Exploring the process and psychology of awakening. Some of these posts now live on my website – follow the links…
The Four Immeasurables are four virtues that are cultivated in meditation practice. They’re also called the Brahmavihara, which means the ‘abodes of Brahma,’ and they can be found in various Buddhist texts as well as the Yoga sutras of Patanjali. The four immeasurables are unconditional and so are boundless. They consist of: Loving-kindness, or metta… Continue reading How to Meditate: the Four Immeasurables
Savasana, or Shavasana, is a powerful yoga pose that can bring healing to your body and mind. The word comes from the Sanskrit shava, which means corpse, so this is the Corpse pose. It’s usually performed at the end of a yoga session and is ideal for when you need total relaxation. When doing Savasana,… Continue reading How to Meditate: Savasana
Tonglen is a Tibetan Buddhist practice of meditation. The word means ‘giving and taking’, or sending and receiving. The practice involves taking in the suffering and pain of others, and then breathing out love, compassion and understanding. It’s a powerful practice that uses visualisation to help you develop compassion and unconditional love for all. The… Continue reading How to Meditate: Tonglen
Many of the meditation practices that we’ve already looked at in this series can be practised without focusing on spirituality at all. You can watch your breath, do body scans and practice mindfulness as basic techniques to calm the mind and reduce stress. But centring prayer has a direct spiritual meaning and significance, and is… Continue reading How to Meditate: Centring Prayer
A mantra is a sacred syllable, word or phrase used in meditation to help focus and calm the mind. The mantra can be spoken or chanted out loud, or repeated as a thought in the mind. The idea is to focus on the meaning of the mantra as you chant, and doing this can have… Continue reading How to Meditate: Chanting Mantras
This is a guided meditation that comes from the therapeutic practice of psychosynthesis which was started by psychoanalyst Roberto Assagioli. It involves a process of gradually stripping away the layers of false identification to reveal the true nature of the Self underneath. Normally you identify with everything except your true Self – your body, emotions,… Continue reading How to Meditate: Self Identification Meditation
Vipassana comes from the Therevada Buddhist tradition and is also known as Insight meditation. It was the form of meditation practised and taught by the Buddha in order to attain enlightenment. It involves looking into the true nature of the mind to overcome suffering and discover who you really are. The word has two parts:… Continue reading How to Meditate: Vipassana
