New Year Affirmation

There are NO limitations to your possibilities.
With a vast array of promise and potential to choose from, ask yourself if you are shrinking from what you really want because you are making mediocre choices based on what you think that you deserve.
Promoting a positive mental state frees you from disorder and chaos while opening your Self up to myriad of opportunities.

My thoughts are under my control
I remain unaffected by negative surroundings and attitudes
I look for and find the best in other people
I see my life anew

A New Attitude
What do you believe about yourself, your relationships, and the world around you?
Where does the information come from that enables you to form these beliefs?
Your beliefs create your life! They form the foundation of all that you think and do. Your beliefs are believed by the mind whether they are real, or true, or even false.
The beliefs that YOU hold are what you use to lead you whether you are aware of them or not.
Reinforce positive beliefs like love and altruism that strengthen and sustain you and enable you to be a constructive force to the world around you.

I believe in myself and what I am capable of

I can soar as high as I can imagine.

Today I choose to believe rather than hope.

Meditation, Soldiers, and You

 Meditation is a proven method for inner peace

Meditation and Soldiers
According to the David Lynch foundation an estimated 30-35% of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans suffer from the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD.

When an event is shocking and severe it can cause physiological changes in the brain. The trauma and stress is still carried around by the soldiers months and even years after their tour of duty has ended, with soldiers re-experiencing the smells and sounds of the traumatic event and creating stress that compounds over time.

Operation Warrior Wellness
Their minds are in a state of heightened activation, stress, and aggressiveness and while medication can alleviate some symptoms, the underlying stress still remains.
David Lynch’s organization is teaching Transcendental Meditation to soldiers in a program called Operation Warrior Wellness and the soldiers report experiencing “resilience, strength, and internal hardiness.”

Stress-Relief
Stress is relieved enabling individuals to talk about and cope with their feelings and to successfully get through their day without turning to alcohol, gambling, or other methods of self-medication that are used in order to escape from what is re-occurring in the mind.

Meditation is an evidence-based approach to provide deep relaxation that is deeper than sleep. During meditation, practitioners experience deep feelings of relaxation and relief from stress. Deep relaxation allows soldiers to sleep better, enabling their daily activities to be performed better. Moreover, it allows the individuals to return to an active and productive life.

During meditation, the mind withdraws from the information gathered from the senses permitting a fullness of relaxation.

Awareness of Self
The Self emerges and you realize that you are not the body, nor are you the mind. This realization of the Self enables discernment to emerge and with it comes heightened intuition.

Relaxation achieved during meditation is profound and the mind and body find the method so beneficial that it wants to keep repeating the experience. Research shows that even after the first session, there are both positive chemical and physiological changes occurring in the brain and that the experience is not merely subjective.

No one has control over your thoughts except yourself. Your hope, wishes, even your imagination are all within your own power to direct their energy in one path or another. The mind cannot discern between what it has actually seen and what it is seeing via your imagination.

Meditation is a simple yet proven method to attain release from acute and chronic stress, even severe stress as in PTSD.

Living a Happy Life
Life is not about what you think may happen in the future. Life is about enjoying the journey of daily creativity and loving experiences, of focusing on the beauty of life, of filling your life with positive experiences through books, music, and the right people who uplift you with their happiness and attitude.

Meditation is a unique practice that provides relief from stress and immediate benefits that will enable you to enjoy life to its fullest.

Releasing Barriers to Peace
Self-inquiry via meditation helps you identify barriers to peace and to see that they are dependent upon the senses for their fuel. You can release all obstructions by permanently taking away the energy source and putting a permanent damper on the obstacles that threaten to ignite when the environment is right. So, what lies buried beneath the ashes in your life?

Affirmations

My thoughts are creating the reality that I desire

My imagination creates what I believe

My affirmations are creating habits in keeping with my objectives

I am now achieving my goals

Breathe Deep! The Power of Your Breath

Power Of The Yoga Breath
A 2006 study on the effects of pranayama (yoga rhythmic breathing) in patients with severe COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) examined forty eight patients randomly divided (24 each) into two groups.
The study group patients were trained to do pranayama daily, six times a week, for 3 months for at least half an hour duration and both the groups were allowed to continue with their usual physical activity and medications.

Pranayama consisted of six breathing exercises: Bhastika Pranayama,'Kapalabhati Pranayama, Vhasya pranayama, Anulom-Vilom pranayama, Bhramid pranayama and Udgeedh pranayama.

Lung function tests, spirometry, and blood gases were taken and compared with the control group.

Amazing Results
The results showed that there was improvement in the lung function parameters in the study group which in turn had an overall positive effect on the patients. “Patients had reduced symptoms, became more actively involved in their own health care, more independent in performing their daily activities, increased exercise tolerance and therefore were less dependent on family, friends, health professionals, and expensive medical resources. There was improvement in the psychological function of the patient with less anxiety and depression and increased feeling of hope, control and self- esteem.”

The researchers concluded that yogic breathing is a “noncompetitive, personal, inexpensive and enjoyable activity which can produce truly amazing results.”

Your Breath
Your feelings and emotions correspond to your thoughts and actions and the subsequent flow of the breath.

Yoga philosophy teaches that where the breath goes the mind follows and vice-versa, highlighting the distinct relationship between how you breathe and your individual physical and spiritual well-being.

The average body takes approximately 21,600 breaths every day, which equates to 15 breaths per minute. We are all breathing but all too often the breath becomes held, rapid, or uneven in response to events that either exist in the mind or are actually happening in the present moment. These events include, fear, laughter, and even stress.

Maintaining a full and steady breathing pattern not only benefits the mind and body by promoting a relaxed physical state and clear decision-making but there is also an abundant supply of oxygen to ensure completion of daily tasks while the cells of the body are nurtured and stale waste products are eliminated, ensuring better overall health.

Connecting with the flow of the breath is also a spiritual tool that draws you closer to the quiet place within while acting as a means by which to train the mind to maintain a single-pointed focus.
Conscious awareness is further strengthened by concentration on the rhythmic breath.

Simple Techniques to Practice
Awareness of each of the senses, and whether one is more active than the other, assists you in not only regulating the flow, rate, and rhythm of the breath, but helps you to make better choices in relation to the thoughts that you produce and their impact on you and your surroundings.

You can embrace the senses and the breath when you are walking outside, perhaps in a park, the beach, or the countryside. Synchronize each inhale and exhale with each step while noticing what you hear, feel, smell, see, and touch. As each step becomes linked with each breath, you can cease the awareness of the senses and draw closer to the rhythmic flow of the breath.

You can also link the breath and step with an affirmation or with each word of your affirmation.

Breath Affirmation
Affirmations are a proven and powerful method of changing the way the mind thinks and creating a positive (or negative) outcome.

1. Recognize what you want.
2. Create language that affirms what you want.
3. By repeating and believing what you have written, the mind will gradually replace the outdated patterns and images with ones that support you in achieving a new reality.

I fill my body with light

I release all impurities

I am free and strong

Or you can try the following method:

With each inhalation I breathe in ….(add a word)

With each exhalation I breathe out …(add a word)

Role of Pranayama in Rehabilitation of COPD patients - a Randomized
Controlled Study. S K Katiyar, Shailesh Bihari
Dept. of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases Dr. Murari Lai Chest Hospital
G.S.V.M. Medical College, Kanpur
Indian J Allergy Asthma Immunol 2006; 20(2) : 98-104

Increasing your optimism. There are No limits!

Concentration, Optimism, Success

The brain has an open loop system where we are able to pick up subtle clues that are emitted from one another. We can also anticipate the actions of other people and react accordingly and this amazing ability fires back and forth in split seconds between each person. For example, hormones are activated in 40 milliseconds while the sympathetic nervous system is activated in a mere 8 milliseconds.

There is also a cycle of "sacrifice and renewal" which occurs daily within the neurons and this cycle is affected either positively or negatively by the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS).

It is estimated that 85,000 neurons are lost every day and if the SNS is activated more frequently and for prolonged periods, it actually promotes cognitive loss. This includes reducing the health of the immune system, increasing nervousness and fears, and stimulating stress.

The PNS has the opposite effect; promoting renewal and health including a better memory for details, increased positive emotions, lowering blood pressure, and arousing compassion.

Increasing optimism
Activities such as meditation, yoga and prayer have all been shown to promote renewal of neurons while also increasing hope, compassion and optimism.

Meditation affects your perception, your perspective on life, and by promoting a positive mental state enables you to be free from negativity that creates upset. It allows each one of us to move beyond the comprehension of what is occurring in the mind and body and to actually begin to feel the flow of positive emotions.

Mindfulness moments increase and effectively give the mind space to focus on what is positive and meaningful to you.

You begin to recognize what is dominate in your life and choose to develop new habits more in line with what you desire. This allows you to transcend the meditative experience and bring the benefits of meditation into your everyday activities.

So what will you do with the new-found attitude?

Let creativity flow
Wonderful things can happen when you channel your true passions into disciplined action and move beyond recurring thoughts and habits and replace them with positive ones through affirmations and a regular meditation practice and to actually begin to feel the flow of positive emotions. Don't compare yourself to others; simply do your best and encourage this in others,

Becoming active rather than reactive to situations fosters positive emotions, framing goals with hope for the future while also being able to see that negative events can “wake” you up to possibilities. This allows you to transcend the meditative experience and bring the benefits of meditation into your everyday activities.

There are NO limits
Be creative and inventive. Let your ideas flow and find what inspires you. Your horizon is as vast as you allow it to be and as tall and exciting as you make it.

Other people do not have your vision or your desire to succeed. There are no limits to your potential.
Your physical outer world is a reflection of your inner world and your energy is always radiating, flowing, and touching others. True change occurs from within and your positive inner dialogue helps elevate others around you even when you are not saying anything TO them; just thinking positive thoughts.

Affirmations

All that I perceive about myself is positive.

I face challenges with certainty that I will find solutions and overcome all obstacles

I am able to help and encourage people around me

I am successful in all that I set out to do

My life is filled with wonder.

Finding Your Self: This Is Who I Really Am

Sometimes what we perceive is a mirror reflection of who we are.

Do you like what you see?

As always, thank you to everyone around the world who follows my writing and thank you again for forwarding the blog link to friends.

Happiness and friendship is never diminished because it is shared.

Margaret

Finding Your Self
In the early 1980’s, Dr Richard Schwartz, Ph.D. worked as a family therapist. During his sessions with clients, he began to notice that some clients, those with eating disorders, would have internal dialogues with a pessimistic part of themselves that was either urging them to eat or purge the food from their body. As he explored this further with one client called “Diane”, he discovered that he was not talking to what he perceived as Diane, but to a part of her that was constantly engaged in an on-going war with a pessimistic voice that was constantly telling her that she was hopeless. When he asked her to directly inquire why the pessimist was always saying this, it said that it was protecting her from taking risks and getting hurt. Diane felt that this voice made her life a continuous struggle.

As he explored further, he discovered that there was also an angry voice inside Diane that pushed her to achieve while the pessimist voice told her she was hopeless. He invited her to ask the angry voice to “step-back” and to tell him how she now felt toward the negative voice. He reports that Diane immediately responded gently, in a more relaxed manner and compassionate state, appreciating the negative voice for caring about her, for trying to protect her, and for having to work so hard to make itself heard.

From that point on it was easy for Diane to handle the pessimist and to deal with her situation.

Dr Schwartz conducted on-going research into the inner voices with many of his clients. Upon reaching the calm, compassionate state they all gave, in their own words, the same response;
I am not like those other voices,
This is who I really am,
That’s my Self.

For the next twenty years, he has refined his research into teaching clients to reach their Selves. Likewise, he teaches therapists to also release baggage and perceived agendas and to get in touch with their real Self through his Center for Self Leadership (CSL) which has trained over 10,000 people in this approach since 2000.

Self-Awareness
We have all heard the inner voices that Dr Schwarz identified; the ones that discourage, ridicule, or worse. There are several clinical methods that can be used to declutter the mind from the constant static and to heighten awareness of the Self.

Just as research into the Self is now accepted and funded in America, meditation has also been researched with even deeper research examining the effect of meditation within the DNA of cells. Today’s technology enables us to see the physiological and chemical changes that occur throughout the whole body.

Self-Reflection
In many cultures, the Self was already known and spiritual and philosophical ideas arose through the practice of being in contact with the Self.

Meditation has been used for thousands of years for self-reflection, self-awareness, healing, enlightenment and connecting with the Self. It draws your attention away from a particular object or illness to an overall knowledge and feeling of inner calmness and peace. The mind concentrates less on individual problems or issues and settles instead on promoting an inward focus, enabling the mind and the body to experience a profound state of restfulness. In turn, the brain becomes balanced, while the mind and body move beyond thinking, to simply being.

Yet many people live their life following the same routines and habits, sometime without remembering why, and don’t know why or how to begin making simple changes that will bring positive transformation to their professional and personal lives.

Meditation
Meditation allows a heightened state of awareness to evolve and with this newfound clarity comes an understanding of needs, purpose, and the ability to implement change with confidence. Thoughts lessen as the mind develops inner vision 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.

This increased level of awareness helps practitioners make subtle changes in diet, activity, and other lifestyle choices while improving interactions through enhanced empathy, understanding, and greater perception of life situations.

Affirmation

Affirmations are powerful statements about what you want to create in your life.
Balance your actions with awareness of thoughts and clarity of vision.
Noticing how and when you respond to situations gives you the ability to choose your thoughts and subsequent actions.
Envisage a clear and positive outline for your future by retaining only that which is positive and beneficial to you.

With each inhalation I breathe in ….. (what you need)

With each exhalation I release …..(what you don’t need)

I pay attention to why I think what I do

I pay attention to why I do what I do

I pay attention to how I affect the world around me

I am filled with love and happiness

Is Your Attitude Contagious?

 When the lake of the mind is still...... Ahh, Bliss!

As always, thank you to everyone around the world who follows my writing and thank you again for forwarding the blog link to friends.

Happiness and friendship is never diminished because it is shared.

Margaret

It’s now an accepted fact that stress not only affects how you feel, it impacts you physically. What’s less known is the cumulative consequence of long-term stress.

Many studies clearly show the link between stress, challenging work-related issues, and disheartening living conditions as heightening the risk for heart disease which are compounded when other aspects like smoking are factored in.

A 2005 study by The American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine looked at 892 men with no-known cardiovascular disease and who felt they had no support or control of their working life. The findings showed that the men had increased markers of inflammation such as C-reactive protein and fibrinogen, which are linked to heart disease.

Staying In The Flow
Stress also creates an increase in the production of cortisol which in turn leads to further inflammation, raising blood pressure and inflammation.

Staying in the moment, and recognizing what you can change while accepting what you can’t, helps you to stay in the flow of life and use your energy wisely.

Meditation balances the chemical arousal while enabling you to reduce stress levels. You learn how to reframe what is happening instead of internalizing it and use the breathing and meditation techniques to relax and regain control.

Natural Rhythm
The findings of this 2005 study are relevant to both men and women regardless of age too. When you feel chronic pressure, as opposed to short-term acute pressure, it compounds the stress that already exists, and increases your likelihood of developing high blood pressure, irregular breathing patterns, cardiac problems, and other health risks.

Change is everywhere and there is a natural rhythm to the world. As we enter a new season, we are reminded yet again of the ever-changing flow of life that surrounds us. We know that seasonal variations cannot be stopped and are a wonderful part of life to be embraced, rather than struggled against.

Breathing Techniques
There are previous postings on my blog page which give guided meditations as well as simple breathing techniques that you can integrate into your daily activities.  Simply browse the list on the right hand side of the blog page (not the email page, if you receive the posting in your in-box).

Balance your life energy by replacing erratic breathing and random thought patterns with a calm and steady flow of energy that permeates throughout every cell of your body. This elevates your consciousness not only of the world around you, but of your own needs, and those of other people. Accepting change enables you to transition effortlessly with the twists and turns that occur on your life’s journey.

Is Your Attitude Contagious?
Optimism is a state of mind that can be developed and its many benefits include helping you to realize your goals and ambitions. It creates an upward cycle that is both contagious and powerful because it affects not only yourself, but those you come in contact with. Other people feel your positive and confident energy and this energizes them too.
The opposite can also be true.  Most of us know the phrase, "misery loves company."  These are the individuals who always find something wrong, whether it's the weather, what they had for lunch, or what someone is wearing.  They are often gossips too.  Hang around these people too long and it's draining.

Personally, I do not permit negativity to bury it's way into my life.  It saps time, energy, and other resources.

Remember though, it is a different situation when you recognize that someone is ill, sad, or grieving and in need of comfort, support, or even the gift of a smile; and you give freely. This is an example of using your energy wisely.

When life is frantic, people are angry, traffic is hectic, and the world seems to be getting crazier,

how do you respond to this?

While most of us are well aware that “remaining calm” or “love is the answer” are appropriate choices, putting them into practice is another matter entirely when you find it challenging to monitor your thoughts, keep them in check, or even reign in actions that you really don’t want to pursue.

"A chaotic life is often a reflection of a restless mind."

What Is Important?
Meditation restores peace to both the body and the mind and puts you back in control of what you think, say, and do. You are still aware of external stimuli but no longer affected by them.
You become able to filter the tug and pull of what's going on around you, making it easier to see all that is happening around you with greater detail and able to process the information with clarity. No longer pulled in different directions, you can discern what is important and retain connection to the source of peace that resides within you, free from the constraints of habits, desires, and boundaries.

A peaceful mind is the foundation for expanded awareness and a happy and stable life. Downbeat and pessimistic thinking is an acquired habit with its own internal mantra, and you can release yourself from thinking in terms of limitations, disappointments, and problems by first and foremost seeing all that is good in your life and being thankful for it.

Sow What You Want To Harvest
Affirmations help you to cultivate a fertile area in your heart where you weed out deep-rooted thought-patterns and sow seeds of love, ultimately reaping the rewards of peace and happiness.
Applying them every day helps you promote a better habitual way of thinking by inspiring you to grow only that which you want to flourish in your life.

Affirmation

The moment that I have right now is everything.

I visualize my desires and dreams and connect with them at all times

I find my bliss and keep it with me

Every thought takes me closer to my life purpose

I am filled with joy and enthusiasm

I love myself and others

I choose to do things that foster love

Boosting Your Happiness

The moment that I have right now is everything. Margaret Stockley

Have you ever seen or held a crystal up to the light and watched the way that it catches the sunlight? Many colors shine through it, their colorful rays spreading out in a myriad of directions.

In what way does the crystal change?

The answer is it doesn’t.

No matter the amount of light passing through the crystal, the intensity or color of the light, the crystal remains unaffected by what has happened.

Likewise, the part of you that does the observing also remains unchanged by what happens around and to the body.

Developing awareness in all situations, including your own feelings and reactions, enables you to take control of what you think and therefore do.

It’s up to you to determine what kind of reaction,

and ultimately reality, you're going to create.

You are not your thoughts, but they do impact you and others. Thoughts occur in the present moment so choose your present thoughts wisely and you will not be upset with the way that your future turns out.

Boost your happiness and confident outlook by honing your attention on your innermost thoughts and replacing any negative patterns that keep repeating themselves with a positive word or phrase. By making a conscious effort to change those habitual and troublesome thoughts you gain control over your life.

Affirmation

My inner glow is not dulled or discolored by what is happening around me

I am a beacon of pure energy radiating on the world, helping others

by the brightness and power of my light

Are You In The Best Surroundings For Who You Are?

Are You In The Best Surroundings For Who You Are?

Habits
Neuroscience shows that your past experiences, thoughts, and actions are imprinted on the neurons of your brain.

Fortunately, the brain is pliable, like plastic, and is generally receptive to influences that can lead to change. Physically putting your new thoughts into action strengthens the sensory pathways, which activates energy in the area of the brain responsible for the activity. Then, the brain creates a memory for the experience which further reinforces the pathways and in turn perfects your skill or new habit.
Without awareness, you will unconsciously keep reacting in a specific manner, choosing habit over healthy behavior.

Who Sustains You?
If you want to thrive, rather than survive, your thoughts and actions are only a part of the big picture. You are also defined by who you surround yourself with on a regular basis.
Take a look at your own life.
Who sustains you?
Who provides you with love, laughter, and support?
Who drains you and brings you down?
Who makes you feel glad because you are in their presence?

Questions To Ask
Any decision you make, and the actions you take ultimately reflect back on other people that you interact with, and they in turn with other people. You make your decisions not in isolation, but as part of a two-way process that helps you to discover and confirm the right direction your life will take. Your actions ultimately impact others, demonstrating how inextricably bound together we are. By default, it obliges us to live responsibly and in doing so, create an environment that is conducive to behavior that is creative, not destructive.
Feeling good about yourself comes about by thinking less about yourself, and helping others more.
Ask questions such as:
“What do I need?” and “There is happiness when I…”

Choices
You are defined by the choices that you make. They reveal your innermost values and what you hold up as important.
Negative feelings hinder and prevent you from achieving positive change. Have you unconsciously given permission to downbeat thoughts and allowed them to influence your behavior?
Focusing on the positive things in your life means that you can alter your perspective on life. This has the effect of making you more constructive every day, while others are glad to see you because of your enthusiasm and affirmative action.
Make choices that honor who you truly are and you will create a lifetime of love and happiness.


Optimism
Positive thoughts directed to yourself and others help you to stay focused on what really matters. Mindfulness moments free your mind from preoccupations or any suffering you may have sustained through your life. The result is unconditional acceptance of who you are.

The breath has power not only on a physical level, but on a subtle level too. As you meditate every day, develop positive awareness in rhythm with your deep and steady breath. This will become your normal state of being.

Cultivate a state of optimism in all your thoughts by drawing this understanding to your waking activities.

Positive Affirmations:

Each moment of every day my life is filled with wonder

I choose my thoughts

I have abundant energy to complete all my tasks

I am filled with vitality in body, mind, and spirit

All aspects of my being are filled with love

Are Your Thoughts Creating The Reality That You Want?

The meditative mind reflects peace and clarity.

A 1995 report to the National Institutes of Health on alternative medicine concluded that "More than 30 years of research, as well as the experience of a large and growing number of individuals and health care providers, suggests that meditation and similar forms of relaxation can lead to better health, higher quality of life, and lowered health care costs…"

Fifteen years after that report, multiple aspects of meditation are actively being studied with the results raising further ideas for research as well as finding answers to health and wellbeing problems through the many benefits of meditation. Many of these studies have been highlighted in our previous newsletters.

One of the latest areas of research focuses on gamma waves produced by regular deep meditation. These gamma waves cause the electromagnetic rhythm of neurons to fire very rapidly in synchrony with each other, changing the brain in positive ways.

The thought-process becomes clearer while the ability to be the observer of your thoughts becomes sharper and immediate. What this leads to is a rewiring of the circuitry of the brain, resulting in stress-reduction, calmness, and improved interactions.

Your Powerful Thoughts
A balance between rest and activity enhances productivity because you are able to focus, are more observant, and creativity can flourish. Your mind requires meditative time to stay inspired and alert. The difference between being tired or rested often translates into the difference between being overwhelmed with daily challenges or finding resourceful solutions to them.

No one has control over your thoughts except yourself. Your hope, wishes, even your imagination are all within your own power to direct their energy in one path or another.
Studies show that the mind cannot discern between what it has actually seen and what it is seeing via your imagination.

The mind can be “tricked” into believing a memory that is simply created as though it has actually been experienced.

Use your imagination to generate a reality that is positive, loving, and all that you desire. This is not a make-believe type of imagining, but a means of creating more positivity and constructive actions that in turn generates affirmative thoughts and actions. Gradually, you develop the habit of thinking positively, seeing opportunities rather than obstacles, and being the type of person that people want to be around because they feel good by being in your presence.

You always have a choice about how you are going to react to the world. For example, take a look around you at the room that you are sitting in. What do you notice? Do you pay attention to the fact that it is comfortable and are appreciative of having a home?
Or do you choose to think about the chores that need to be done?

Try to pay attention and catch yourself mid-thought whenever you find that a thought has appeared that does not promote the environment that you want.

Affirmation

Use affirmations either as part of your meditation practice or carry them with you and repeat them throughout the day whenever you catch yourself thinking a negative thought.
Over time, your affirmations will have a positive effect and transform not only your behavior but generate an assuredness of self-worth and contentment.

My thoughts are creating the reality that I want
My imagination creates what I believe
My affirmations are creating habits in keeping with my objectives
I am now achieving my goals

How Much Effort Does It Actually Take To Live Mindfully?

The researcher Jon Kabat-Zinn writes the following about mindfulness; "The point is to pause in our experience long enough to let the present moment sink in; long enough to actually feel the present moment, to see it in its fullness, to hold it in awareness, and thereby come to know and understand it better."

How much effort does it actually take to live mindfully?
At what times during the day do you pause to think about someone or notice how you are feeling?
Noticing what you are experiencing and incorporating this awareness into all of your interactions begins when you become the observer of your life.

The hard way or the easy way?
It takes only a small amount of time to do something mindfully as it does to act without thinking. The consequences though can be very different as many people have regrettably found out the hard way.

We make conscious choices every day when it is related to an event that we deem to be important to us. Equally, not making a choice when you have the opportunity to make one is also a choice.

Learning to live in the moment begins with catching yourself in the moment. This instance of awareness includes observing what's occurring internally as well as physically.

Ask yourself the following questions:
What am I noticing right now? What's happening in my vicinity? What am I drawn to?
What am I feeling right now? What emotions and physical sensations are flowing through me?
What am I thinking right now? How do I want to react?

With practice, awareness increases and you quickly pick up what the body is feeling and what thoughts are flowing through the mind.

All this occurs in real time and gives you the ability to make appropriate choices that positively impact your present, your future, and the ability to sustain lasting change.

Affirmations

As always, choose affirmations that feel appropriate to you. Feel free to create an affirmation that's suitable to you by asking yourself the following question:
What do I want to ….?

This will help you to create affirmations that assert your purpose and therefore have special meaning to you.
It is important that the words you use are your own or that they feel comfortable to you.
Once you become familiar with using an affirmation, you can create your own ones, based on your specific needs on a day-to-day basis using language and content to better fit what is happening in your own life.

I have the freedom to find out who I am

I forgive who I was in the past

I accept what is happening and trust that all will be well

I know that I am a loving person and that I am loved

Happy Thoughts: Affirmations to Love Your Life

A Public Display of Love

Neuroscience shows that your past experiences, thoughts, and actions are imprinted on the neurons of your brain. Without awareness, you will unconsciously keep reacting in a specific manner, choosing habit over healthy behavior.

There is always a way to choose the right path, be it in words or actions.

What's also interesting is that negative thoughts draw more negative energy to you; however it is possible to create new and better pathways within your brain with far-reaching consequences.

Your mind makes mental movies of both actual and imagined situations as though the brain is witnessing it for real: laughter, arguments, sad life events.
These images affect the whole self, thereby creating a reality that you choose, whether you are conscious of it or not.

Carry an affirmative thought with you every day to remind you to stay optimistic.

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

Become a driver rather than a passenger in your own life.

3 baby robins have hatched

only 2 weeks later, see what they've become.....

"If you know what you could become, it would leave you breathless." Ben Herbster

Think back to how your parents dressed when you were a child.

Those fashions were appropriate then, but if you were to see someone sporting the same outfits today, that person would probably receive quite a few stares.

Styles change; skirt lengths rise and fall, men’s ties become wider or thinner as designers shape the current fashion trends.

Positive Change
Change has always happened and while most people are wearing more recent clothing styles, you have to ask yourself if you are still wearing the same memories and attitudes of things that went wrong, or memories of things people told you like “You’re not smart enough.”

Holding on to other people’s opinions only holds you back. Life does change and by being ever vigilant you can observe what is arising internally in response to specific events or comments.

Change challenges us to look at what we are doing, where we have been, and what we want to do with our lives. Change is positive when you can take a fresh look at all the old expectations that you still carry around with you and do something about it, rather than riding along with what life tosses your way or what other people think is best.

Become a driver rather than a passenger in your own life.

You have the ability to persevere, be resilient, and successfully create the life you want through the thoughts that you keep.

So, tear off the labels that other people apply/have applied to you. Do it now! The more you tolerate phrases like "You're not clever enough, or You can't do that" the more you believe them.

Show who you really are and begin living your ideal life.

 

Affirmations

I choose my path

I am clear on my goals

I am taking action to reach my purpose.

Every day I am closer to my ideal life

I am grateful for my opportunities

I know that as I help others along the way I also receive guidance

Gratitude: Guided Meditation

Water everywhere! Swans are enjoying the water.

Gratitude

This week I was reminded of the wonderful power of gratitude and I wanted to share the story with you today, especially as it is a special time of year in both the Jewish and Christian calendars.

Here in New England we’ve had a lot of rain over the past two weeks that has broken meteorological records and submerged roads, houses, and caused bridges to crumble under its mighty force.

In my yoga studio, I have an automatic sump pump installed and since the rain started falling it has been working overtime.

Usually it switches on for a minute and is a gentle soothing trickle, however the last few days have poured a lot of water from the sky and the pump was quite audible on several occasions.

Most of my students have been attending classes at my studio for months and even years and have learned to filter out distractions and focus on the peace within. Their peaceful composure and ability to stay “in the Flow” is a credit to their dedication to practicing all the aspects of TriYoga.

This week though, I was reminded about an incident that occurred about ten years ago. I attended a workshop held by another teacher and at the end of the session one attendee complained to the instructor about the noise in the next room; the footsteps, the doors opening and closing, and the conversations.

To me the noise was very minor and no more distracting than cars outside in the street, planes flying overhead, and the chirping of birds in the trees.
In rented space it is often challenging to have the perfect environment which is one reason why I created my own studio, but few things in life are ever truly perfect.

Perfection lies within.

Anyway, the attendee who was complaining did not see that the problem lay within their very own self, rather than externally. As yogi’s we learn to live in the world free from distractions and to maintain single-pointed focus.

Which brings me back to this week.

I was delighted that my students were able to filter the external noise; some students even thought it was soothing and a deliberate choice on my behalf to enhance the water element theme of the class!
However it was a particular comment by one student, and echoed by the class, that I want to share with you.

Remember, there has been and still is a major amount of flooding throughout New England and residents (including my students) have had boilers, washing machines, computers, and basements ruined, to name but a few items and have spent hours salvaging what they can.

At the end of class, one student said:
“Thank you Margaret, for having the sump pump and giving us a warm dry studio that we can come to, to practice our yoga. We need to be here.”

That was such a wonderful thing to say and a reflection on the inner peace and transformation that is possible for all of us, despite our own problems and the difficulties that we see around us.

Practicing gratitude, following the peace within, and focusing on what is good and beautiful and right with the world rather than what is wrong and being unhappy enables each one of us to remain strong and be a force of light when problems do occur.

Gratitude remains a powerful tool to remain contented and happy. If you are new to the practice of meditation you will discover that it will help realign yourself with light and love and relinquish the hold of emotional irritation, unhappiness and even anger.

It does not mean looking at the world through-rose-colored glasses, but about releasing fear, fault-finding, and doubt.

Instead of looking at a rose and focusing on the thorns, be grateful that thorns have roses.

Guided Meditation
See this earlier posting on How To Meditate


Sitting in a comfortable position, allow the eyes to gently close.

Slowly inhale, filling your lungs completely with air.
Exhale slowly.
And continue, slowing the breath down.
Follow the breath from the tip of the nose to the base of the lungs, and slowly release the air.

Draw the navel in with each exhalation to assist with removing the impurities that are carried with the breath.

Release attachment to thoughts and emotions, focusing on your breath.

Continue as you allow the body to relax and the mind to be quiet and still.

Draw light in a column through the body in front of the spine.
Exhale, and see yourself surrounded by the light.
Continue for 5 slow and steady breaths.


Now, with each inhalation draw awareness to the heart center.

See light emanate from this sacred space.

As you exhale, allow the light to cleanse you and remove impurities, both physical and subtle.

Feel yourself glowing with the pure light that both fills you and surrounds you.

See the light flow effortlessly from your heart center.

Bathe in the light, feel it cleanse and renew you.

SAY WHAT YOU ARE GRATEFUL FOR

In the beginning it may be challenging but like all things, with practice it get SO MUCH EASIER and you find that you have zero problems finding subjects to be genuinely grateful for.

Continue to bathe in the light. Feel the warm embrace of peace and light.

When you feel that your meditation session is over, slowly allow your eyes to open.

Demonstrate gratitude through prayers, through acts of kindness, and by monitoring your thoughts and subsequent actions to ensure that you are truly thoughtful with every word and action.

Grazie

Merci

Thank You

No matter how you say it, giving thanks and showing your gratitude is a positive emotion that unlocks the fullness of your energy.
As opportunities open themselves up to you, you will be able to recognize them and act upon them. You have the power to influence your thoughts.

Gratitude
Meditation is often described as a mirror to your Self, revealing to yourself the reality of how you are really doing in living your life with purpose. You will know that all is well when peace flows through you and stays with you for longer periods until your whole life is peaceful.

Think gratitude, give gratitude, receive thanks and love.

Peace

How To Meditate

One peaceful view from my TriYoga and meditation studio

Today marks one year since I started my meditation blog. Thank you to everyone who follows the blog by visiting it every week and to everyone who has it delivered by email.

For those who are new to the blog, I'm an author, teacher of TriYoga and Meditation, and owner of my own studio.
I welcome your comments which can be posted directly on the blog.

Here is a fresh look at one BASIC method of How to Meditate.

Creating a New Habit
When practiced daily, Meditation helps you to achieve a lasting sense of peace and draw on insight. It is a tool that prepares you to comprehend what is required of you and how you can honor creation, assisting you in discovering truth and insight into your purpose in life and in distinguishing the ways that hold you back.

You can use the technique of meditation for a variety of purposes; for stress reduction, for healing alongside current medical treatments and therapies, for solutions to questions such as your career or finances, and also for enhanced connection to God and your own spiritual growth.

Of course, the first few times you do the new activity, you may encounter a few obstacles but over time it gets easier as the brain gets used to firing up the same neural pathway. That’s why bad habits are hard to break; they’re so deeply entrenched in your brain that it takes a few tries to “rewire” your brain to do a different activity.

Choose a time of day when you can allocate at least twenty minutes of solitude in a clean, quiet, and airy space. For most people, this time is available at the beginning or the end of the day. Morning meditation offers an intuitive start to the day, while the evening is an opportunity to unwind.

How to Meditate
Begin by sitting in a comfortable position with the back supported by a wall or sit in a kitchen chair that has a firm back. An armchair is not really suitable as it is often too cushiony. The purpose of using a wall or a firm chair is to have the spine as straight as possible. If you are sitting on the floor and can place the heel of one foot in front of the ankle of the other foot without discomfort and maintain this position for the length of time of the meditation, do so. Otherwise, sit in as upright a position as you are able with your hands in a relaxed manner by your sides or on your lap.

If you have a question to ask, allow the thought to rise up in your consciousness as you enter into meditation.

Mantra or Affirmation
If you are going to use a mantra or affirmation, choose whether it is a word or a phrase, either a Sanskrit mantra or something positive in your own language such as "I am Loved" or "Peace" then gently close your eyes and allow the eyes to remain still. When eyes move jerkily and roll around, it is often an indication that the mind is active and not at rest.
A comfortable place for the eyes to rest is the Third Eye located just above the space between the eyebrow,  With your eyes closed, lift the eyes up to this inner space; too high and the eyes will flutter and you don't want that to happen!

For more detailed explanations on the use and meanings of mantra, see the specific blog postings on mantra.

Power of the Breath

Where the breath goes the mind follows, and vice-versa.
Breathe regularly and fully for four or five breaths or longer as necessary and allow the shoulders to relax and your breathing to find its own rhythm. Focus on each exhalation, lengthening it until it becomes twice as long as each inhalation. Never force the breath. There should be no stress with synchronizing thought and breath. Always allow the breath to find its own slow and casual tempo. Ensure that each inhalation and exhalation flows smoothly, softly, and slowly.

Concentrate on your breath prayer for this particular period of meditation. Any time that the mind begins to wander, re-focus on your chosen word or phrase and notice that eventually a sense of calmness permeates from this singular direction.

Be aware of any thoughts that drift into your mind and permit them to pass, focusing on the space between each lengthening breath.
Remain unattached to any unwanted thoughts.

Don't Give Up
If you find that your mind has wandered, don't give up on meditating. In the early stages this happens. Simply note that this has occured, remain inemotional about it, and simply return to the flow of the breath.
All that matters is the present moment, not what has occurred in the past whether it was two seconds ago or two years ago.

With continued practice, any mantra that you choose begins to flow of its own volition. This arises in response to thoughts that try to enter your mind’s awareness and the mantra acts as a blocking agent against the unwanted thoughts.

You can introduce positive messages of affirmation or praise at the same pace of each inhalation and exhalation.

Continue meditating until you feel that your session is complete. It will be approximately 15-20 minutes when you first begin to practice meditation.

Positive Results
With time, you see positive results through answered questions, contentment, and freedom from the commotion of everyday challenges. Retain your chosen mantra or affirmation following meditation. Carry your word or phrase with you throughout the remainder of the day with a glad heart and when you prepare for bed, repeat it as you fall asleep.

Know that you can return to the peaceful feeling inside of you simply bt returning to the gentle rhythmic flow of the breath.

Peace lies within you.

Overview

• Choose a time of day when you can allocate at least twenty minutes of solitude.
• Sit in a comfortable upright position with the spine as straight as possible.
• With eyes closed, focus on the breath flowing in and lengthening as it flows out.
• On each breath, repeat a mantra, or a word or phrase e.g. Peace, God is Love.
• Acknowledge all thoughts and permit them to pass.
• Do not use a timer. Allow your mind to tell you when you are complete.
• Decide what you want from your meditation session e.g. healing, answers.
• Expect solutions following your session
• Remain focused on either your chosen word or phrase, or the flow of your breath.
• Cultivate feelings of peace within you and practice living in joy every day.
• Do not set an alarm. Stop when you are ready; it will be approximately 10-20 minutes.

Choose Your Thoughts

Check out today's NEW video posting as well the brand new layout of the blog.

Let me know what you think!

A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances

but rather a person

with a certain set of attitudes - Hugh Downs

The illusion of the world is very powerful and plays easily with the mind, if you let it happen, or don’t pay attention to what is actually going on.

Distractions caused by focusing on feelings or emotions of the past, or anticipation of what is going to happen or might happen in the future, draw you away from what is actually taking place at this moment in time.

If you knew the real power of your thoughts, you would never have a negative thought again.

Thoughts have their own unique energy and work for you or against you, but if you don’t monitor them by paying attention, then it should not be a surprise when situations occur that you don’t really want.

Use the power of your words to create only that which is positive for you and will not do harm to others around you.

There is always a way to choose the right path, be it in words or actions and you are defined by the choices that you make.

They reveal your innermost values and what you hold up as important.

Be grateful for all that you have every day.
Say thank you, until you mean it.
And if you say it long enough, you will believe it.

You are a wonderful amazing individual with no limits except those that you place in front of you.
Have confidence in your abilities.
Believe in yourself and what you are capable of and soar as high as you can imagine.

Success and Happiness

 

Photo by Margaret Stockley

There are no limits to your possibilities.

There are five states of attention:

1. restlessness with fluctuating attention
2. laziness with no motivation
3. distraction by internal or external events
4. single focused concentration with flowing energy
5. continuous flawless concentration

Through meditation you gain the ability to increase your attention, self-analysis, acceptance, and love by recognizing and permanently removing unhealthy tendencies that cause inaction, boredom, irritability, and inappropriate emotional responses that lead to unhappiness or problems associated with an incorrect perspective of life.

What is preventing you from being as successful and as happy as you want to be?

Understanding where your needs and wants stem from enables you to decide whether keeping or removing a particular desire is beneficial to you.

A regular meditation practice will help you develop the ability to have a single-pointed focus whereby you can learn to examine your priorities and tap into the source of wisdom that exists within you.

As the mind ceases to flit from one thought to another and is no longer influenced by emotions or your interpretation of interactions and events, you will find that peace and creativity will replace the obstacles that you have carried with you either knowingly or unconsciously.

Mindful moments increase and it becomes easier to free your mind from rehashing the past, both recent or distant, and release any lingering emotions that warp your ability to see life clearly and without misinterpretation.

Flawless concentration carries forward into your interactions, thoughts, and all choices that you make, not just in your meditation session.

The result is unconditional acceptance of who you are.

You are a wonderful amazing individual with no limits except those that you place in front of you.  Have confidence in your abilities. Believe in yourself and what you are capable of.  Soar as high as you can imagine and let your bright light shine.

Peace, Love and Light are yours to have now and always.

Affirmation
“Everything good is coming to me with ease and grace.
When I focus on only the positive in my life, I summon all that is for my highest good, and receive what I truly need right now.”

Meditation and Sound

 

Photo by Margaret Stockley, Kauai. (Copyright)

The sights and sounds of nature soothe the mind.

“Music of the right type helps in achieving relaxation by soothing the nerves and through that, peace and stillness of mind.” Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda Swamiji

Throughout history, humans have used music or sound for a variety of purposes including warning sounds, calls to action to signify the beginning or end of an event, and even to promote a romantic atmosphere.
We all know about sound’s ability to provide happiness and comfort or to make us feel like dancing but it is only recently that it has been possible to PROVE the effects of certain sounds upon the brain and how they impact human behavior and healing.

When we think of what it means to be healed, we tend to think of someone whose body is weak, diseased and injured being made well. However there are many areas in which an individual can long to be healed:
• Wanting to experience a release from painful memories
• Removing desires and addictions
• Gaining freedom from depression, anxiety, and sadness
• Feeling whole and less distant from God
• Released from loneliness
• Seeking forgiveness for wrongs done

The brain responds to information received via the senses, mental images, and from memories. Mental visualization or sensory induced stimulus creates changes in the heart rate and respiratory rate and is depicted in four brain wave patterns: Beta, Alpha, Theta, and Delta.

Music, rhythmic breathing, and meditation alter the brain waves and promote healing by bringing the mind into Alpha rhythm, promoting a calm and relaxed state of mind. Alpha rhythm is the frequency that the brainwaves settle into during certain pranayama practices such as Sun/Moon (Surya/Chandra) breath as well as meditation.

Where the breath goes the mind follows and where the mind goes the body follows.

Staying in control of the mind enables you to take control of your thoughts and subsequent actions thereby helping you to maintain a positive and peaceful state of being.

It’s exciting to note that music is shown to increase the Pituitary Growth Hormone by up to 50%. This hormone is known to stimulate healing.
However, with all sounds and music, listening repeatedly to the same notes diminishes the beneficial effects on the body. Hearing a sound fresh brings back the desired experience.

Music and sound are everywhere in nature:
in the songs of birds
in the laughter of children,
in the flow and ebb of our own breath and heartbeat

We are sentient beings and are indeed affected by what we hear around and within us and the mind-body connection shows that whatever you pay attention to, you become.
Meditation enables you to be mindful of this connection and ensure that you consciously and purposefully choose the right thoughts and actions.

Sacred Sounds
Mantra, AUM, singing, chanting, prayer, and silence are sacred sounds that harmonize and purify the energy centers of the body, removing obstacles, and promoting health, love, joy, and bliss.

Sacred sound removes the seeds of obstacles to health by promoting calmness and freedom from distractions, both external and internal.
A mind absorbed in sacred sound is free from attachment to the material world and loses its tendency to wander. As you maintain a regular meditation practice, you will eventually learn to hear and experience sacred sound arise spontaneously from within.

The mind can only focus on one thought at a time.
Try it!

This is different from multi-tasking where you are doing two or more tasks in a specific time period.

You can only hold one thought at a time. You may flit back and forth very fast between one thought and another, but there is still only one thought occurring at any given moment in time.

Let meditation guide you to release that which you no longer need and replace it with more appropriate thought patterns that lead to success, empowerment, and well-being.

With a regular meditation practice, the mind becomes attuned to the vibration of the sacred sound and aligns itself to its energy.
When the mind is fully concentrated during meditation, a feeling of inner bliss can be reached. So, rather than think a sad or unhealthy train of thought which will eventually make you miserable, agitated, and even ill, recite a mantra, or sing and shift your mood to one that promotes love, inspiration, and growth of purpose.

There are many chanting CD's available that you can listen to, or place a windchime next to an open window, or listen to small indoor water fountain to emulate the sounds of nature.
Let your meditation practice and your imagination guide you to find a sound from nature that makes you feel at ease and comfortable.

Challenge your thoughts.
Through the use of sound you can stay in tune with the rhythm of the body and rediscover peace and joy, and a deepening awareness of spirituality.

Musical Neural Pathways are more complex and widespread than those involved in performing a function such as talking.
Music helps to re-route paths and is a useful tool in helping to establish new neural pathways by improving cognition, motor function, and communication

The old adage “music calms the savage beast” is particularly applicable to humans.

The 19th Century Scottish Philosopher Thomas Carlyle said:

If you look deep enough you will see music; the heart of nature being music everywhere.

I say,
"Listen to the music that is within you and let it be heard. Join with others and together we can all make a beautiful sound to heal ourselves and the world."

Choose Your Thoughts

All Photos by Margaret Stockley,

Everything in nature is unique.

Thoughts have their own unique energy. Are you using the power of your words to create only that which is positive for you?

Positive thoughts vibrate at a higher frequency than negative thoughts, just as light vibrates at a higher frequency than what we perceive as darkness.
Realize the power behind your intentions by being consciously aware of self-defeating actions and directing your thoughts in constructive and healing ways.

As you meditate every day, you can choose a positive word or phrase and repeat it in rhythm with your slow and steady breath. Examples are:

I am loved

All is well

I am at peace

I am happy

Peace

Meditation is the tool by which you remain true to your Self, untouched by comments and the actions of others. It strengthens your resolve to not let yourself be affected by detractors or to give up following your chosen path, shows you how to keep feeling the joy of love inside, and live each moment of every day with purpose and peace.

My inner glow is not dulled or discolored by what is happening around me.

I am a beacon of pure energy radiating on the world helping others by the brightness and power of my light.

Look and see where you’re resisting change which could help you evolve your life.
Meditation will help you self-generate power and self-discipline by the use of intention to effect change and forge new pathways within the brain.

Whoever tries nothing will get nothing; you won't reach your objectives if you don't make necessary efforts.

Transform yourself through minding your thoughts and by exchanging your patterns of thought for a state of mind that is continually excited by, and in love with, life.
Expect more and get more out of your day-to-day interactions and activities by reinforcing positive images and behavior.

Allow meditation to help release that which drags you down and fill you instead with energy to complete all your daily activities and live in a constant state of fulfillment.

The words and actions that you send out will manifest the life you really want so open your mind and heart to the untapped possibilities that lie within you.

Om Peace

Meditation and Beliefs

 

Vicki and Emma successfully completing a full marathon race.

Beliefs
What do you believe about yourself, your relationships, and the world around you?
Where does the information come from that enables you to form these beliefs?

All of your past experiences, and your perception of your experiences, create physiological changes in the brain in response to new information that is received. This occurs on a continual basis via images, words, sounds, smells and a myriad of other information that the brain constantly absorbs, including data received from your own thoughts and emotions.

Creating a quantum shift
Neuroplasticity is the ability of the brain to restructure itself depending on how your mind chooses. Combined with meditation, this ability of the brain to reform itself helps you transform your mind to make beneficial life changes. By becoming aware of and adopting healthy thoughts and behaviors, you can create a quantum shift away from habits that are destructive and in doing so, experience the world and yourself from a different perspective.

Beliefs shape our world whether we are aware of them or not. Unfortunately, strongly-held beliefs that are detrimental can create havoc with any desire that you have to live a peaceful existence or achieve your goals and aspirations, simply because these beliefs are so powerful that they spur you on to keep repeating similar actions with different people in different situations.

Without awareness we will not be able to address these deep-seated beliefs nor alter them.

Believe you can change
Beliefs are often ingrained over years of reinforcement but they can be altered. Meditation will bring about a transformation in not only your thoughts and words, but also in the way that you behave. With a regular meditation practice you will develop an understanding of the different layers of consciousness that will in turn enable you to shed all beliefs that are limiting, such as fear, pressure, or worry while adding those that build and sustain you.
This will not occur in one sitting though. It will take time for awareness of your Self to develop, for beliefs to be identified, and for a new attitude to what you know to be TRUE about your Self and what you want to KNOW is possible to achieve in life to be adopted.

During your regular meditation practice you will reinforce beliefs like love and altruism that strengthen and sustain you and enable you to be a positive force to the world around you. Practitioners of meditation state that they become more aware of how they react to other people and it helps them to work on not only thinking about their actions but helps them make a commitment to create positive changes.

There are many guided meditations and affirmations on the blog page that you can use to help you begin the process.

Affirmations
In addition to your meditation practice, you can help the subconscious mind work on your behalf, rather than sabotaging you, by the use of affirmations that reform your belief patterns.
Writing down your affirmation and placing it where you can see it daily and then committing it to memory helps develop the right frame of mind to be open to change. Repeating your affirmation in an earnest and heartfelt manner helps you to re-set your belief system to one that works for you.
Over time, you will see yourself feeling and reacting differently to all that happens in your life.

I acknowledge the wisdom within me

My new reality exceeds my previous limiting beliefs

I am free to achieve what I believe I can

Awareness

 

When the mind is still, you can look inside.

"How can I be useful, of what service can I be? There is something inside me, what can it be?"

Vincent Van Gogh

In the latest meditation research, US neuroscientists say that electro-encephalography (brain imaging) shows that meditation can help you achieve your goals by clearing the mind of distractions, in addition to promoting physical and emotional balance.

Researchers at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia have also found that meditation delivers an enhanced ability to control the mind’s focus and disentangle it from distracting or harmful preoccupations.

Meditation is becoming more popular amongst senior business people too and was a topic at a one - day Leadership Stamina conference in Cape Town, South Africa in July 2009.

In many countries, the benefits of meditation are being researched, talked, and written about. 
Meditation studies have also found that mental characteristics that were previously regarded as fixed and unchangeable can in fact be altered by mental training such as meditation, helping you to make happier, wiser choices and stay with your chosen objectives and aspirations and allowing you to become more focused and positive.

We all like to think that we have a good understanding of our deepest needs and motivations, yet we are often surprised by some of the things we find ourselves doing or saying.

Meditation draws your attention away from a particular problem or illness to a place of overall knowledge and feelings of inner calmness and peace. It helps you to concentrate less on individual set-backs or issues and provides you with a tool that promotes inward focus, enabling the mind and the body to experience a profound state of restfulness. In turn, the brain becomes balanced, while the mind and body move beyond thinking, to simply being.

 

Reflecting pools are found in surprising places and offer a quiet moment in a busy world.

Peace lies within.

Focusing on the positive things in your life means that you alter your perspective as you seek to attain success in reaching your goals. This has the effect of making you more constructive every day, while others are glad to see you because of your enthusiasm and affirmative action.

Affirmation
Noticing how and when you respond to situations gives you the ability to choose your thoughts and subsequent actions and stick to the resolutions and goals that you have set for yourself.

“I pay attention to why I think what I do”

“I pay attention to why I do what I do”

“I pay attention to how I affect the world around me”

“I am secure and at peace in knowing who I am.”

"I am filled with love and happiness"