self-care
Meditation Is Easier Than You Think!
No doubt you’ve heard of the many benefits of meditation, both physical and spiritual. But how does one start a meditation practice? It doesn’t have to be intimidating. According to the Zen master and teacher, Shunryu Suzuki, approaching meditation with a beginner’s mindset is actually ideal.
It’s important to clear up a common misperception about meditation. Meditation is not simply ‘thinking of nothing.’ Rather it is a spiritual process in which we learn to center, breathe, and achieve clarity.
Meditation is practiced by cultures all over the world and does not have to be associated with a specific spiritual tradition or religious belief system. It also does not have to involve sitting passively with a ‘blank mind.’ Rather it can be anything from coloring mandalas, to a walking in nature.
So, how does one begin, if you’re new to the practice? Consider the goals you wish to achieve with meditation: stress reduction, taming your thoughts, physical relief from pain, spiritual growth? Tailor your practice to build toward your personal goals. Remember, it’s a journey and not a destination.
Keeping a meditation journal, as you go along, can be very helpful. The most important thing is consistency. Make meditation a part of your daily routine, and ideally at the same time each day.
Once you have the basics in place, it’s time to begin. Choose a pose or stance which is comfortable, and a space which is calming, private and quiet. If playing comforting music or lighting candles, or incense, relaxes you, then do that!
Smudging Your Home To Clear Negative Energy
It’s a good idea to cleanse the energy in your home once a week, in my opinion. I do this with smudging, going around the perimeters of my house asking the powers that be to bless and protect my home and those who dwell in it. It helps to keep negativity and toxic energy out.
Smudging is an ancient shamanic practice and a ceremony practiced by Indigenous peoples of the Americas, which involves the burning of sacred herbs and resins. The smoke is believed to neutralize negative energy – as it clears it takes the unwanted, toxic energy with it, releasing it into another realm where it can be regenerated into positive energy.
I have also attended Catholic church ceremonies several times in my lifetime. They always start with incense at the beginning of a service. I like to describe it as ‘cleaning the negativity and toxic cobwebs’ that have accumulated. Yes, homes collect all kinds of energy over time, just like dust on a lampshade. And it needs to be cleaned! Every home benefits from a frequent smudging.
I especially like to always smudge after any negative encounter that may have taken place in my space – literally anything negative, be it the presence of an actual person, a bad dream, or telephonic argument with a loved one, I like to clear out that energy, as it makes my home brighter and lighter. As a highly sensitive empath, I just love the feeling of fresh, peaceful energy in my home.
On smudging days, I first dust my home and clean it, always with the windows wide open. Then I smudge myself, before smudging my home. I cleanse my own aura from my feet up, then go back down in a swirling motion all around my entire body. I use both hands when doing this, to evenly move the smudging stick around me. I visualize my aura being cleansed completely.
Archangel Raphael – The Angel Of Healing
Rafael means Healing of God. His name not only refers to physical health, but also to that of the soul. He is a healing archangel that represents the aspect of God that helps us maintain a healthy balance in our body, and our emotions.
The body is the temple of the soul, but only if we are taking care of both. Harmony between body and soul translates to inner peace and a natural ease that guides us to joyful moments, and helps us be strong through the difficult times.
Raphael can be the guide that we need by our side, not only in times of difficulties, but also in every challenge, in every new project.
Rafael is also the Protector of Medicine, and is sometimes referred to as the Angel of Science, but he has also adopted other names, such as Archangel of Health; Angel of Healing; Angel of Providence; and even Protector of the Dusk Winds. He is also called the Angel of Consecration, because he helps all who consecrate their life to the service of a higher ideal.
He is also referred to as the Guardian of the East in some Kabalistic traditions, in which he represents the element of Air (as he is also called Ruler of the Winds) and the spirit (or mind) of the person. He is often invoked to free the spirit from what in the past was termed ‘demonic attacks,’ and nowadays we might refer to as obsessive thoughts.
Is It Worth Your Health And Happiness?
We are usually deep in conversation, accompanied by a lot of belly laughs, when I meet with my group of crochet girlfriends every other week. We meet around a large table, yarn in hand, to make lots of wonderful goodies to give away at Christmas, or whatever festive holiday is upon us.
Things turned serious at a recent gathering, when one of the gals in our group starting talking about her daughter, who recently separated from her husband. She said a few things about their situation and then looked up at me, but decided not to ask, as I was there for fun and not to be asked any psychic questions.
My friends know that when I’m at our crochet circle, it is about taking a break from my work and just having some fun with the girls! But it’s not always so easy.
She quickly tried changing the subject, but the other ladies started to talk about their own children. Some of the older gals even brought up their grandchildren who were recently divorced, or separated.
Many comments were made like, “Times are tough,” and, “These days things aren’t the same as they were when we were growing up,” and “Life is no longer as simple as it used to be back in the day,” and also, “Technology is ruining a lot of couples these days.”
Love, Joy And Happiness After Years Of Hardship
I have a client who used to be extremely depressed. I recommend she speak to a therapist or counselor instead, because I felt that is exactly what she needed at the time. She had been harboring a lot of bitterness, grief, sadness, anger and other toxic negative emotions for a very long time. She needed professional help that I felt was beyond my scope of expertise.
So, she found a therapist and went for counseling, but months later she told me that the only thing she felt she accomplished was her spending thousands of dollars on help she never really received. She had still found no relief from her deep distress.
She had been bitter for a long time. While raising her children and attending church, her husband would cheat on her. She also worked the entire time the children were young, until they graduated. Meanwhile, he would leave on ‘business trips’ to go and gamble away their hard-earned livelihood, and spend time with other women. Then one day, he met someone he wanted to marry. So, they divorced and he moved far away to be with his new wife. He was a narcissist.
Her sadness and grief was also due to the loss of her mother, whom she had taken care of for 20 years after her father passed. She sacrificed a lot to dedicate herself to serving her mother’s needs. During this time she had no notion of self-care. She suffered on all levels: emotionally, physically, spiritually. She even gave up going to church. She was slowly dying inside and didn’t even know who she was anymore.
How To Block The Energy Of Negative People
It seems that negativity and negative people are becoming more prevalent these days. Just a decade ago, I can remember people being afraid to be “publicly negative.” No one wanted to be seen as being negative, or as someone that brought others down.
I find myself avoiding large groups and big events, because I just don’t want negativity and lower vibrations impacting my happy life. But I do go to activities and fun events for the sake of my 3-year-old child, and often some of the moms, women who are forming impressionable minds, can’t seem to help themselves, but go to the negative! A few weeks ago, for example, I complimented a mom on her daughter’s excellent vocabulary and she told me no one had ever said anything like that to her before. She said people just tear each other down nowadays. How sad.
I am currently five months pregnant. I keep having other moms asking me how I am feeling, which is very nice. However, when I say I feel great, they seem surprised, even sometimes put off. They ask, “You don’t have any unpleasant symptoms?” Well, yes. Of course, I do. I’m pregnant! But whatever the symptom is, mild though it may be, it is still a gift to me – a pleasant reminder that I am so incredibly lucky. Even when I got morning sickness, I remember thinking during it, it’s okay, it’s okay, it will be over soon. You’re lucky. This means you’re pregnant!
Actually, I am up writing this blog at 3:00am, because I have pregnancy insomnia. Right now, I am up, because I am pregnant. It’s okay. I’ll sleep properly again in another five years, when both of my kids are older. Meanwhile, I’m getting a lot done that I can’t do during the day.
Learning To Love Yourself
Sadly, my inner-critic began speaking to me at a relatively young age and continued to do so well into my 20s and beyond. Personally, I feel this played a large part in me losing my job at the age of 24, during the 1980s recession. It was a time in which work was so hard to find, and when I finally did, even more negative self-talk began to have an effect on my life.
With no job and no money, I felt worthless, stupid, disliked, and that I had no potential whatsoever. Most fortunately, however, I proved myself to be wrong and later found, from experience, that the way to a happier, more confident and fulfilled life was by learning to slay that inner critic and start loving myself. Furthermore, you can too! Here’s how.
Firstly, remember that you do have a choice. Which one will you listen to: your inner critic or your inner guide? I remember the time when I told my family I was going to start working in the spiritual field. Yes, they laughed and said to me that it would never work out for me, and I that I could not do it.
Sadly, this boosted my inner critic once again, but at this particular time in my life, circumstances and the need for a more fulfilling job made me look at things from a different perspective.