This Tuesday, June 21, we will experience the shortest day of the year.
At the winter solstice the longest darkness ends and the day is getting longer and becoming more luminous.
It is a great opportunity to practice a chant that helps us to move towards the light of truth, wisdom and expansiveness within our heart from the shadow of misunderstanding, heaviness and limitedness imposed by our mind.
This practice aims to draw attention to left and right sides of our comprehensive system including the musculoskeletal system, internal organs, mental and emotional functions.
Right side of the body:
Muscles, bones and joints function in the right side
Body parts in the right side including internal organs such as liver and gallbladder
Masculine aspects of our being such as being assertive and authorative, ability to give, intellectual part of our being, a role of being involved in the world and work etc
Left side of the body:
Muscles, bones and joints function in the left side
Body parts in the left side including internal organs such as heart and stomach
Feminine aspects of our being such as caring for others, nurturing, healing, ability to receive, ask for help, or to surrender, inner world of the home and family
In harmonious union of the left and right we can live and function in a healthy and balanced way, just like the sun and the moon, the day and the night work together.
“Stand here. From this point there is no words necessary but only heart.”
During my stay in Japan I saw this calligraphed writing as I walking into a main part of a temple, and thought these words are relevant to the process of meditation. When you sit and close your eyes, the mind disengages from external stimuli and it starts paying attention to what’s happening internally. During the practice, various thoughts and emotions will rise to the surface in the beginning.The practice is to see calmness underneath the ever rising and falling waves of thoughts and emotions.
Also, words are conveyed thoughts in the mind and feelings in the heart. Some feelings are able to be named or phrased, yet there are times when words fail to express what you are feeling. Wording has a limitation to express our experiences fully. It’s said the experience of meditation is beyond mind and senses; it is feeling rather thinking. While meditating you will encounter the moment when there is no thoughts but only feelings, where the mind becomes a silent witness; non-judgemental, not-analysing, and not-imagining. From this point there is no words necessary but only heart. When you are established in the silence of the mind, it is like you are standing firmly with open arms to welcome whatever is in front of you. Stand there.
Practice:
Sit in a comfortable position with closed eyes.
1.Breathe in through the nose, breathe out through the mouth.
2.Take 12 breaths in this manner.
3.Come back to normal breathing.
4.Remind yourself that for now there is no words necessary but only heart.
5.Remain in silence for 5 minutes.
6.Bring your awareness back to the breath and the body.
Using meditative practices while eating is something that you can incorporate easily into your daily life. We eat to satisfy our hunger; for other times we eat to please our senses. Many people seek better quality in food, great taste and presentation on a plate.
How many people look into the source of food and the purpose of eating? When eating becomes a meditative practice, you begin to see the food you are eating differently. All plants come from the earth, it is plants that become food for all other living beings including humans. All plants are sustain by the sun and the moon; rain from the sky nourishes plants on the land and the ocean nourishes those in the sea. You can see the earth, the sun, the moon, the sky, and the ocean on a plate of food.
One Indian text says that divinity permeates through the whole universe, and it enters the earth and becomes food. While you are eating, you are not only tasting merely food but tasting the sweetness of divinity; this fuller experience of eating cherishes our whole being.
Practice:
While you are eating, reflect that each bite is a gift from the universe, and taste the sweetness of divinity. Eating is to nourish our whole being, body, mind and heart.
May 5 in Japan is children’s day, celebrating their healthy growth and happiness.
Around this time you see colourful Koi-nobori, carp -shaped streamers, hanging at various places, which symbolises strength, courage and perseverance to overcome obstacles.
When the wind catches the streamers, they move like carp swimming upstream.
The Koi fish is the most spirited fish in Japan with full of energy and power as it can swim vigorously even in a fast flow stream and against the current, and when the wind catches the streamers, they move like carp swimming upstream.
Koinobori is not only for young children but it is a good reminder for people at any stages of life.
Our inner strength, courage and determination are the keys for our personal growth and happiness ; we can still keep swimming just like Koi fish even when it feels like the world is against us.
Here is a practice to ignite our inner fire which leads to vitality, fearlessness and self confidence.
IN = Inhale, EX = Exhale, (M)=Modification
#8 With the eyes closed, feel around the navel region as if each exhalation is deeply engaging the source of strength and power.
#9 Keep the eyes closed. Relax your arms beside your torso. Stand upright with a sense of confidence and courage for a short while.
With counting, you use our left thumb to count the 3 segments of four fingers to get 12. Touch of the thumb and feeling of each breath help you feel anchored and rest in the present moment.
Place your left thumb at the segment 1, know you are breathing in and breathing out. Move the thumb to segment 2, know you are breathing in and breathing out…. In this manner, continue breathing till the thumb reaches 12. (You can see a spiral counting flow in the photo.)
Once you complete 12 breaths, relax your hands and rest for sometime.
Reflection
One day, you’ll look back and realise that you worried too much about things that didn’t really matter
Community Breathing Space 