The joy of meditation and the balance it brings
On Saturday I ventured over to Huddersfield and spent a day at @meditateinhuddersfield.org
The Vajrapani Kadampa Meditation Centre is based in Birkby, Huddersfield and it's leader is a very knowledgeable Buddhist Nun and Teacher called Gen Kelsang Varahi.
It was a silent retreat, a time to get away from the busyness of day-to-day life, washing, cleaning, taking the children to their events and sporting activities, shopping, etc. It felt rather indulgent not to have my phone on all day, as I am always on hand for my children, in case of an emergency, such as 'Mum where are my football socks?' Ha!
All day, I listened and reflected and tried to stay awake, during the long meditation sessions. I listened to Varahi and her teachings, and it all made sense, she has such a way of explaining things, by using examples and verbal illustrations to describe her advice.
So, what did I take away from the day?
I know that I need to practice meditation for longer periods of time.
I know that my mind is like a washing machine, whirling around and jumping from one thing to another.
I know that I love vegan food.
I know that I am not my thoughts, my thoughts are not me. Some may be real; some may be generated from anxiety or negative self-talk.
I know that I can choose to engage with these thoughts, or not, as I am the observer of my thoughts.
It's hard to explain and Varahi did it so much better, ha! Basically, Buddhists say that our mind is like our spirit, it's the essence of who we are. Rather than the negative things we say to ourselves, that is not who we are. When we meditate, we focus on one thing, our breath. You can sit and feel it in your nostrils, or in your chest, wherever you feel it the most. You sit and you focus on this, your thoughts will pull you away, and that is OK, you just gently return to the focus on your breath.
Eventually after practice, you will be able to recognise different thoughts which appear in your mind and notice how quickly they disappear, and new ones come. So, you will see that no thoughts are permanent, so they can't be who we are. You will be able to choose which thoughts you engage with and which thoughts you can let go.
A book which I would suggest everyone has in their lives is the one below. It changed my life! Mindfullness is an approach which helped me through some very hard times and may be helpful for people with anxiety and depression.
Anyways, that's all for now, have a lovely week, leave a comment below or get in touch if you have any questions.
Peace,
Mandy
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