Life Happiness

Happiness is a State of Mind
There is a Sanskrit saying that reads "A man is according to his mind."
If you think that you are happy, you are happy.
If you think that you are miserable, you are miserable.

We make life more complicated than that because of self-imposed restrictions set by the mind. However, you are not bound by the limitations that the mind sets for you, unless you choose to be.

Meditation helps you to rise above the mind and see that the Self is different and separate from the creations of the mind.
The Self is eternally free and Meditation helps you to distinguish your Self from the mind and transcend the mind's perception of reality.

Non-Stick Meditation
When the mind is free from all obstacles, it can view the world clearly. Life will continue to occur around it but the Self is not affected by it. Nothing sticks to the mind. The meditative mind rises above the world and while it sees what is happening around it, it is unaffected by it as though the concerns of the world simply slide right off.

This does not mean though that you become distant or aloof from the world. You live in it, you are a part of it, and you use your new-found compassion to help others reach the calm and tranquil place that you have discovered.

Daily Practice
Practice catching your thoughts, moods, feelings, and alter your thought pattern to reflect a happy state of mind. Notice how you react to what other people are doing and saying and strive to remain centered and at peace.

While reading about and understanding the principles behind meditation are important, even more knowledge and understanding is received during a regular meditation practice.
Without action, nothing is achieved.
Know that there will be days when your practice is smooth and others when you struggle to maintain a connection to a single focus. In time you will overcome all struggles and enter into a meditative state with ease.

New meditation information is added to the site every week with links to my additional articles on how to meditate, reduce stress, and gain inner peace.

Peace

A breath of meditation.
The breath is linked to all the emotions.
When you feel angry or watch a scary movie, the heart rate increases and the breath becomes shallow and rapid.
When you are watching a sunset, strolling in a park, or meditating, the breath is slow and steady.

The breath is very powerful because it is closely linked to the mind. When you lose control of the breath through your thoughts and feelings, you find that your subsequent actions are also impacted.

Taking control of the breath through meditation enables you to to know what a calm mind and body feels like. With practice, you develop a new mental habit so that anytime you are faced with a stressful situation, you can recognize how you are breathing and adjust the rate and rhythm accordingly.

Controlling the breath helps you to control your actions. Any time that you sense that you are experiencing anger, frustration, or irritation with a person or situation, simply return to the rhythmic flow of the breath and you will find yourself calm, relaxed and able to think clearly.


THE DAILY EDGE
Helping You Expand Your Possibilities
TODAY'S EDGE: A Breath of Meditation
With the eyes gently closed
Follow the breath from the tip of the nose to the base of the lungs
Follow the breath all the way out
Notice the rate and rhythm of the breath
Adjust it so that is it slow and steady
Center yourself by seeing the belly rise and fall
With each exhalation, let the breath become deeper and deeper
Let the mind follow the breath
Let the body relax with the longer and deeper breath
Feel a deeper connection with the Self
Feel the body and mind relax
Feel calming detachment from anxiety and stress
Enter into meditation

With practice, you will be able to return to a calm and peaceful breath with ease and eventually maintain inner and outward peace at all times.
Meditation is for life.

A Marathon Meditation

Emma approaching the finish line: 2009 Boston Marathon

Meditation for life.
Endurance and Fortitude. We don't automatically associate these words with meditation, however when faced with adversity, questions, and everyday struggles, endurance and strength are qualities that you really want in abundance and meditation gives you the ability to free yourself from the pain and doubts associated with day-to-day living.

For Emma, maintaining her focus and believing she could run this marathon enabled her to leave thoughts of failure far behind.

Meditation has long been known to bring inner peace and the corresponding external tranquility within relationships and all activities. However, for many people the starting point to begin meditation often arises out of pain, anxiety, or finally deciding that enough is enough and you really want to change your life for the better.
It is well known that if you keep on doing the same things, you get the same results.
That's why meditation is a steady method to practice and bring about the changes you desire.

You cannot think two thoughts at the same time.
When you maintain a constant vigil over physical pain, rehash angry conversations, and see only the sufferings of the world, you draw your attention to negative energy.
Meditation releases you from this, giving you peace and joy to focus on.


With practice, your meditation becomes like the gentle flow of water seeping into the cracks of your life and smoothing out the rough parts.
A great transformation occurs as you focus less on what cannot be done because of perceived limitations and see instead that your mind and body have no restrictions.

Let yourself flow in your meditation practice and as you leave your old self behind, see what personal mountains you can move and what you can achieve.


THE DAILY EDGE
Helping You Expand Your Possibilities
TODAY'S EDGE:Marathon Meditation

Meditation is one-pointed focus, yet often during the day our mind drifts away from peace and happiness and becomes focused on finding fault either personally or by criticizing other people.

In your meditation practice, focus on releasing critical behaviors.
Focus on seeing the beauty in life, rather than being fixated on what is dull and unexciting.

Have a mantra that you can repeat during your meditation and throughout the day.
Examples include:
I choose to be grateful
I choose to be kind
I choose to give love
I choose to feel joy
I choose to see the good within
I choose to be happy

Use your chosen word or phrase whenever you hear yourself revert to fault-finding. Feel yourself draw back to your light and the peace within via the use of your mantra.

In time, you stop thinking negatively because you are too busy thinking only good and positive thoughts.

Your time is too precious to waste on negative thinking. Look at what can be achieved if you put your mind to positive use.

While running a marathon may not be your desire, find out what is and what is holding you back.
Use your meditation to help you get there.
Meditation is for life.

2009 Boston Marathon

Emma aged 12 crossing the Boston finish line.

Today is the 113th Boston Marathon and Emma Stockley is one of over 27,000 runners taking part in the race. Ten years after she ran in a junior high Massachusetts BAA race, she is crossing the finish line as an adult.
Some runners are competing to win while others are raising money for a charity of their choice. Emma is running for Great Kids Marathon Team (which is organized by Goodwill Industries and marks their 5th year participating in the Boston Marathon.) Details of Emma's fund-raising efforts are in a separate link at the end of today's blog.

Runners sometimes have a buddy that they run beside, or stay close to a pack where they pick up on each others energy, but running is predominantly a solitary sport.
It is an extraordinary feat of endurance that requires discipline, dedication, and a focused mind.

As the race continues and the miles go by, the rhythm of the pace takes over. Scenery, houses, trees and people drift by and gradually the thoughts lessen until the mind is focused only on the single step or breath. Mental strength develops and prepares an individual to control their body and thoughts.


Emma has laughingly said that "after a while, you run out of thoughts to think and just notice what is happening in the moment."

Meditation is the same.

With a person new to meditation, during the quiet moments the mind races and distracting thoughts intrude causing some people to give up by thinking that they can't focus enough to successfully meditate. In the same way that runners train alone but get to know their strengths and find their rhythm, learning to meditate requires getting to know your Self.

With continued practice, thoughts lessen as the mind develops clarity and learns how to develop single-pointed focus. Like most things in life, meditation takes practice but it can easily be learned bringing with it the rewards of purpose and self awareness. Allow your meditation to release your drive and enthusiasm and let it add significance to all you do.


THE DAILY EDGE
Helping You Expand Your Possibilities
TODAY'S EDGE:Hello Self

Meditation
In your meditation, practice sitting still and focus on getting to know your Self. Begin by focusing on the breath, finding a gently steady rhythm, and quieten the mind.
You may decide beforehand what you want to discover about your Self, or you may like to see what emerges during your meditation.
Like the marathon runners, stay the course. Know that after meditating regularly, thoughts and distractions will pass and you will be left only with your Self.
Your Self will not judge, but will be comforting and direct you to your life's purpose and help you find answers to questions.
This meditation helps you to know who you are and stay true to your real Self and to use each meditation session to strengthen your ability to bring your thoughts under control.
Each meditation session carries you over obstacles.
Delight in getting to know your Self and as each thought drifts on by you can find out how truly amazing you really are.

Meditation is for life. Practice it daily.

Expanding Your Possibilities

When you think of meditation, the concept of someone sitting in quiet contemplation comes to mind. That individual is seen as being someone who is at peace with their Self and the world.

Meditation offers many possibilities beyond Self peace though.

We all have a finite amount of energy to see us through the demands of daily life.
If we don't rest, consume proper nutrition, and breathe correctly, we literally run out of fuel and eventually come to a grinding halt.

Likewise, our time here on planet Earth is limited and yet all too often we throw away our thoughts, words, and actions in wasteful activities, in arguments, or in thinking negatively about a person or situation.

If we're not careful, or mindful, we end up frittering our precious energy on matters that do not lead us and the world around us to a better place.

When teaching yoga asanas (poses) and synchronizing the activity with the breath, students are encouraged to deepen and lengthen the breath in order to "expand the mind and body in all directions." This means that the student will no longer cling to the limitations of the physical body, but release thoughts, feelings, and emotions in order to allow the mind to expand and create space within for love and peace to grow and knowledge to emerge.



When the mind is too blocked by lists, anxiety, comments from other people, and internal discouraging remarks there is a limit to how you can use your energy.

Just as a car engine and its filters need to be cleaned, serviced and filled with gas and oil, you also need to to use meditation in order to clean out the mind of clutter that you don't need, to replenish your will, and allow your Self to shine through.

Then You, as the silent witness observing all that goes on in the mind, can finally allow your mind to be open to receive wisdom and allow intuition to flourish.

Your mind then, will know no boundaries or limitations.

Meditation is your golden key to unlocking wondrous possibilities that are contained within you. Use meditation every day to free your mind and expand your possibilities.

THE DAILY EDGE
Helping You Expand Your Possibilities
TODAY'S EDGE: Watch Your Thoughts

For today's meditation I wanted to leave you with the following words taken from The Upanishads; a major work from India that discusses aspects of philosophy and spirituality.

Watch your thoughts; they become words.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; for it becomes your destiny.

All photos by Katarina 2353, on Flickr">

Meditation is for Life. Practice it daily.

THE DAILY EDGE: MEDITATIONS

Helping You Expand Your Possibilities
TODAY'S EDGE: CLAIMING YOUR POWER

You can alter the way you think and act by the use of affirmations either before, during or after you meditate.

Your affirmation may also be used as a mantra to help you to concentrate during your meditation.

You are a being of limitless possibilities who is free to choose peace and protection in the light or to cling to powerlessness.

Through visualization, see yourself in control of your thoughts and actions. All that you think and say is for the better good.
You are strong and safe knowing that you are guided in all that you think, say, and do.

Affirmation:
I am guided by the source of all light
I am secure in the knowledge that I am loved
I shine my light on others

Practice repeating your affirmation daily and your meditation practice will deepen as you relax. In time you will know with certainty that what you affirm you become as you draw ever closer to light and happiness.