Meditation by Debee

I've had several requests to post this to everyone and Richard has given his OK to do so. My only regret is that I do not know who to give credit to for this method of meditation/visualization. I have no clue who originated it, only that there has been much success with this technique. I can however give thanks to a very dear Wiccan friend (Steve) who taught it to me. Please keep in mind as you read this that these are only a few of the many methods which are helpful. I ask that if anybody else knows of any meditations/visualizations which they find useful and effective, please share them for those who are just learning. The more they have to try, the more likely they will find something which works for them.

I won't promise that this will work for everyone, but I can say that many have tried it and found it useful in their own lives. I'll let you be the judge for yourself. If you are familiar with meditation, please forgive the first part of this post. It's geared more for those who are just learn ing. The visualization/meditations I use will follow this brief (?) introduction. Please don't feel like you've failed if you have trouble with any of this. We are all unique individuals and what works for one may not always work for the next person. Just keep searching until you find what is right for you.

I'll begin with giving a few basics concerning meditation for those of you who are new to it or just looking for a method to better your current understanding.

Breathing is very important during meditation. I find that inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth works best for me. It helps me to focus more on my breathing. I'm sure some of you already realize this. We tend to become 'lazy' in our breathing and if you take any time to observe your breathing, you'll realize that it's most o ften very shallow and short breaths that you take. This reduces the amount of oxygen to the brain, thus resulting in a sluggish or drowsy feeling. Monitoring your breathing and focusing on taking deeper, larger breaths will greatly reduce this sluggish feeling and even help to increase ones energy. It will also greatly assist you during times of stress, anger, and excitement to get you more balanced and centered.

The old phrase, "Take a deep breath and count to ten" is more than just a phrase. The reas oning becomes clear when we look at it from the standpoint that while we take a few deep breaths and count, we become more relaxed and are able to release some of the 'sudden' emotion which was brought on by any given set of circumstances. It will also assist us in thinking more clearly and hopefully help us not to 'over react' in any given situation. Posture is also important. Find a position which is most comfortable for you. The straighter your back the better in that more energy is able to flow thro ugh your body. For those of you who have problems with sitting erect for whatever reason, just experiment and use whatever position works best for you.

Another thing to observe as you begin meditating is the tightness in your muscles. Many people don't realize just how tense they are in certain areas of their bodies. For instance, the face, neck and shoulders. One thing which has assisted many beginners in meditation is to spend a few moments working on relaxing muscles. Begin at the top of your head and work your way down to your toes. You can stretch your limbs which will help. Pay close attention to facial muscles as there is a tendency to tighte n the muscles in your forehead and jaws.

Once you've spend a bit of time in preparation by working on your breathing and relaxing, you are just about ready to begin. The next thing which will need attention is that of 'quieting' your mind. Our minds are always very busy *thinking* about things and in order to obtain the full benefit of meditation, stilling the mind is important. There are a few methods I personally know of which you can try. Again, if you know of any methods to help others, please share them.

If you like to listen to background music when you meditate to help you relax, then try to find some music without lyrics. I know of a few people (I don't know how they do it) who can listen to just about any type of music and have great success. I myself am not able to do this. I need quiet music and for me, it's best not to have any lyrics. I find that my mind tends to wander and focus on the lyrics. There is also the potential problem of certain words or phrases causing the mind to begin to recall memories from past. This tends to stir emotions within us too which is best to avoid while trying to enter a space of calm and quiet. You may have to do some experimenting on your own in this. Chants, instrumentals, and nature sounds are some suggestions I can offer. If you'd like more specifics, please send me a message and I'll send you a list of some of my personal favorites.

If you find you still have a lot of mind chatter, there are a couple of visualizations you can try to achieve this stillness. I've got a friend who could not still the mind chatter with either of these two visualizations, so he would instead focus on his breathing only. Paying attention to his breath as he inhaled through his nose and exhaled through his mouth. He truly experienced the act of breathing which gave him great results.

One of the visualizations you can try is that of the pink bubble. When a thought comes into your mind, visualize yourself placing the individual thought into a pink bubble and release the bubble. Watch as it floats away. The reasoning behind this is that if we focus on a thought, it will stay put and bring along a few others with it. You want to acknowledge it (place it in the bubble) then release it (release the bubble). If you acknowledge the thought then release it, you'll have better luck of it no t returning. At times you'll find a thought very nagging and stubborn and it may return more than once. Each time, just acknowledge it and release it.

Another visualization which I myself utilize is that of picturing myself writing it on a chalk board. I'll scribble it on there rather quickly then erase it. Again I am working on acknowledging the thought (writing it on the chalk board) then I release it (erase it). Some people even go as far as to have a notepad and pencil handy when they meditate so if some important thought comes to mind they can jot it down and come back to it later.

I can expand a bit more on the reasoning for 'acknowledging and releasing' the thoughts. If any of you are parents, and I'm sure a few are, you will appreciate this next bit of text. Remember what it was/is like with young children once you got a phone call? You could be very busy with an important conversation and as soon as you are, that young one wants, and demands attention. They walk up and try to speak to you and you motion them away as you are busy. This interaction can go on endlessly. Often, when this method doesn't work he/she will come back and begin tugging on your arm or pant leg. Again you motion them away because you are busy.

If they haven't gotten your attention yet, they often get into some sort of mischief which they KNOW will get your attention. Have you also noticed that if you take a moment out of your conversation and acknowledge that little one, they will more often than not go bouncing off in another direction and busy themselves elsewhere. Why? Because you gave them a bit of attention and released them to go do their thing. Maybe they asked if they could play with something, go somewhere or get something to eat, drink, etc. If you had not given them a moments notice, they probably would have bugged you until you wanted to scream, if you hadn't already.

Once you've gotten to the place of stillness within, with the least amount of tension possible, you are ready to begin.

Picture yourself being surrounded by a white sphere of light. Once you picture yourself within this sphere of white light, you'll be ready to continue. You'll focus on the base of your spine and out from the base of your spine will come a tiny root. It will continue to 'grow' from your back and head down towards the earth. As it enters the earth you'll begin to see it go through layers of earth. Can you remember every driving through some hills or mountains which have been blasted and as you drive by you can see all the individual layers of earth? You'll be watching the tiny root travel slowly down each layer. It will continue through layer after layer until it reaches the center/core of the earth. You'll visualize the core of the earth as a brilliant yellowish/white light.

Full of energy. The tiny root will enter into this mass of energy and as it does, you'll begin to visualize the energy traveling up the tiny root. Visualize it traveling up the root and as it does, the little root becomes brigh ter and you'll also be visualizing the energy going up through layer upon layer until it reaches the base of your spine. As the energy begins to enter your body, you'll visualize it spreading throughout your buttocks region and then spreading the length of your legs to each of your feet and all of your toes. Whenever the energy/light enters or nears an area where there is pain or discomfort, visualize that area as a black mass.

As the light surrounds the darkness, visualize it beginning to break up and f low back towards your back. As the energy continues up your spine and throughout your torso do the same thing. Now, as it travels upwards slowly, it will reach your neck, shoulders and travel down each arm to the tip of your fingers. Then it will once again begin to travel up into your head. Now, wherever you are feeling the most pain from the migraines, or any other type of pain and/or illness, focus a great deal of the energy upon this area. Do you remember the commercials on TV where they spray a sp ot before soaking it and you watch the time lapse as the stain begins to 'lift' off the fabric or dishes?

This is what you'll be visualizing as you do this meditation. Stay with the feeling for awhile as you work on a troubled area. Feel the warmth of the energy and the calm it brings with it. All of the darkness you see breaking up will begin to flow upwards and out a little spout in the top of your head. You'll see the energy seemingly push it out into a fountain until nothing but pure energy is pour ing forth out of your, head having rid your body of all of the pain and such. Then you'll begin to see the tiny root begin to climb back up through each layer of the earth until it once again enters back into your spine. The spout on the top of your head will cease to flow. (cap off this flow of energy from your body before brining the tiny root back up) Once you've done this you'll need to become grounded. Do this by taking a few VERY deep breaths and then begin to slowly stretch your arms and legs.
    Don't stand up immediately or you may feel very dizzy and light headed.
    I often suggest that people purchase a piece of amethyst to assist them during meditation as it can be of some help. If you do, you must cleanse it and rid it of any previous vibrations from others who may have handled it. To do this, purchase some sea salt and soak the stone in one cup of water to one tsp of sea salt for a few hours. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I hope this will be of some help to you.

Blessed Be