Meditation Process
By Karen | March 10, 2009
Here is the process of meditation that if we were in your physical places we would utilize: Every day for 10 or 15 minutes, and not for much more than that, we would sit quietly by ourselves somewhere. Maybe under a tree, maybe in our car, maybe in the bathroom, someplace where we would not be interrupted.
We would do our best to shut down our physical senses. In other words, we would draw the curtains if it is bright. We would close our eyes. We would put ourselves in a place where there is not much sound. We really would not even play music. Some people play music, but even that can be distracting in nature. Something like the ticking of a clock, or the dripping of a faucet, or the trickling of a waterfall, something of that nature can be very soothing. And some music falls into that same category. But it must be something that does not stimulate thought.
And we would focus inward, even on our breathing. We would be consciously aware of air in, and we would be consciously aware of air out. We would concentrate on long breaths in, and we would concentrate on long breaths out. We would breathe air in, and when we thought it was all our lungs would hold, we would bring still more in. And when we think it is still all our lungs could hold we would breathe more air in. And then, at a place of full expansion of lungs, we would take a long, slow, delicious time to let the air out. And our intention would be nothing more than being in this moment, and being consciously aware of breathing. We would let it be our fullest responsibility. Not fixing breakfast, not combing hair, not wondering how someone is doing, not thinking about yesterday, not worrying about tomorrow, not focusing on anything in this moment except air in, and air out.
Now, during this process, within 2 or 3 days of doing it, you’re going to begin to feel a detachment from your physical experience. A very common thing that you will feel is a sort of numbing sensation. Some describe that they cannot tell their toe from their nose. Some, if their eyes are closed, and we recommend that, may begin to see movement of light around under their eyelids, or even flashes of color.
There is no right or wrong in this process of meditation. There is nothing that you should be reaching for. This is a state of allowing. This is a state where, for just a few moments, you stop running the show. You stop trying to make anything happen. This is your time of allowing. This is your time when you are saying unto your maker, unto your Source Energy, unto your Inner Being, unto your God… whatever you’re wanting to call it, this is your time of saying, “Here I be, in a state of allowing.” And what am I allowing? I’m allowing Source Energy to flow purely through me.
15 minutes a day of that effort will change your life. Because it will put you in the state of allowing the Energy that is natural to you to flow. You’ll feel better in the moment. You’ll feel more energized when you come out of it.
You may spend 14 minutes before you achieve any state of detachment. You might not ever be consciously aware that you’ve achieved any state of detachment. It doesn’t matter, you are making enormous progress as you allow yourself to be.
A big benefit that you’ll notice, right away, is that things that you’ve been wanting will begin showing up. “Now, why is this? Abraham, I didn’t sit and intend. I didn’t sit and set goals. I didn’t sit and clarify what I want. I didn’t tell the Universe what I wanted. How come 15 minutes of just being will set those kinds of things in motion?” Because it has always been, ask and it is given. It has never been “ask and do something right and it is given”. It has never been “ask and get worthy”. It is ask and allow. Ask and allow.
And so, every day, you’ve been asking. You’ve been launching all kinds of intentions. You cannot live in your physical body, you cannot be part of this physical environment without endless desires being born within you. And as these desires are being born within you, the Universe is answering them. And now, because of your 15 minutes of allowing, whether you were petting the cat, or practicing your breathing, whether you were listening to a waterfall or listening to happy music, or whether you were on a rampage of appreciation… what happened, for that time of allowing, is, you set up within your vibrational auric field a vibration that, for the time, was not in the state of resisting the things that you’ve been asking for. And progress is made in that time.
Excerpted from the workshop in Ashland, OR on Tuesday, May 16th, 2000
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Having Trouble Thinking Positively? Want to?
By Karen | March 8, 2009
I know we ALL have our days when it’s not as easy to think positively as others. We are human and that is okay, but I am here to help you by sharing an article I read to day! =)
Here’s how to get started:
* Several times a day, stop and focus on your thoughts. Are they negative? Perhaps you’re guilty of filtering, or weeding out all of the positive aspects of a situation and focusing on the negatives.
Maybe your boss gave you a generally good performance review but mentioned one thing you could be doing better. Do you go home and obsess about that one thing without reminding yourself that your boss praised you? Instead of telling yourself you’re a terrible employee, tell yourself you’re a valuable addition to the team, and you’ll be even better once you master that new procedure.
* Be wary of personalizing situations. If a friend cancels plans with you, don’t assume it’s because of something you did. Remind yourself there are many reasons she may have canceled, including illness or a work deadline.
* Are you a catastrophizer? Do you refrain from inviting over people you’d like to get to know because you fear the worst, such as serving them a dish that’s inedible or somehow making a fool of yourself? Instead of creating imaginary disasters for yourself, tell yourself you’ll have a lovely evening with new friends, even if something is slightly over- or undercooked.
Here are other common negative thoughts and their corresponding positive ones:
* I can’t do this - I’ve never done it before. Turn it into: This is a chance to try something new.
* I have absolutely no time for this. Turn it into: How can I rearrange my schedule to allow for this?
* No one ever calls or writes to me. Turn it into: I’ll make contact with an old friend today.
Optimism isn’t something that will come overnight. But with practice and determination, you can turn around those pessimistic musings and embrace a more joyous, healthier life.
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Connecting with You
By Teresa | March 6, 2009
Hi there,
Its Teresa here and I’d like to welcome you to the Infinite Women blog. I hope you visit often as Karen and I share some thoughts close to our hearts. I’d also like to invite you to join in the conversation by using the comments feature. Some of the greatest ways we can help empower one another is my sharing our thoughts and opinions with each other, validating, and encouraging each other. With those goals in mind, please keep your comments respectful. While it is great to share diverse opinions and thoughts, comments that are mean-spirited, abusive or rude. We’re all on a journey of growth and acceptance, right? If any comments aren’t reflective of that journey, we reserve the right to delete them.
Now that we’ve got the business out of the way, let’s talk about connecting with others and with ourselves.
As women, many of us are so adept at connecting its like second nature. We spend our lives as caretakers, solving the problems of everyone around us. One way we do that is by connecting problem solvers with problem havers. From passing on the name of a great sitter to using social media outlets to building our own businesses, making connections comes naturally to most of us.
What about connecting with our true inner selves, though? Where do you stand on that one? Digging deep inside, learning who we are at our core and accepting those answers unconditionally is NOT an easy task, but it doesn’t have to be difficult, either. In fact, it can be the most liberating thing you’ve ever done.
Throughout Infinite Women, our purpose is to show you how to make that inner connection and learn to truly love who you are - finally.
We don’t have to be paragons of virtue to be worthy of loving ourselves. No matter what your history has been, you can start at any moment to stop allowing it to determine your future. When we agonize over our past, we tend to dwell on the “if onlys” and the “woulda, coulda, shouldas.” As long as we continue to do that, we’re stuck trying to do the impossible and we’re bound to feel defeated. Here’s the scoop: not one of us can change one iota of the past. It’s done. It’s over. It’s finished. Let it go. Guilt, regret, shame- useless negativity that can ultimately destroy us if we let it.
Very few, if any, of us ever set out to make bad decisions, unhealthy or immoral choices or destructive lifestyle patterns. Instead, our decisions and choices are generally made from the best place we can make them - at that specific moment in time. Are you guilty of judging yesterday’s actions with today’s knowledge? I spent years of my life doing just that. As I moved out of living a self-destructive lifestyle, I would look back on poor decisions and beat myself up, wondering how on earth I could have been so stupid, so selfish, so wrong. The effect of that was absolutely nothing more than self-abuse. I would feel worse and worse, plagued with guilt and anguish. The emotional pain would fuel my ability to recall other unhealthy or unproductive decisions, which - yep, you got it- piled on more negative thinking.
When I learned how to stop dwelling on the things in my past, I learned I could create my present and my future to be different. When I learned I could trust myself, appreciate myself and accept myself, that present and future became filled with possibilities.
Take away point: The past is over. It is decidedly and completely unchangeable. No replays or do-overs available to anyone for any reason at anytime.
Whew! Take a couple of deep breaths and really think about that. NO matter how much you want to, you cannot go back and do things differently. That means there is no point dwelling on it any longer. NO POINT.
Decide right now- yes, right now- to be finished with your past. Accept the fact that you did the best job you could based on the specific circumstances of the moment. Accept the fact you are human and will make mistakes. Accept that fact you are unconditionally lovable- and then offer yourself that love. Connect with your inner self and love her.
Share your journey with us here, in the comments.
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