In the past five years, meditation has become an important part of my life. My interest in meditation developed through my yoga practice. The last pose in yoga is shavasana, essentially a 5-10 minute meditative pose where you lie on your back with your arms and legs stretched out comfortably and shut your eyes. For a long time this pose was challenging. I always had an itch or a twitch and found it hard to keep still, much less center my thoughts. Over time, and through the guidance of my yoga teacher, I started draping a towel over my eyes, which helped me stop fidgeting. Slowly, I began to notice changes — I didn’t always have to act on my impulses to scratch or move. I began focusing on the breath, much like other yoga poses, and breathe through challenges to get to poise.
Browsing a Barnes & Noble in late fall 2013, I picked up a book by Lodro Rinzler, entitled, The Buddha Walks into a Bar: A Guide to Life for a New Generation. It was a modern-day secularized take on mindfulness and seemed to be a good entry point into meditation. Previously, my hesitation with further exploring meditation had been its rooting in religion and dharma. Through reading Lodro’s book, I started to view Buddhism more as a way of life and a practical set of teaches versus ritualized dogma.
From there, I began listening to regular meditation podcasts and reading books by zen masters such as Thich Nhat Hanh and Pema Chodron. I simultaneously started attending a weekly meditation class that followed my yoga class. After doing that for awhile, I decided to start a daily meditation practice — starting with just five minutes per day. I gradually built up to twenty minutes, but ultimately found my sweet spot at ten. I also began journaling my experience — thoughts that distracted me, how I felt, etc.
After immersing myself in meditation for close to five years, I have recently taken the step to apply and get accepted to a nine-month mindfulness teacher training program. Through this program I will have the opportunity to learn from some today’s foremost mindfulness teachers.
I have decided to chronicle my journey on Holiday for Hanging in a series entitled, Meditated. Each week I will post a new article on the topic of mindfulness. I hope you will find it helpful and inspiring and contribute to your own journey with self awareness and connecting more wholly with the world.
Originally published at holidayforhanging.com