December 26th, 2015
Those people in the yoga advertisements looking perfectly zen sitting in lotus position next to a lotus flower? Good for them, but that's not your life, is it? You have a cell phone, you have kids, you have noise in your life. But you also (we swear) have time to meditate. Join us for a meditation you can incorporate into your life, anytime, anywhere.
Overdid the holiday eating or drinking?
As much as our intentions may sway towards the moderate, holiday parties can bring out the human in all of us. Afterwards, it can be easy to put our mind on overdrive, devising exercise plans and diets that will get us back to our normal selves.
It is wonderful to
plan to be healthy. However, too much planning means not enough time in the present moment. Once you've put the fork and champagne glass down, and once you've signed up for your spinning class, consider meditation.
This meditation is designed to move you away from overdoing into simply doing.
We will try the Zazen practice, which is the nature of studying the self by forgetting the self. In forgetting the self (including the self who overdid it) we can learn many things.
First things first.
Position your body effectively so that you can be comfortable while paying attention to the body and the breath. Make sure you feel grounded and stable, whether you're sitting in a chair or in lotus position. Gaze a few feet in front of where you sit.
Let yourself focus wholeheartedly on the breath. Breathe in and out through the nose, being with each breath as it comes and goes. Just be with the breath and then after some time, just be the breath.
If thoughts come, let them come and then go again. If
bodily sensations arise, let them come and go without clinging to them.
According to zen philosophy, out of the stillness, our whole life arises. Your breath will slow down as you continue, as will your reactions to yourself.
Zazen is not about having a goal of any sort; so as soon as you feel you are done, let yourself release the meditation. Allow yourself to keep your mind free and clear as you continue about your day.
Courtney Sunday from Toronto, Ontario
Courtney Sunday is a writer, yoga teacher, Pilates instructor and Thai massage practitioner. She teaches corporations in Toronto the fine art of breathing deeply, and travels too much for her own good. She likes to cook meals from scratch using ingredients from her garden, and would mill her own flour and make her own butter if she had more hours in the day. You can find out more about her at www.courtneysunday.com.
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