How can finding peace within your Self seem so complicated? Why do we push ourselves all day, day after day, until we are sick or so disconnected that we don’t recognize ourselves? Life is so simple, we complicate it. Connecting to peace within ourselves is also really simple, we just have to train ourselves to stop. Really? Yes. Just Stop! Like that red light up ahead, start braking now before you have to slam on the brakes. Those breaks are breaking you from speeding ahead and running the light, running on an on and on until you run out of gas or crash. Geez this sounds dramatically serious. Um…It is. Connecting to your Self everyday should be like religion, or brushing your teeth, or drinking water. This time alone one on one – you with your Self is paramount to your well being. And it is so simple, it just takes doing 3 things.
- Get Still – that means sit down and don’t move. Pick a happy place in your home or outside where you won’t be disturbed.
- Get Quiet – Shhhh, no talking unless you feel the need to talk out loud to yourself. That’s perfectly fine at first but then let silence wash over you.
- Breathe – Yes, I know you were already breathing but now you are breathing mindfully which means you are aware of your breath. Just breathe. Focus all your attention on the in breath and the out breath until you find a rhythm.
How long do you have to sit there? Give yourself a minimum of 3 minutes. That translates to about 60 slow mindful breaths. In an entire day the average person takes 23,040 breaths. If you want to complain about 60 breaths, be glad you weren’t the person who counted their breaths for an entire day so the rest of us could know that fascinating fact(!).
Okay, now as you get into a habit of sitting every day, you can take this further into deep self inquiry by adding a journal. Take 5 min. or more to write down your thoughts and feelings. The more you connect with your Self the stronger a relationship you forge. You will begin to seek out this time and recognize the benefit of self inquiry, self introspection, of stopping and being still. You will crave this time alone with your Self because it will awaken in your something you have longed for…PEACE.
Peace is a seed within us all but it requires that stillness and silence to really grow. And who knows what the flower of peace looks like in you, only you can discover that. That’s part of the magic of meditation, it is your experience and your alone. Nurture it, give it attention, and watch how it opens up a sweet silence within your spirit.
If you want to have a guided meditation try one of my YouTube videos – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dUoWzbUjMQ