This is our 42nd week of On-Line Meditation!
Tonight’s Reflection…
We know that mindfulness practices done throughout the day complement our meditation practice which is most often done morning and night, like the bookends of our day.
One practice which is common in most traditions is the mindfulness practice known as the awareness of the body. Our body is always present, available and relatively uncomplicated and you can practice mindfulness of the body anywhere, anytime.
Body awareness as a mindfulness exercise encourages simple attentiveness at the first or second level of awareness, e.g. I’m aware of my body but I don’t dwell on the fact that my arthritis is killing me. So no unnecessary commentary.
For mindfulness practice it simplifies things even further to concentrate on a single aspect of our physical experience, such as sensations and movements of our hands, the breath, or simple repetitive movements.
A number of religious traditions have various forms of mindfulness/meditation which are usually called contemplation. E.g. The use of an icon in Christian Orthodoxy, a consecrated host in a monstrance in Catholicism or the repetitive swaying action in Jewish prayer. The list goes on……
And now let’s meditate in the way we are accustomed. You may wish to dedicate this meditation practice to those affected by the pandemic or you might have some other worthy intention.
(Meditate for up to 20 minutes.)
As we go about our daily activities I hope that by our attention, our awareness in the present, our wakefulness ….we will find joy in the midst of the losses brought about during these challenging days..
Peter