“Love is seeing God in the person next to us, and meditation is seeing God within us.”
~ Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
The word meditate stems from the Latin root meditari, meaning “to ponder.” Every one of us employs tools of meditation when we concentrate on a subject or mull over a situation. More formal meditative practices may involve ceremonial postures, repeating a mantra, emptying the mind, or focusing on an idea. But with the right intent, any act can be meditative, including sexual connection. Because honest meditation isn’t ever about escape from reality. In healthy meditation we learn to tolerate our original inner peace, which most of us cannot easily recapture. For many of us, stopping the clock and releasing all worry is frightening, but with practice we can learn to feel safe within our own minds and, likewise, within peaceful, loving relationships.
All healthy rituals ebb and flow with us. Each day we raise water from the well, but today we may sip while tomorrow we gulp it all down. There will be times we can’t be bothered to sit still, and sublime other times that rock us to our core. We can’t control the effect of every ritual, but to attain any result we have to show up, whether to a formal practice or an informal meditation–such as reading these daily meditations. Even when nothing seems to sink in, the mere act of participation signals a noble inclination of our subconscious, our higher self, which already knows the meaning of these words before they’re written.
Studies have shown that longtime practitioners of meditation display enhanced neural coordination. Concentration literally trains the brain. It’s possible that if we sit in meditation enough times, certain realizations might spontaneously dawn on us. Ancient civilizations silently observed animals, oceans, skies and stars in meditative efforts that brought stunning insights beyond the capacity of habitual consciousness. Your personal awareness may similarly transform you through an always-available, even if momentary, act of meditation.
Daily Healthy Sex Acts:
- Slow down. Take three deep breaths. After you finish reading the rest of these words, take a moment to close your eyes and center yourself in space. Notice physical sensations, and let go. Observe emotional sensations, and let go.
- Summon love from the depths of your body, and float in this eternal splendor. Return when ready. It’s your quality of life, it’s your call. Make room in your life for your inner life.
