Spiritual Preparedness - simple practices and meditations to increase self-awareness

I am going to post simple, practical suggestions of how to maintain (or be able to keep returning to) spiritual awareness amidst the chaos of the everyday tasks and challenges of modern day life. I will endeavour to post 2 or 3 practical tips per week, so new readers be sure to read earlier posts.

We know a lot about being human and the physical aspects that go along with that, but how much do we really know about 'being'? How often are we actually living the present moment, right here and now and not trapped in traumas/joys of the past or fantasies/concerns of the future?

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The simple technique for today is to take some moments to become aware of where you think the energy of 'you' sits within your body. When you communicate with another person, where is it you 'tune in' to when you speak with them? When you look at a pet, where does your attention go?

Many say they feel themselves to be in the heart region of the body or the solar plexus and of course there is energy in those areas too, but when we really become aware of where 'I' reside, it is behind the eyes, centre forehead and this is where we look when we communicate with each other. This is where we look at a pet when we spend time with it too. Oftentimes we put our foreheads together with loved ones and favoured pets. This is where consciousness sits and from that point emotions and energy spread throughout the physical body and beyond into the atmosphere.

Building awareness of this and coming back to 'being' that energy right here and right now looking out from the eyes is a really good place to start. When communicating with others, notice how their energy and personality radiates from their head and eye area.

The pineal gland sits directly centre of the head - sometimes this is referred to as 'the seat of the Soul'. The 'third eye' is another term you have probably come across. The eyes are said to be the windows of the soul. The brain is not consciousness, it is more like a state of the art computer - the pineal gland is where consciousness sits, where soul meets matter - the control room.

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Please feel free to share your own experiences here too. :)

I'm hoping no trolls but just in case - abusive or overly negative posts will be removed.

............Excellent!!! I have tried and tried to practice meditation; even have a CD for it......but I seem to 'get it' and then it becomes almost a chore, to be gotton over with!! and I do not like having this attitude.........I can 'sort of' block out all the chatter experienced, and am slowly getting good at it, but WHY do I have this 'get it over with' mentality about it????
Any suggestions will be appreciated.......the CD is from a company called "Brain Synch' and it's for meditation..Thanks!!!

Dear Pharista your thread helped me remind our true nature as human beings.

i readed a lot of Taoism (tao te king, Lao Tse), Buddhism (Buddha´s Sutras), Induism (Baggavad Ghita), and other eastern and western Religions and teachers, but the way you write your wisdom is so simply that just strikes me, i will try to practice this, remind myself who WE ARE.

sorry for the english,
a big hug,
Alejandro.

for a gem of a thread

A little background - As far back as early childhood around age 5 or 6, I remember thinking to myself thoughts like 'If I hadn't ended up here with this mummy and daddy, I'm sure I'd still be here but maybe with a different mummy and daddy, but I know I am supposed to be here' & 'There has got to be more to me than just this body'. I noticed that the 'me' staring out of the eyes of my rapidly changing and growing body remained the same - not in terms of knowledge and education but of personality, of essence whatever it is that makes me 'me' - that was constant and unchanging.

is there a legal way to download these? I just dont like doing these types of things while sitting in front of pc...not the place I tend to feel most relaxed.


Thanks

I guess you could search for free mindfulness downloads. Or invest in a mindfulness albumn download, anything by Jon kabbat zin is very good.

I run a mindfulness group at home and I prep all the tracks I want to use for the session on my Pc and have them lined up, or I create playlists on my mp3 player. I also include pockets of silence. for outdoor meditation I just harness sounds of nature or even just sounds of modern life. meditation really is possible anywhere.

happy experimenting

as a small child i used to look at the other kids and wonder why i ended up in the body i was in and not "their" bodies.................

I have been doing these meditations for years, they are free
and very good

[link to umsonline.org]

I like that! Worded very nicely.

As far as the above link, do a right-click on the link.
Depending on your browser, there should be an option to 'save as'. Click on the 'Save as' option. A window should open up, and allow you to save this as an MP3 file. Then you can use your favorite audio player to listen to it offline.

Also, THANKS Pharista for being here and providing some sorely needed spiritual backing in these times.

BLESS YOU.

oops, I realized I hadn't signed in- I posted at 2:19.

OP, I like what you suggested about the bathtime meditation. That in itself has helped me tremendously.
I also like that meditation is something we can tailor to our own needs, likes, and what is comfortable for us. Meditation is so much more versatile than many people perceive it to be. There truly are no rules, only guidelines or tips to help us customize our own individual practice. It's an amazing gift and healing tool.
Thank you so much for spreading such positive and helpful information.I'm pleased to see many posters replying to your thread!

Keeping calm cool and collected in the coming chaos will be key to making it through in a better condition.

An NDE showed me that our conciousness resides throughout our entire body. It's like a fire that illuminates and pervades every cell. That spark of life, the fire and light of our consciousness is a direct extension of God and anchors in the heart chakra, then spreads its light and life throughout the rest of our body.

I learned each of our chakras are portals, when we withdraw our consciousness from every cell, it gathers into a ball unto a specific chakra where a portal is opened and we go through the tunnel of the portal into a different dimension.

Absolutely, I can sit here and put my attention to my right foot or any other part of my body and become intensely aware of it, I have no doubt that our energy pervades every cell of our bodies, also that cells are capable of holding emotional energy both negative and positive. Sometimes you hear of those who have had a heart transplant for example who pick up habits and emotional leftovers from the organ donor who passed on. Energy of individuals or groups energies can be left in buildings and locations too.

As I understand it, the essence of the soul (which is non physical anyway so impossible to measure in physical terms) sits centre brain near the pineal gland and visual cortex behind the physical eyes - the control room if you like. Scientifically it is shown now how close the heart and brain interact with each other in emotional matters and why we feel a lot of our emotions in the heart area.

I understand meditation to be a tool with which we can cleanse our spirit, mind and bodies as well as have an effect on the atmosphere around us too. Each of us holds great purpose and spiritual responsibility if we choose to take it.

Thank you for sharing, an NDE must be a very powerful experience. I have only experienced it in a lucid dream after my mother passed away.