There was once a farmer who lived in a house with two rooms. The cattle and bulls were in one room and his family in the other. Life was hard, cramped and miserable so he reached a point where he was truly fed up and went to seek help from a Guru to see what to do. The Guru advised him to put all the cattle in the same room as the family and lock the door to the other room they had originally been kept in and come back in a week. After a week he went back, he told the Guru that life was so much worse than before and the family were more miserable what should he do? The Guru told him to go back and put the cattle back in the original room and come back in a week. When that week passed he returned to see the Guru, he was most happy and explained that life had become much better not only for the family but also for the cows!
When things are appearing that they are not going the way we want - when we have a disturbance in our mind due to a situation sometimes all we need to do is alter the way we think or feel about it to be able to live in contentment with what is going on. We have to realise that the universe has its ways and rhythms and we have to be able to recognise and go with them, paddling against them only rocks the boat. A wise person will recognise every situation as an opportunity - what that opportunity is could be very different from situation to situation and could be just the chance to be able to live with something and gaining the strength and courage to be at one with it. That in itself can be a very powerful thing and puts you in control. Recognise your feelings and become friendly with them just by observation. If you want to be happy which all of us do, you have to find that state of original nature - mediation can reduce and combat suffering. Holidays can bring freedom from the normal stress of life, meditation can bring a holiday for the mind and ultimately liberation. Meditation is a technique to detach or disengage from a situation that maybe causing a disturbance to you, give you space to watch or look into your thoughts and then the power to overcome them or accept. Meditation is the royal road to freedom.
You can begin today with this simple meditation to help bring you back to your true self -
Sit in a quiet place free from distractions - no phones, no other disturbances, if sitting is uncomfortable then you can also lie in savasana.
Hold the back straight and the spine tall.
Close your eyes and take a deep breath in and a long exhalation - repeat two more times.
Then allow the breath to regulate and become smooth and natural, notice the length of the breath and the movement in the tummy, chest, throat and nostrils.
Allow yourself to naturally become a little quieter and calmer.
Once you feel settled then start to mentally repeat SO with the inhalation and HUM with the exhalation. Continue for the time you have - even a few minutes a day will make a huge difference.
SO with the inhalation HUM with the exhalation.
Before you leave that space to continue your day, just sit for a few moments without concentration and just observe your wonderful self, rub your palms together creating prana and then cup your hands over your closed eyes and allow the eyes to drink the energy you created.
When you are ready slowly release the hands and continue with your day.
SO HUM meaning - I am that. (I am that of existence, awareness and consciousness.)
Enjoy a beautiful practice, begin today without excuse, create a good habit and begin to address how we think without expecting change from a situation, if we change how we think then we are in control.
AUM shanti shanti shanti
Mangala / Nicky
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