By Nancy Hall, MA,
NCC, LPC
In an effort to take
the “manic” out of “Monday,” this weekly post explores techniques, issues,
latest research, and other thoughts on meditation. Nancy facilitates a weekly
meditation group at The Awakening Center. For more information, contact her at
773.929.6262, extension 17 or nancyhalltac@gmail.com
I’m often in awe of our problem-solving abilities. There
seems to be no challenge or obstacle that we as people cannot overcome. Human
beings can be tireless and able to reach amazing heights.
Doing is very
important, but we need to remember to keep it in balance. In meditation, we
pause to listen.
Listening is a unique activity in that it requires us to receive instead of do. To really listen to a friend or loved one, we have to stop,
focus, and closely tune in. We allow the information to flow in, accepting it
as it comes. A barrier to listening is often our attempts to formulate a
response while the other person is still talking. Or we might be distracted by
an opinion or judgment about what is being said.
We fall into this trap with ourselves as well. Meditation
helps us listen to ourselves. We can listen to the surface of the body and to
the interior of our experience. We listen to our breath. But we also tune in to
our relationship to the information
that we’re receiving.
Here’s an example. In my inner reflection and listening, I
might notice that I am hungry. But I might resist this information, telling
myself that I had a substantial breakfast so I shouldn’t be hungry. I might tell myself that my hunger is a sign
of weakness. Or I might just tell myself that it’s time for a snack. Often our
resistance or acceptance of our experience informs the emotion that is then
experienced.
In the practice of meditation, we listen at different
levels. We attend to the specific experience and then notice our thoughts or
feelings about that experience. Think of it as the meta-commentary that runs
through our minds.
By anchoring ourselves in our breath and learning to allow
our experiences to simply exist, we begin to dismantle that resistance.
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