“Deep in their roots, all flowers keep the light.”

~Theodore Roethke, 20th-Century American poet

Some of you may be aware that, as an herbalist, I prefer self-healing to westernized medicine. Of course I do not advocate skipping immediate medical treatment in cases of extreme illness or emergency, but I feel that all intuition and common sense has vacated the local doctor’s office and gone searching for greener pastures.

For acute illness I do often suggest an herbal or vitamin remedy. They may not always taste like a dream but the results can be seen within about 24 hours and the illness or ailment is often sent packing much faster than the over-the-counter, knock-yourself-out-and-forget-about-it, type of remedies that we are all used to taking.

How do herbs heal? They work on a chemical level to correct any imbalances in our various physical systems and also to kick-start those functions whose sluggishness most likely led to the infection, sickness, etc…

Yet, as I have mentioned here on the blog in the past, all things are made up of light and all light is energy. So the purest and most subtle form of healing the human body, or any living thing for that matter, is energy.

There are many forms of energy healing, the most important one being thought. The power of positive thought has been expounded upon ad nauseum lately, but it cannot be over-emphasized.

My own preferred form of energy healing, for it pleasant effects, is the use of flower remedies. (Because energy signatures are universal, the essences are also great for use on animals for their healing.)

Flower remedies, most famously those of Dr. Bach, are a liquid containing the energy signature, or essence, of the flower from one or more plants.

Flower remedies can be made from the flowers of vegetables, trees, herbs, wildflowers and even the decorative garden flowers that we all know and love.

These simple essential healing remedies are made by infusing pure water with the blossoms in the noonday sunlight. Although I use the light cast during various astronomically and astrological phenomena, noonday sunlight is the most common method of creating flower remedies.

The light beams directly onto your vessel, passing through a floating layer of flowers and carrying their energies into the water.

Once the flowers are skimmed off, the energy water (or Mother Essence) is then cut or diluted using a preservative such as vinegar or brandy.

Some healers then ship the product as is, I prefer to bless or “activate” the essence for healing by stating the properties of the flower or flowers aloud and asking the universe to help it carry out its higher purpose within the life and body of the end user.

The properties of each flower are not made up quickly by some creative mind, but instead come from the energy experiences of test users around the world, from ancient healing knowledge that has been passed down, by looking at the physical design of the plant (often the shape of flowers tells you quite clearly what their usage is) and also from herbalism. Often the herbal use is related in some way to the energetic use of the same plant.

Though they most certainly can heal major physical ailments over time, the most pronounced effects of flower remedies come when used for emotional, spiritual and psychological healing.

I have used them for psychic development, youthfulness and vitality, all with great results. They have been prescribed with positive effect for depression, self-esteem, bravery and stronger will power.

The flower remedy treatment formula, usually a combination essence made specifically for the ailments and needs of the client based on their own answers to some brief questions, can be mixed using a variety of intuitive and research methods.

My general approach is to read the clients answers, get a sense of appropriate remedies based on my own personal experience and then to channel additional suggestions for remedies from my guides.

The end result is a subtle but highly attuned energy essence that benefits the whole person as opposed to focusing narrowly on one desired outcome. This is most beneficial since sickness creates many locales of imbalance and does not operate solely on the element or “symptom” that we have come to notice in ourself.

Flower remedies can also be taken as a solo essence, right from the original dosage bottle. This helps to treat more acute symptoms that come on more suddenly or have built up to an unmanageable level over time.

I have used this single remedy approach quite successfully on myself for treating a feeling of getting old, getting more tired and feeling less energy. Within just a few days that shine in my eyes had returned and my skin looked younger. The essence was Elderflower.

I have also seen this method used for swollen joints, arthritis, stress and panic attacks.

By locating a flower essence practitioner you can get access to your own custom blend of flower remedy, designed to alleviate long-term illness and readjust hormone, energy and mental imbalances in order to bring you to your best possible health.

Please consider doing some research yourself on these wonderful healing essences, the gifts of the universe for our souls. Please incorporate them into your life however you can for I truly believe that healing is meant to be subtle and natural, not harsh and chemical.

Best of Health to You All!

“Movement never lies: it is a barometer telling the state of the soul’s weather to all who can read it.”

~Martha Graham, American Dancer & Choreographer

Not all of us are triathletes. And, not all of us are couch potatoes. Most of us fall somewhere in between.

I tend to label myself in the category of homebody intellectual, meaning that most of my pursuits require brain or some occasional hand-eye coordination but few of them require me to get off my butt and leave the house. Yet, I still consider myself a well-rounded person.

Until recently I saw no problem with this arrangement, but have suddenly come to understand that to be active and breath fresh air is just as important to a spiritual life as are faith and meditation.

Those of us who maintain an active spirituality often eschew physical exercise and physical labour in favour of chanting “Om” and reading about the power of attraction or the life of the Dalai Lama. Yet getting spiritual must also mean acknowledging the divine nature of your physical body.

Our family recently lost a beloved pet. From muscular and energetic he sickened and went down hill so suddenly that we very clearly saw what happens when a spirit leaves this physical existence. As he got closer to passing away his eyes lost their sparkle and his spirit slowly became unmanifest. He fought and fought, following us and meowing, laying with us and attempting to swat at his old toys. His spirit was not willing to leave, it wanted to live more. Then, when he crossed over, his little furry body, which had been so sleek and beautiful and cuddly, just looked like an empty shell – a puppet.

Seeing this process with a loving eye, I had to then stop and look at my own life, my husband’s and my baby’s. Could neglect of our bodies, our environment and our natural world take one of us from this physical plane before we truly were ready to go? Could our lovely little soul family be separated so easily and so rapidly?

Spirits come to this world to experience the magic of being a spirit and yet being able to act and create and learn on a physical, solid level. Some are taken back to spirit long before the lessons they desired have been experienced.

The “reality” that we humans currently live in can be harsh and dangerous, chemicals and machines often lead to illness and accident. We cannot control everything and some things truly are destined to be. Yet embracing the divine nature of this one-lifetime-only body that we have been given means honoring it’s fragility by caring for it just as vigorously (perhaps even moreso) than we to tend to our spiritual development.

In acknowledging our own sacredness we must eventually come closer to our physical world, not more detached from it. Moving our body is a sacred act, feeding it right is a sacred act. These have been difficult lessons for me to implement in my life. Truth be told I find reading, knitting and meditating much easier than walking, swimming and cooking for myself.

My spiritual and creative work is my true life purpose. I am here to bring light to my son, my husband and my readers. But, if I get sick (and I have been so more than most) and I become disabled or die suddenly, I leave my work undone. I leave my family broken. The same is true for us all, divine guidance is telling humanity –during this critical time for our species– that balance is key. We must find the balance between spirit and body, nature and technology, greed and kindness.

Balance for me seems more crucial than ever. Not just once, but several times, I have woken up at night with a pain in my chest or my arm and thought “That’s it, the bad diet and extra weight has caught up with me. I am having a heart attack.” Can you imagine being a new Mom and having such a horrible thought? So, I began a serious challenge to myself – spend 79 days doing something that is good for you, especially if you don’t want to do it, and watch your life change. I have chosen 79 days of smaller portions and a focused fitness regime.

When you embrace deliberate movement you are not just honoring the body as a vehicle for your true self, you are caressing the spirit within. You are enlivening it and its purpose, increasing the energy of your oneness. There is a unification of mind, body and soul, all working towards one goal: the betterment of you, your mood, mindset, life & divine purpose.

I am more than 50 days into it now and you know what I discovered? Believe it or not, sticking to a hard workout and repeating it over and over again makes you feel amazing! Confidence boosts and chakras glow. You get so proud of yourself, you feel more energy and you begin to smile at yourself in the mirror. When darkness looms, and you feel depressed or someone has upset you and made you feel powerless, just 30 minutes of jumping jacks, sit-ups, dumbbell curls and toe touches can bring true light and happiness out of you.

I hear some of you saying, “Oh it’s endorphins.” And, I am sure that is partially true. Remember also that we are divine, aware beings walking around in these temporary shells. That eternal spiritual being knows that it needs the body in order to accomplish its life purpose, its goals and lessons. When you take care of that body, the spirit can shine all the brighter, at a higher vibration closer to its original loving source. This is genuine happiness that comes from deep within.

Happiness is also contagious. It’s infectious. So when you move to benefit your own heart and soul, you are also moving toward benefitting those of the people with whom you spend your time. It’s a win-win situation!

“I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.”
~ George Washington Carver, American Scientist, Inventor and Educator

It is certain that we all have our bad days. Even the most enlightened of people can sometimes feel a lack of energy and be overwhelmed by the external reality of this world.

In these times we, as individuals, often wish for just one soothing moment, just an hour or two of peace and quiet.

Seeking outside of ourselves for security or happiness is, of course, not going to help us find it.

We certainly can only find lasting security, happiness and peace within our own spirits.

But the environment that we find ourselves in can often make it either easier, or more difficult, to achieve connection with our spirit.

When we strip away all the flash, the lights, the mechanical noises, the social pressures and the workload, what truth are we left with? The truth that we are all natural beings.

In this truth can be found the answer to that unknown longing which we, as seekers on a spiritual path, can feel tugging from within us, but cannot seem to put into words.

We miss our daily connection with nature.

It seems so simple, and may not immediately appear to be at all helpful. But in our moments of stress, illness, doubt, sadness and lethargy, we can indeed once again be filled with simple goodness. And the prescription is not a chemical one at all.

Get yourself out amongst nature.

I kid you not, it works! Even if you have to get in the car, or on the bus, and drive to nature. Do it!

Go alone or take your dog, but don’t bring another person with you all the time. Other people talk, other people enable us to keep our masks on. What we are going for is silence, room to think, complete freedom of self.

It doesn’t matter if you go for a hike in the mountains, a stroll in the park, a slow meander along the lake shore or a bike ride across the mesa. The location isn’t the point.

The breeze, the birds, the cool air, the tickling grass and the tallest tree…these are the point. Feeling the slow, beautiful and seemingly purposeless rhythm of nature is what helps reconnect you.

The air that you breath will seem more energizing, and the worries that you carry will seem less heavy, less real.

Being silent, in nature, is a meditation. I would argue that it is often the most powerful kind, for it feeds both your body and your spirit. Now that is a lovely balance.

Everyday I feel extremely blessed that my current home is so close to open fields and tall hills, that there is a bike trail nearby and mild weather most days. This has not always been the case, and yet I was always willing to drive far afield to reach somewhere natural and beautiful. No matter the weather, our true place as creatures of the planet Earth is out in nature.

Today, if you do nothing else for yourself, take a walk under that tree or up that hill. You’ll be glad that you did.

Blessings!

“I did not come to yoga to stretch. I came to live.”
~Maya Breuer, Kripalu Yoga Instructor

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This article is a repost from our old blog – originally dated June 2008.
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Coming to Yoga

As we age, we embrace new things, we evolve and grow in wisdom and strength. This is not always so, but it can be, if we maintain an openness to new ideas and accept life’s challenges gracefully, as difficult as that may sometimes seem.

In my own evolution I have recently embraced a challenging new thing, one that actually facilitates my ability to accept other challenges with grace and strength. That thing being yoga.

I do not know what originally drew me to yoga, especially as the attraction began a few years ago when I was in the worst physical shape of my life. Still, yoga had an unknown appeal and I began reading and learning about it. At that time I did not incorporate it into my life, but that door remained open.

Brief dabblings in yoga over the last year have shown me that it’s not easy but that it is fun, and it remained very appealing.

Now, having been vegetarian for nearly nine months, and having shed over 40 pounds towards reclaiming my college/high school weight, I just suddenly incorporated a practice of yoga into my life.

The impulse was my thirty-second birthday at the end of March. I received an organic yoga mat as a gift from my fiancé, Serge, and he also paid for my first two yoga classes at the local ashram. Those classes were in the Sivananda style of yoga.

Though the classes didn’t work out, as the instructor was like a drill sergeant, I adopted a home yoga practice that has really done something good for me.

In the very beginning I did not believe that I would be able to stick to a regular yoga practice, and doing it every day seemed like a chore. I felt silly mostly, there was hardly a single pose that I could manage to do in a full and proper way.

As a result, there was no consistency to my yoga, it was done sporadically, without much focus. For whatever reason though, my focus is sharper now, just a couple of months after that rocky start.

Yoga is not the first thing that I do in the morning, but it is always done before breakfast and before I get pulled too deeply into my work for the day. I have been doing it everyday, except Sundays, for a few weeks now and I love it!

Why do Yoga?

It is difficult to explain why people do yoga and it is just as difficult to explain even my own reasons for doing yoga. All that I can say is that it changes my life, if effects the quality of my day.

I suppose the best way that I can explain the benefit that I derive from it is: I have better flow. Both my life and my energy seem smoother and more vitalized.

What is startling about yoga, when you first come to it, is how challenging it is. Glossy yoga magazines and television workout programs all make it look so glamorous and graceful. But the truth is that those people, who can look either graceful or glamorous doing it, have been putting their effort and focus into developing their yoga practice for years.

You and I will most likely look more wonky, wobbly and somewhat pained when we begin practicing yoga. But that is okay, most kids can’t do a cartwheel when they first walk into a gymnastics class and yet, after a bit of practice and stretching, they learn how to fly through the air with ease.

Perhaps the most rewarding, and life-changing, aspect of yoga is the shift in your focus that occurs with regular practice. You learn, mayhaps more than in any other area of your life, that it is really all about the journey and in time you begin not to focus on the destination. This is a valuable life lesson which will benefit you both on and off of the yoga mat.

You will most likely arrive at a yoga practice for the physical health benefits, which are numerous. There are psychological benefits to adopting a regular yoga practice, including less tendency toward depression and a lowering of stress levels. Physical benefits range from lower blood pressure to a reversal of degenerative diseases. I particularly enjoy the increase in physical strength as well as the gentle reshaping of my muscles and overall appearance.

Plus, it is a little time to yourself, for yourself. Most of us don’t get much of that anymore.

Beginning Yoga

If you have the inclination to explore yoga, the very first thing that you may do is to type “yoga” into Google. And what you get will probably overwhelm you within a minute or two. There is just too much information out there in the modern world, and western society is majorly obsessed with eastern traditions such as yoga!

You will find out that there are different paths of yoga, most referring to its spiritual benefits. And when it comes to the type of yoga that we usually think of, the on-the-mat kind, you will find that there are several different styles, all begun by a yoga teacher or guru, each with different goals and focuses. Some of these include Hatha, Kundalini, Ashtanga, Bikram, Kripalu and Sivananda.

I would recommend for beginners to look toward the basic style of yoga, called Hatha.

So, supposing that you take my recommendation, how can you find out more?

Again, information on yoga abounds! Most places that offer yoga classes will offer Hatha. The Yoga Journal is a fantastic resource, and officially the only magazine that I have ever read from cover-to-cover. You might also want to check out a video or a book.

To save you time in choosing resources, I have listed the only two videos and the only two books that I ever found useful in exploring yoga, and that is after hundreds of dollars worth of searching.

Hatha Yoga Illustrated, by: Kirk, Boon and DiTuro The BEST book on Hatha ever!!!

Yoga Bliss, by: Tara Fraser A cute and easy beginners booklet.

Yoga Conditioning for Weight Loss (DVD) It’s great for beginners too!

Yoga Journal’s Yoga for Beginners (DVD) Simple intro video and a helpful pose guide.

Take it easy in the beginning and do not expect to look like a ballerina in your first session. Expect to look like an elephant on rollerblades, and be proud if you only end up looking like an ostrich on ice-skates.

The most important thing to remember is to try and keep your muscles (especially facial muscles) relaxed even when you are holding a position that may be physically demanding or uncomfortable. And equally important is to stay mindful of all the stretches and pinches that you are feeling in your body, be aware enough to know when you have stretched to your limit or held a pose long enough.

Following these pieces of advice will ensure that you get maximum benefits and minimum injuries from your yoga practice.

Basic Yoga Routines

Here are the three routines that I have designed for myself, each is comprised of twelve poses or asanas, mainly drawn from Hatha Yoga. Please note that not all poses are for all people and if you have any contraindications to certain poses you should not attempt them as a beginner. You can find out about what poses should not be done with certain types of injuries by looking them up in a book or at the Yoga Journal website.

When I say that I do these poses, what I actually mean is that I attempt these poses. You will not be able to do all of them and what challenges you will differ from what challenges me. Just keep at them and the full pose will come to you, as you gradually come to it.

I generally alternate these routines, relying more heavily on the first two and interspersing the third one for fun, flavor and a bit of a challenge. The opening move, sun salutation, is actually a series of poses comprised of mountain, upward salute, standing forward bend, high lunge, downward-facing dog, plank pose, four-limbed staff pose and upward-facing dog. They flow nicely into each other and the sun salute is easier than it sounds.

First Routine

Second Routine

Third Routine

These yoga routines can be as long or as short as you wish. You can do them quick and aerobic, or you can do them in a more peaceful and meditative way…the choice is yours. Most yoga instructors will tell you to do each pose, on each side, either six times or twelve times. I am still beginning, so I chose four times for now. I hold most poses for thirty seconds each, some for one minute and others I can only manage for ten seconds.

My yoga routine is usually a 15-20 minute affair, but has lasted as long as 40 minutes. After my morning yoga routine I also add a few aerobic and Pilates moves to finish up with. Generally these are sit-ups, leg-ups, scissor kicks, standing toe touches, jumping jacks and jogging in place. I finish with a yoga bow and roll up the mat until the next morning.

Be sure to always end with Corpse Pose, as this is where you rest while your mind and body integrate all that you have learned and experienced in your session.

What I like about yoga is that it offers increasing levels of challenge, and these differ for each individual yogi. I am slowly feeling my muscles and abilities develop, each day my practice is different. Yoga is never the same twice, with different muscles offering more or less stretch and resistance each morning.

I work toward supported headstand, king pigeon and toe pose. In yoga, you compete with no one and the only challenger is your own unique body. I know that there will be days when I will accomplish them and days that I won’t. And that is what keeps yoga fresh and fun.

Happy Yoga to You!

“They say that God is everywhere, and yet we always think of him as somewhat of a recluse.”
~Emily Dickinson, 19th-Century American Poetess

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This article is a repost from our old blog – originally dated April 2008.
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Today started out quite foggy and dreary, but now it seems to be brightening and drying up.

I don’t know how long this buzz will last, so I will take this opportunity to write a post about what I have recently been observing.

~

So many people, myself included, spend a great deal of their spiritual life or spiritual intentions attempting to find a connection with God, the Creator, the Divine One. We look for it outside of ourself, we expect and hope for grace and guidance to come TO us.

For some religions GOD is something that one must earn, something that one attains at the end of life. GOD is something that you must believe in, dedicate to and look for. GOD wants you to teach others to believe in him, to bring others to the path of seeking for him as well.

But God exists for you, already, within yourself. SO that is the only place that we can and should cultivate our connection.

But by its nature, the Creator is in all things. You are now, and have always been, God. God is in you and is in me. The oneness of all creation never ceases, not for one moment, no matter the circumstances.

The beauty of creation (ie. All that the creator has created) is that it is limitless. Creation has all possibility, there is no limitation to the forms that it may take.

I feel this truth acutely today. How the beauty and magic of existence is equal in both the flower and the thorn, in both the new leaf of this springtime and the old dried leaves of autumns past.

The death and the birth are equally magnificent, possessing equal mystery and magic. For without the one, there could not be the other. There could not be constant birth, for we live on a limited plane, a planet that is not ever-spacious. Thus death is equally beautiful. The magic of creation is the balance in all things. God’s loving creation, the true nature of the Creator, is present in ALL, whether light or dark.

We may perceive one set of creations as being more positive or more valuable than others, but this is only our perception, not necessarily a truth.

Both the water and the plastic bottle in which it is carried are a beautiful creation of God. They are equally amazing and loving in their existence despite any attributes that they may or may not possess. Goodness and Godness are the same thing, and all is of God.

So, if God is in all things equally, without exception, it is not wrong to say that you are God, as am I.

We are all of the same Creator. You and I, the flowers and the thorns, the dog and his feces, the mosquito and any disease that it may carry, the clouds and the sun.

Owing to this knowledge that the perceived attributes, behaviors and thoughts of a person or thing can never diminish the true Godhood that it possesses, it must be true that no action or thought, feeling or mistake that you ever make can diminish your true divine nature.

You are good. You are God. That makes you divinely good, no matter what.

Let yourself embrace both the vastness and the simplicity of this reality.

In speaking it we can feel the inner truth of it and begin to let go of the pain and heaviness that we have carried with us for so long in our hearts and minds.

At every moment your inner nature is one of divine goodness, even should you choose to act in a way that you or others perceive as not good.

Accepting your innate goodness, bestowed upon you by your very creation and existence, allows you to put down all of the collected “badness” that you have carried. You no longer have to accept that “badness” as who you are. It is simply what you have done or experienced, or what others have done and experienced, but it is not a living “thing” that you must tend to and care for. You are not required to carry it with you and make it your own.

Our badness, or our conception of our badness, is merely an energy. It has been attached to us only by our acceptance of its truth. When we realize that the ultimate truth is that of our divine goodness, we may see the untruth of our continued badness and be freed of its burden.

Like both the flower and the thorn, our true inner self as well as our outward actions and experiences are divine.

I am beginning to integrate this understanding into my view of myself and my purpose and to train my Ego-mind to treat me as a divine spirit instead of a collection of actions and thoughts.

You are welcome to accept the same process yourselves.

Blessings.

“Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful.”
~Margaret J. Wheatley, Writer and Management Consultant

Meditation is a contemplative state which one enters in order to relax the waking consciousness. There are many reasons that people take up meditation and there are numerous benefits to incorporating a regular practice of meditation.

Meditation can be used to cultivate a deeper awareness of one’s relationships and surroundings. Calming the ego-consciousness (the judge) that lives within our waking mind and opening ourself up to receiving peace, allows us to recognize and, with diligence, to access a higher state of consciousness.

Why should you want to reach higher consciousness?

That is a very good question and yet, one that is very difficult to answer. You may want to reach higher consciousness for the changes that it makes in how you use your life. You may want to reach higher consciousness to develop new abilities. Or perhaps you would enjoy having a higher consciousness because of the differences your actions may make in the lives of others.

What can be said is that, through the regular practice of meditation, you will come to realizations, values and talents that you are very unlikely to arrive at without the aid of meditation. I say unlikely, I do not say never. Meditation is a tool, like a key to a door. It is not the key that makes the wondrous thing behind the door exist. That thing always existed, all that the key did was make it easier to reach.

The realization and changes that develop in you over time, while practicing meditation (things like, mindfulness, calm, spiritual oneness, empowerment) are subtle shifts in your level of awareness that will help you to, among other things:

-Form more healthy romantic relationships
-Fulfill your internal life purpose
-Expel toxins and illness from your body
-Speak and act with true integrity
-See the beauty in all things
-Cope better with change and challenges in life
-Build self-esteem
-Look and feel more youthful
-Gain spiritual awareness / inspiration from the divine
-Walk lighter on the Earth
-Appreciate the gifts that you have in your life
-Serve yourself and others with deep kindness
-Channel positive creativity through your unique self

So I suppose that the question is not why you should want to reach higher consciousness, but why you should not want to?

What does meditation mean exactly? I have heard so many different things about it.

Meditation means many different things to many different people. There are several approaches to meditation, several layers of consciousness to explore and different levels of difficulty.

There are those who follow an accepted course of some kind, like Kabbalistic meditation or Transcendental meditation. And there are those who are more drawn to moving forms of meditation, such as Yoga or Tai Chi. Most are just looking for more inner peace and a connection with the natural world in which we live.

It would take pages to list here the myriad forms that meditation can take. Some examples are: breathing meditation, walking meditation, guided meditation, trance, sound healing, affirmation, tantric, chakra, crystal, visualization etc, etc…

What is common to many forms of meditation is the component of sitting and maintaining a relaxed pose in a place of silence. This, of course, is an oversimplification, but it is not as simple as it may sound. The difficulties that people tell me of, and that I myself am no stranger to, are the very reason that meditation can be so life-changing for us.

The realization that staying mindful of our walking, or maintaining mental silence for a few minutes, is so difficult, when we humans are supposed to be the masters of our physical world, is one that leads many people to realize their own potential for growth. This is why acheiving the simple acts of maintaining silence of the mind and awareness of our reality, empowers us and shows us our connection all other life.

Gaining this place of silent connection is the true meaning of meditation, no matter what form that meditation takes.

How do I learn to meditate?

Ah. That is the question!

The approach is a very easy one. The mastery is not always so.

To begin with, you need to find a comfortable position that you can rest in. Most people use a cross-legged position. Lying down, though comfortable, is not the best position for learning meditation. Lying down signals sleep to your mind, and if you try to relax the mind in this position, you will inevitably end up asleep.

I always suggest that beginning meditators sit on the floor, this helps to ground you and also to release any fears that you may relax too much and fall off of your chair.

So, you are most likely to begin by sitting cross-legged on the floor (or on a nice cushion, on the floor.) I always begin this way, with my back straight, supported by a wall.

The intention here is to relax your muscles, rest your eyes and release all worry from your mind. There may be an overall intention to astral project, meet your spirit guide or gain psychic abilities, but that is not the point of each individual meditation. Release these desires, be the beginner, be the student.

Doing meditation is called “practicing” just as in Yoga or in doing magic. That is because we are always the student, these are abilities that have no end, that continually grow and evolve, presenting new challenges along the way. We are always learning.

So now you sit in quiet contemplation, keeping your mind empty (or focused on your own inner body perceptions and mental perceptions) for as long as you can.

A fifteen or twenty minute meditation can change the entire energy and outcome of your day. But in the beginning, allow yourself to practice for only three, four or five minutes. Do not worry if you cannot stay still or carefree for longer than that.

If you have thoughts come barging in during your meditation time, simply thank your mind for its contribution and then release the thoughts and return to clear mindedness.

Once you become comfortable with the general concept and practice of meditation you can feel free to try adding instructive aids of some kind. These may be counting techniques or similar approaches learned from a book. They may be sentences or affirmations that you say to yourself repeatedly throughout your meditation. You may also find guided meditations, either audio or video, quite helpful.

I myself learned meditation, guided by a friend, using the simple tree meditation, which I eventually memorized and I still use variations of it regularly.

But I can’t meditate, I am so frustrated by my failed attempts. I thought this was supposed to be relaxing!

It is indeed meant to be a relaxing and comforting activity. If it isn’t, then it is probably one of three things… let’s look at the three most the common roadblocks to successful meditation.

I can’t sit still: You are most likely a person with high levels of energy (ie. anxiety) and teaching your brain that it is okay to relax and not be always doing is something that will take time. Begin by setting a stop watch and observe how long you can sit still for. Then slowly increase it in ten-second intervals. Force your body to just BE. Eventually you will not need the stop-watch or the forced increases anymore. Go slow and you will get there.

My mind will not stop thinking: This is the most common reason that people decide they are unable to meditate and give up trying. They can only seem to keep their head clear for 30 seconds or so, but the minute that they begin to relax into a meditative state, another thought pops into their mind. When this happens ten or more times, each and every time that they attempt meditation, it is not surprising that they become frustrated.

I was this person! I swore to my meditation teacher that I would NEVER be able to meditate, and I was truly convinced of that fact. But it wasn’t a real truth for me. And it isn’t for you either.

Perhaps, you are dragged out of your meditation by every creaking floorboard, passing ambulance siren or barking dog. I was too. But I promise you that this is just a stage. Your conscious mind, the ego, does not want to release control and will amplify every thought, worry, sound and itch to try and maintain that state of control. But it does eventually loosen its grip, if you stick with it. You will not fail, unless you give up and stop trying.

I don’t think that I am doing this right. I don’t feel anything: You have probably come to meditation with some unrealistic expectations of what you would experience. There is no wrong way to meditate.

The intention with meditation is to build a stronger, more open connection with your true inner self. There are as many methods for achieving that connection as there are individual people.

If you feel like this time is your own, than that is enough. What matters is that you take the time to stop, be at peace and listen to yourself. If you are giving time to practicing meditation, you are already doing it right.

So what does it all mean?

Well, as you can see, meditation is not just about the health benefits. The process of learning to meditate also involves developing patience and perseverance, two skills which we as modern humans tend to have less and less of. This benefit alone is worth the early struggles.

But you are also making time for yourself. Taking a few minutes to spend with yourself everyday (even if you never meet Elvis on the astral planes) has been shown to lower your blood pressure, relieve anxiety, heal depression and cure insomnia. And these are just some of the benefits that meditation can have for you.

If it benefits each individual practitioner in such meaningful ways, imagine what your own self-improvement can do for your friends, family, colleagues and the planet as a whole!