noise at all. It was still. Quiet. Interesting. Time for Class 2.

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Bodhi Circle: Towards a Greater Good

Let us not get into what is good or bad. Let us just agree that good is good, because we know it to be so.

One thing that is admitted as being good world wide is or working towards achieving peace. We have Nobel Prizes being awarded to those who fight(?) for peace. And we salute those who go to war on those who would threaten our right to peace. But peace in the outer, larger domain, is very different from peace within. Or, is it? Since the 1970s, there have been scientific studies to discover and show that inner peace achieved through meditation can reduce levels of crime in urban cities.

Click here to read about The theory and the effect

Click here to read about The 1993 experiment:

I am not a fan of procedure, or joining groups, or following rules and rituals. I do not know Transcendental Meditation, I am a novice at any form of meditation. I have added the above links just to offer readers, if interested, to see a little of the history that interested me in setting the first point to my circle.

Reducing crime rates is a worthy goal, as is reducing war, strife, sorrow, injustice, inequality, and a whole barrage of other strife that surrounds us. In my own tiny home, in my own heart I wish for world peace, world happiness, world joy.  There are sages and teachers galore, and there are methods and journeys innumerable. One has to just seek and the answers just pop out at you. Thank you Mr Bill Gates, for the Information Highway.

I believe that today in the interest of the safe haven of a life surrounded by basic comforts, each self is caught in a spiral of an ever widening definition of “basic”. We need to pay our mortgages, we need our electricity, gas, and let us not forget the television. How else would we keep in touch with all that is happening in the world, and shake our heads over all that shouldn’t? How else would we create bandwagons to jump on and get involved in, and bring about a change to the world? Make it better? We need to educate our children, prepare for our old age, look after the old and infirm in our families. We need to hold truck, and develop our relationships and networks. We need so much to make us basically happy. I am part of this crowd, never fear. I do not stand in judgement of others. I totally get it.

Yet we also have an ever increasing hankering for peace. Not the kind that we go to war against. The kind that wells up from inside, and envelops us in warmth and caresses our brow with tender love. We need assurance that this race is taking us somewhere. This assurance comes from within. It arises out of a belief in the Self, the Inner Being. It permeates through those parts of the being we cannot touch, and we ignore, it, for the most part.

I believe that we each have enough time in our day to devote to ourselves. That self within us that is waiting quietly since we were born for our attention. That self that still trusts us, and is eager to join energies with us, and help us just be. So let us find those minutes

Let us find 5 minutes or 50. Let us sit down and meditate.

Let us commit to any time within our day that we can positively say, yes, this will do. Once we commit let us follow it through. Let us get out that cd, or dust off that cushion, or lay out that rug, or light that candle. Whatever works. And let us for our own nominated time, at our own nominated hour, close our eyes and find that little flame within us that guides us unfailingly, and unflinchingly. Let us connect to ourselves. Make a pact with a like minded friend, partner or colleague. Maybe your personal trainer? Or your Boss. There are those of you who already do meditate, Please accept an invitation to join us, widen our circle and share your experience.

Even though there are no rules, I would like a show of support. Please leave a comment with your commitment, and once in a while, update us. Let us see how the circle is going. Wherever you are, your show of hand is crucial. It will encourage others and our circle will widen, enlarge and blossom.

Here is my commitment. Today I will set my alarm to 15 minutes earlier than before. I will wake up, wash up and sit down, to my 10 minutes. And every night I will take five minutes before I lay me down. I will report back with my experiences and journal, once a week. Please join me. In my quest to accomplish… nothing specific,  to just meditate.

For the initiates, like me, here is one starting point: Beginner’s Guide to Meditation

There is enough information in this site to satisfy most beginners. I am sure there are many others that you can find, if you find one you like, please share, so we can visit as well.

Thank you!