The Value of Mindfulness vs Meditation

Today I would like to talk about Mindfulness - essentially being present and focused in our daily lives, as opposed to Meditation, which  usually involves quieting the mind and focusing it for a brief period of time.

So for example, you could meditate for 20 minutes by listening to your breath, picturing a candle in your mind's eye or by following a guided meditation. I love meditations, especially when they talk us through healing mind, body and spirit. Or better yet, when we access our intuition to ask for guidance. Eventually the meditation has to come to an end and we bring ourselves back to our senses so we can go about our daily lives. 

This is where Mindfulness comes into play. It's about hanging onto that sense of peace, awareness and grounding in our waking hours. In my case, it's usually about coming out of my cloud of thoughts so that I'm aware of my energy, my surroundings and my mind. A quick way to switch off our thoughts would be to focus on our breath as we go about our daily tasks. Another would be to take stock of your surroundings and your physical sensations. Is it warm? How do your clothes feel against your skin? What are the make and model of the cars that are parked on the street as you walk by. Listen for sounds of birds, traffic, etc. Our five senses can bring us into a moment of complete awareness. 

Being mindful is also about noticing our thought patterns and staying in the moment, instead of getting lost in a daydream or worrying about the future. It can be hard to be present 24/7, but we can set reminders to bring us back. I recently asked for advice on Reddit and got a few wonderful suggestions: 

• Focus on your breath during the day, take deep breaths to calm down. 

• Set an alarm on your phone throughout the day and make a note of where your thoughts are. Take the opportunity to bring yourself back to the moment, and if you notice a thought pattern make sure to write it down. This may be what needs to be healed and released on a subconscious level.

• Wear a mindfulness bracelet as a reminder. My version of this is to wear my watch on the wrong wrist one or two days a week. The odd physical sensation brings me back to the moment and also makes me more aware.

• Start by sitting down to meditate for 15 minutes and then transition into a mindfulness meditation, where you focus your attention on something like housework, cooking or doing the dishes.

The end result is a welcome mental vacation because worrying, fretting and scenario planning can add a lot of stress to our lives. I really like Eckhart Tolle's approach to mindfulness and I'm a huge fan of his book, A New Earth. Tolle suggests that we can observe our thoughts to get some distance and slowly break the habit of worrying. Planning for our future and carefully reacting to changes is necessary, but constantly worrying about potential obstacles is not. It's also been said that 70/80/90% of the things we worry about never happen, and that life happens when we're in the moment, not wrapped up in our thoughts. So don't worry, be happy and be mindful and grateful for everything.

 

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Regina Chouza is an energy healer, angel medium and the author of A Personal Guide to Self-Healing, Cancer & Love and Chakra Healing & Magick. Blogging at Diary of a Psychic Healer since 2010, her passion is bringing the qualities of love, joy and empowerment to healing pursuits. Read her books to unlock your intuition. 

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What Will 2012 Bring - A New Earth ?

Yesterday I spent the day with a group of Arab friends and the conversation turned to the unrest in the Middle East. They talked about Egypt - how unexpected the revolution has been as well as the way it came about. The region has seen a lot of violence and upheaval in a short period of time, while the rest of the world enjoys a relatively stable existence. 

It reminded me of a theory in a book called The Power of Kabbalah which consists of two realities co-existing over the next few generations. The idea is that on an individual basis we will either live in constant chaos or we will thrive in peace. Our reality will depend on our beliefs and perspectives, and if we've modified our actions to reflect a spirit of cooperation. 

One of the things I love about 2011 is that we're seeing this awakening on so many levels. The road can be as dramatic as the revolution in Egypt, but it can also be very subtle. The good news is that we are already seeing pockets of light emerge all over the world. Just yesterday I had a nice little revelation when I was watching a clip of Jim Carrey on Oprah. 

The segment touches on Eckhart Tolle's philosophy that the moment is all we have, but that most of us won't live it to the full because we're trapped by our thoughts. The example Jim Carrey uses is one that I fall into a lot, and it shed light on a major blind spot of mine. Who would have thought that this change in perspective would come about so easily? And now the only thing that can keep me from effecting change in my life is my ability to control my thoughts and to become aware of my mind.

When I think about 2012 I get the impression that change will come for everyone but the way it happens will be determined by the degree of freedom enjoyed by each society. Whenever I ask my classmates about the Mayan Prophecies the response is always the same. None of the psychics I've met will tell you the world is coming to an end. They speak of a new level of consciousness emerging, and in some cases an end to the status quo. 

Even astrology speaks of old power structures falling, and as I am writing this the image that comes to mind is the The Tower. This tarot card represents the beliefs and structures we hold that no longer serve us, and of the need to demolish them. We can only alter our own reality, so take a close look at your life and think about what you could do better, and how you own interactions with others could be more equitable.

I have always had a deep sense of fairness, it's even in my astrology chart to root for the underdog in any situation. As a society we need to start thinking about how the world is experienced by others, including animals and the ecosystem. Our position in the world can be likened to a scale, we can be on the upside or on the downside. It is in our best interest to make sure the leveling off isn't disruptive. 

The next few years are going to see a lot of change, and anything that doesn't create a win-win result for the earth's inhabitants may need to change. We can be proactive with this change or we can wait for it to happen to us. There is a lot more to this than rooting for the underdog and caring for others (though it's a good start!), my intuition tells me that we also need to balance our karmas and raise our vibration. This is the task I've set out for myself, and I hope it will keep me on that positive side of the dual-reality.

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Reiki hugs, Regina