An engaging and entertaining TED talk on mindfulness by the irrepressible Andy Puddicombe, a former buddhist monk and the voice of Headspace, an organisation dedicated to demystifying the experience of meditation and getting as many people in the world as possible to take 10 minutes out of their day for the specific purpose of ‘doing …
This is a passage on meditation and the art of paying attention in a non judgmental way to all aspects of our experience, including the wanted and the unwanted. It first appeared in the website Awakin which publishes weekly readings from a wide range of wisdom traditions. The article is written by Gill Fronsdal and …
A poignant article exploring the differences between sadness and depression
Mark Tully meditates on the art of being still, and the benefits of quiet contemplation, as medical science borrows from the practices of religious traditions. He talks to Mark Williams, Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Oxford who teaches ‘Mindfulness’ techniques and whose research has shown that daily meditation can reduce the occurrence …
This mindfulness practice acts as a bridge between formal meditation practice, (where we take time out to sit with thoughts, feelings and sensations in the body) and the heat of battle as it were – our moment to moment experience, where we don’t always have the time or opportunity to go off and sit formally, …
Each person is born with an unencumbered spot, free of expectation and regret, free of ambition and embarrassment, free of fear and worry, an umbilical spot of grace where we were each first touched by God. It is this spot of grace that issues peace. Psychologists call this spot the Psyche, Theologists call it the …
Once we start to develop a greater awareness of and sense of approach towards our experience, we will inevitably encounter feelings (in and out of meditation practice) that we are not so fond of:pain, fear, rejection, anger, sadness, jealousy to name a few of the usual suspects. When these less palatable experiences arise, the invitation …
This practice of meditation can be a solitary affair. At some point or other we start to question the validity of what we are doing. The devil on our shoulder, the doubting thomas, the inner critic, they can all come knocking, finding some traction and a sympathetic ear. Isn’t there something better, more useful that …
However we sit, whenever we sit, the decision to take some time for ourselves, to soften with our own experience of being alive, deserves a measure of respect. Take some time, deliberation and care in the very act of taking your seat: settle into your posture, bringing awareness to the contact of your body with …