We had the Sunday Introduction to Meditation Class at Yoga Bliss yesterday: several guided meditations and a period of mindful walking. We began with the practice of “Getting to Know Your Breath,” from Anne Cushman‘s new book, Moving Into Meditation. We sensed breathing by “homing in” on four aspects: location, length, texture and spacing between breaths.
Monthly Archives: August 2014
Sensing In & Out
We had the Sunday Introduction to Meditation Class at Yoga Bliss today: several guided meditations and a period of mindful walking. We began with the first foundation of mindfulness: awareness of the body and, in particular, the senses. I drew the guidance, Feeling Your Sense Gateways, from Anne Cushman‘s new book, Moving Into Meditation. Seeing hearing, smelling, tasting and touching are all embodied experiences – like yoga – which we can include in our mindfulness practice.
In this practice, you consciously feel and relax the sense gateways of your eyes, ears, nose, mouth and skin. Have you ever tried to feel deep inside your ears? How do you relax your eyes? What happens when you simply “allow” your senses to receive stimulation? It’s interesting to notice the difference between actively pursuing stimulation and passively receiving sensory experiences. We talked about how loud the room became in our stillness. You can appreciate the energy it takes to screen out the continuous “noise” of the world in order to focus on something of your own choosing.
Breathe and Everything Changes
We had the Sunday Introduction to Meditation Class at Yoga Bliss yesterday: a formal sitting meditation and a period of mindful walking and a Metta Meditation or loving kindness practice. We began with the first foundation of mindfulness: awareness of the body. I drew the guidance from Anne Cushman‘s new book, Moving Into Meditation.