Skip to main content

Day 28 of the 30 day meditation. Zazen Meditation.

 
Zazen is commonly practiced in Zen temples and monasteries, as a form of meditation that focuses on concentration.  Breathing for this meditation is done from the hara, or your navel area, the center of balance, and helps beginners focus by using a counting method.  One, inhale to the count of ten; two, exhale to the count of ten; three, inhale to the count of ten; four, exhale to the count of ten and so on until your reach ten, then repeat, beginning at one.  This process can continue upwards of twenty to thirty minutes.  Your position for Zazen should be in a lotus, or half lotus position, with your spine straight, but relaxed. It seems impossible right?  You can do. Trust me, if I can, you can.  You got this. 
 
The concentration factor of Zazen is to allow your thoughts, judgments, words, idea's or anything passing through your head to do just that, pass through, while you keep your mind clear and focused on your breathing.  I feel it is a very good beginner meditation, but I can understand why they placed it towards the end of the thirty day meditation, since it is a rather long one.  If you have soft music, I would play that while doing your counting meditation, if it helps you focus.
 
I am going to make this short, because I think it is beneficial to fit in all twenty to thirty minutes of this meditation.  If you're having a particularly bad day, Zazen will help you find your center once again.  If you have time in the morning, perhaps do it then, if this is a meditation you would like to adopt.  I think it will help vitalize your day and put you into a frame of mind that will allow you to face your day with enthusiasm and a clear mind.
 
Until tomorrow....Just breathe. Focus and let your troubles, judgments and cares slip away.
 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sissy Jo....

Well, it goes without saying that the days leading up to Comic Con were anything but non-emotional.  Is that even a word?  Seriously, my mind lately. Sissy Jo, one of the three girls I call my soul sister, passed away on June 29th, her funeral was held two days before we left for Comic Con. Admittedly, this reminded me, as well, of mama being sick last year during Comic Con, so of course our 8th trip to the 'Con', was a little bluer than I think we had hoped, but we did manage to have a good time, because we know that is what Jo would have wanted.  As we all know you can't make the pain just disappear, or the sadness that comes with losing someone so important and special to your life.  As anyone could tell you, JoAnn was a force to be reckoned with, a little whirlwind of organization, love and smiles.  She loved many who were in her path and she taught us lessons of survival, never giving up and fighting the good fight. I me...
Post a Comment
Read more

From a personal journey to...

I have blogged off and on about a personal journey I have been on for about a year or so.  It's nothing earth shattering for anyone but me.  I hate to say it, but I kind of became a cliché.  Indeed, I had become that person who needed to find themselves.  One of my favorite quotes along the way came from Tolkien, "Not all those who wander are lost".  It kind of contradicts my previous statement, well not kind of, it does, because I talk about finding myself, but truly, I knew where I was all the time.  Are you confused yet? Think of it as standing outside of your body inside a hall of mirrors.  Like a carnival there are images of you everywhere, but only one of those images are you.  So you go about seeking the solid figure and along the way you hit dead ends, walls, other mirrors with images of yourself and so on, until you finally stop, breathe and realize if you look at the mirror in front of you, there you are.  You stop trying so hard...
3 comments
Read more

Day 8 of 30 days of gratitude.

Today I dedicate this blog to Sissy Jo.  Today would have been JoJobean's 47th birthday and she lived every moment the best that she could.  I am forever grateful that I spent her last night on earth with her.  It was like old times when we had a lot of Sissy sleep-over's, watching "ghosty" shows, chatting, being sisters.   That night she told me her dreams for me and what she was sure would be my reality for the future. What people didn't see was JoAnn's fight.  When it was posted on Facebook that she had passed away, so many of my own family and friend's commented that they didn't even know she was still sick.  In fact, she was on her way to do payroll when she collapsed, the afternoon she passed away.  She had set-up a makeshift office at home, because her dedication to the work and people she cared about, never stopped. JoAnn was re-diagnosed in December 2008.  She had been in remission for almost four years when breast cancer came ba...
Post a Comment
Read more