- Compare and contrast the Loving Kindness exercise
and the Subtle mind exercise. Explain your experience including the
benefits, frustrations etc.
Loving Kindness: The focus is shifted from focusing on
ourselves and our needs, but rather we build a concern and compassion for the
well-being of others. At first, we must
practice a mental attitude and later it will reveal itself as a natural and
effortless aspect of higher consciousness.
I have practiced this exercise a few times the past week and it has made
an overwhelming difference in my overall attitude and my overall compassion for
others.
Subtle Mind: This practice is related to the breath for
two main reasons. First, there is a
direct relationship between the breath and your mind. As your breathing becomes more and more easy
and rhythmic, so will your mind. Still
the breath and you still the mind.
Second, the breath is always with us, so we can practice it any time of
the day no matter where we are. By using
the breath, we learn how to tame and stabilize the mind. With progression of this exercise we
experience calm-abiding, which in turn leads to unity consciousness.
Comparison:
The loving kindness exercise focused on forgiveness, healing, and taking away suffering
from another; in return sending love, forgiveness, and expansion of the
heart. The subtle mind exercise focused
on the calm abiding mind, slowing the mental chatter causing the mind to experience
pure stillness and relaxation.
My Experience: In the subtle
mind exercise I concentrated my breathing on the rising and falling of my
chest, rather than through my nostrils.
I used love as my focal point, since I had my little Dachshund in my
lap. I enjoyed both exercises appreciating
each one for their ability to ease my mind and in essence bringing me to a
state of comfort and relaxation. The
subtle mind practice can be frustrating to a beginner, since it is incredibly
difficult to remain focused; avoiding all the mental chatter in your mind. It took several times to settle my mind,
remain focused on my breathing and my focal word (love), and explore my mind since
I decided to sit down and do this exercise in the middle of the day.
- Discuss the connection of the spiritual wellness to
mental and physical wellness. Explain how the connection is manifested in
your personal life.
Wellness is much more than physical health, exercise or proper nutrition. It is the full scope of physical, mental, and
spiritual well-being. It is important for one to discover what they believe is their own sense of meaning and
purpose in life. The mind, body, and spirit
are all connected. Each aspect of
wellness directly and synergistically affects the other to create fulfillment,
happiness, and satisfaction. Personally,
when I am in touch with a higher
purpose it allows me to think clearly and make wise decisions in my life. Furthermore, it gives me the energy to be physically active.
When I am having a stressful day or things in my life are hectic, my
mind is in chaos and as a result, I have no ambition to be physically
active. We all must try to live our life
to be the best we can be and both of these valuable exercises enable us to
reach this plateau in life.
-Angela
Reference
Dacher, E.S. (2006) Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA:
Basic Health Publications.
Angela,
ReplyDeleteThat is a great idea that you used your dog to help you focus. I have two Chihuahuas and they always seem so calm, loving and stress free. Maybe I can learn something from them! I had not thought of using a focal point like that but I will give it a try. I also really enjoyed reading your connection to mental and physical wellness paragraph. You did a great job explaining the intricate connection. I absolutely agree that all aspect are connected and most definitely affect a person’s fulfillment and happiness in life. Thank you for sharing your experiences on this.
Hope you have a great weekend!
Jody
Angela some people use there pets others they kids but iys all the same is someone you love and what would make you focus best. ..and get things done right. Great post
ReplyDeleteAngela,
ReplyDeleteGreat idea to use your Dachshund for your focal point! I have a problem with ridding myself of the daily mental clutter, that is always going on in my mind. My family is so chaotic and I try very hard not to get drawn into it. Training and school take so much energy it can be very easy to fall into the noise of the day. I am glad that these practices work for you, I have been working on these and they are very relaxing to me, as long as I can focus. Great job this week.
Cyndie
Pets are a wonderful way to bring comfort, peace, and joy to your life. Sitting there comfortably with my Doxie in my lap snoring away brought me to a place of tranquility. So focusing on her seemed appropriate at the time. I am thankful I have found a way to slow down my brain even for only a few minutes a day! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat job, I guess one gets better with practice. I fell a sleep during my exercise, the great thing is that I can't remember drifting off to sleep. It was like someone just turn the lights off, and I do not remember anything until I woke up two hours later.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
Angie
ReplyDeleteI enjoy how thorough your post are. I agree with you that it is very difficult in the beginning to quiet "mind chatter". I think our society is so use to being busy that it is difficult to learn how to be still, further I think in our society being still is also associated with being unproductive. That is something I struggle with - because I definitely do not want to be unproductive.
Great post
Tammy
Angie,
ReplyDeleteGreat blog, I loved how you used your dog. Everytime I get home from work it's normally been a long tiring day, but my dog is always waiting at the door with a toy in her mouth shaking her tail uncontrollably, and that always puts a smile on my face. The first time I did the exercise she licked me in the face. As far as the exercise is concerned focusing on my chest helped a lot!