PRANAYAMA

Feel the calmness that accompanies freedom from obstacles.

Preparing the body for meditation through an activity such as yoga is an ideal process in which to acquire skills to control unconscious thoughts and physical movements. Yoga creates a training ground in which to bring awareness to the joints, muscles, and the thoughts, in order to create single-pointed focus to sit still in meditation. An integral part of yoga is the practice of pranayama and the key to successful meditation through the all-important control of the breath.

When the mind is calm, the breath is also calm, and vice versa.

Incorporating breathing techniques and meditation in your daily activities is easy to do and helps you to live harmoniously with your surroundings while experiencing the transforming benefits of meditation.

For many people, the breath is erratic, uneven, noisy, and fails to maximize the life-force energy of prana. This is especially so when faced with a challenging situation.

The next time you encounter heavy traffic, pay attention to how you are breathing.
Then notice how you are feeling.
What thoughts and emotions are coursing through you?

Slowing the breath down and breathing deeply into the base of the lungs releases toxic emotions from your body. Notice how a deeper, more relaxed breathing pattern helps you slow down not only the rate of the breath, but your thoughts as well.

You can consciously practice pranayama everywhere; walking, waiting in line, waiting for a pot to boil.

Method
Observe the breath. Begin by monitoring the flow, rhythm, and speed of the breath. All three should be slow, smooth, and steady. When you focus your mind on something repetitive you automatically begin to quieten the thoughts and emotions. Purposely drawing your attention to one thought process prevents negativity and limitations from taking root. With each exhalation you can release what you do not need or want, and with each inhale, full your body and mind with the peace, joy, and love that will uplift you every day.

Once you teach your Self to breathe properly, you will use correct breathing techniques at every waking moment. In the beginning, you may catch yourself during moments of stress and detect that the pace of your breath is not effortless and calm.
Simply bring awareness back to the rhythmic flow of the breath and notice how it returns with ease to a composed and steady rate.

With practice, you will notice an improvement in clarity of thought, happiness, and peace of mind. Other people will notice the changes in you too and that means that you are making a positive difference not only in your own life, but in the lives of others too.

Your life becomes calmer, your meditation practice effortless, and the mind becomes limitless.

Peace

Gratitude

What are YOU grateful for?

Today is Info Friday where I highlight anything that is relevant to meditation. I’m not involved in any of these products or areas. They are simply something that I thought was interesting and thought you might enjoy too.

I came across Joy Bing Fleming’s gratitude blog several months ago and was immediately delighted to see that someone else was sharing their positive feelings and attitude with the universe. Every day, Joy and her partner Keith post several statements and affirmations about why they are grateful. It’s a simple expression of love, hope, and thankfulness for the smallest moments and the largest events that occur daily in an individual’s life.

While acknowledging that life does not flow as smoothly as you had planned when curve balls head your way, there is always something that you can be grateful for. Joy and Keith’s blog is a quick pick-me-up and will provide you with inspiration if you have encountered a tough day.

Joy says that “When you think about what you’re grateful for, that re-directs your thoughts to something positive. This will make you feel better, and it will bring more wonderful things into your life.”

You can check out their Gratitude Blog at the following link and post comments too. -
power of gratitude

Joy and Keith are also active on FaceBook and have started a Life Passion Group:
“Making you aware of the power to create your life as you desire.”
Life Passion


This is a global community to help like-minded people come together to be positive, exchange ideas, be a source of inspiration and many, many more motivational topics.
They have a weekly newsletter packed with tips to help you to create the life that you want through positive steps and affirmations.
They are constantly adding content and it is worth checking out to see if it is something that speaks to you, and if you can use some of the tools in your life.

I hope that you will find Joy and Keith’s blog inspirational and uplifting and look at your own life and discover something to be grateful for today and every day.

Write to me on my blog and let me know what you or someone you know is doing to create positive change, whether it’s through art, writing books, blogging, or any other manner that helps other people live a happy and rewarding life.

Om Shanti Peace

SPIRITUAL MEDITATION

Meditation helps you find the tranquil spiritual place that lies within you.

Over 2500 years ago, yoga originated as a means of teaching people to control their bodies and minds, in order to sit in meditation.
Meditation was considered extremely important because of the limitless possibilities that it unveiled. It was viewed as so much more than a medium of relaxation, emotional healing, and relieving stress as is often seen today.
This is like being offered a blank check that has your name written on it and only asking for a dollar of the true worth.

At its heart, meditation is the foundation of spiritual growth. It is a unique pathway that enables you to explore your soul and draw awareness to your actual self that lies deep within.
With meditation, you learn to rise above the perceived restrictions and prejudices that keep you in a habitual pattern of emotional and physical limitations and reveal instead the doorway to the spiritual realm.

In the spiritual realm you can tap into great wisdom, tranquility, and deep healing as you take time to explore your emotions and feelings, while maintaining an open connection to God.

It is here, in your meditation, that you discover your potential, and know the profound love that exists for you. As you bathe in this love, you feel the bliss. There is no place for fear or anxiety to reside. Instead, there is only love, peace, and happiness. This love emerges from the source of Light and this Light fills you and emanates from you. In turn, your light shines on others and they delight in being around you because you help them to feel the love and Light.

This spiritual consciousness brings a shift whereby spiritual gifts will emerge for you to put to good use to help others. The more that you practice meditation, the easier it becomes to enter into meditation, making your meditation deeper and more blissful. Eventually you reach a state of enlightenment where consciousness expands in all directions and becomes limitless. You lose awareness of having a body or breath and realize instead your very soul and its connection to God.

Persist with your practice of meditation and know that its ultimate goal is to help you to grow in your love for your Self, your love for others, your love for the world, and especially in your love for God.

No matter where you are on your own spiritual journey, meditation transcends religious dogma by enabling you to grow closer to and maintain an authentic relationship with God.

Om Shanti Peace