Meditation Project: Week One
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| The Promise by Rene Magritte |
But writing this just now made me remember that just last week Jill Satterfield told me that she had been approached by some application developers who wanted her to be the voice for their mindfulness application because they loved her voice and the simplicity of her presentation. The app doesn't exist yet, but I could just head over to Jill's YouTube channel and try some of her meditations. Is it weird that I never have tried any of them?
Hmmm. Or maybe I should just go ahead on the first day and do my usual thing. After years of practicing simple breath awareness to calm myself (see A Balm for the Soul), I started to find it difficult hard to stay in engaged with the practice. So I recently decided that adding in another element might be helpful to me. In Starting a Meditation Practice, Timothy McCall recommends practicing the So Ham technique, where you concentrate on finding the sound “Soooooooooh” in your inhalation and “hummmmmmmmm" in your exhalation. When I gave that a try, I did find it did help me stay more focused. (Yes, I actually learned from my own blog.)
So I think for my first week I'll practice So Ham and also try at least one guided meditation for comparison.
I also have to find the right time of day to practice. First thing in the morning just doesn't work for me. I have this urge to get up and do things as soon as I get out of bed, and it's my most productive work time as well, so I have a massive resistance to practicing at that time of day. For asana practice, I've found that mid or late afternoon works best for me. So I think I'll do my meditating as part of that afternoon practice, either before or after. I remember Victor Dubin said "front-loading" his practice with meditation was helpful for him because that made it less likely he would skip it, so that's something I should probably take into consideration.
How about you? Have you made any plans for this year? What is your practice going to be like? Please comment on this post because that is where our weekly virtual support group will take place. I promise to respond and hope others will, too.
Next Monday I'll share my meditation journal for my first week of practice. I have no idea what it is going to be like, but I can promise you it will be honest.
—Nina
P.S. The comments are raising some questions for me: Is Yoga Nidra a guided meditation? Or is it a guided relaxation? And, anyway, what is the difference between a guided meditation and a guided relaxation? And, finally, what are the differences in the benefits between a guided meditation and a classic meditation that you do on your own?
by Nina Zolotow
Great idea Nina. I tried Insight which clearly works for many. The timer might help me get from 10 to 12 mins to my goal of 15, and I was intrigued by the map. But very put off by the three voices I sampled. In the end I did my usual breath led ten minutes! Might try the timer tomorrow!
ReplyDeleteI just tried the timer today. It's lovely! Your comments about the voices you sampled is helpful because it confirms my impression that I should maybe look elsewhere for guided meditations.
DeleteI'm very glad you're joining the project, Caroline!
DeleteHi Nina
ReplyDeleteI'm so excited for your project! I've been meditating regularly (most mornings, occasionally another time during the day or evening) for about 5 years, but it's stayed more or less at the same level, is why I'm interested in your journey here. I'd like to feel comfortable meditating for more than 10 or 15 minutes at a stretch, or meditating more than once a day. My plan for the year is to go through Anna Voigt's Chakra Workbook and do the meditations there as part of my own chakra clearing and cleaning project. One of the meditations for the Vishudda (Throat) chakra is the Sa/So Ham meditation, which was one of the mantras I learned early on in my practice. I prefer to use Sa Ham, as this is the feminine pronoun for "I Am That", so it becomes "I Am She". Looking forward to hearing about your experience of this, and will check out Jill Satterfield's Youtube channel.
thanks for your service here,
Rose
I'm very glad you're joining the project, Rose! How interesting to learn about Sa Ham. I will definitely have to try that sometime :)
DeleteHi Nina, nice to start the New Year with you after reading your yoga blog for the past nine months or so. By chance, last night I read the New York Times column how Deepak Chopra (in this case) spends his Sundays. I loved feeling congruent with how he spends his days, waking with the question how to find joy in this day, then two hours of meditation, and later walking, writing, a meal, contact with family, and more meditation. Yoga fits in there somehow. That's pretty much how I choose to spend my days, although not in a gorgeous apartment on Union Square in NYC but (for me) on a peaceful bay in the PNW.
ReplyDeleteBut the zinger for me over all else was his mention of yoga nidra to end his day. I googled it and although, like you, I usually find guided meditation yuck because the voices or images irritate me, I chose one at random, Jennifer Piercey, and she is perfect for me. With my dying 19-year old kitty sprawled across my belly, we entered a kind of bliss.
Thanks.
I'm very glad you're joining the project, Kirie! And I'm happy you easily found a version of yoga nidra that works for you.
DeleteHi Nina,
ReplyDeleteYoga with Gaileee here (from my daughter's account). I enrolled in the Yoga Nidra meditation from Richard Miller. It is on insight meditation app. So been doing this every other day, as it is a 10 day app. Like the Ram Dass meditations too, that one can find on his site, or on soundcloud. Good luck!
Nice to have you here, Gail! Let us know what happens after 10 days of yoga nidra. I will check out the Ram Dass meditations--that's a good idea for me.
DeleteI meditate most days - usually twice. Mornings are with a timer and soft music. Afternoons typically a 30-45 minute yoga nidra. Recently I've starting doing the app by Sam Harris (Waking up). I like his voice. He also has an interesting podcast. Good luck with your new habit. I don't know that meditation has brought me anything earth shattering...I doubt I'm closer to enlightenment...but I do actually simply enjoy it. I enjoy sitting quietly. Whether I call it meditation or Boketto (Japanese for staring out the window), it is good.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this! I'm glad you enjoy your practice, and I'm sure it is good for you, too.
DeleteIn Chile, there are more and more centers that offer groups for guided meditations, for beginners and more advanced experiences for those who have already started. Many of them, in addition, mix this practice with techniques such as yoga or exercises that help, at the same time, improve body conditions.
ReplyDelete