Beneath the layer of our conscious thoughts there is something
powerful going on.
You can feel this energy in your body if you pay the right attention, it’s like an underground stream.
That’s the primal part of ourselves.
Raw.
Unnamed.
And unnoticed most of the time.
Buddhism describes it as an expression of mind. To western science, it translates the activity of our own nervous system.
I don’t have personal theories about that, but I like to tune up with this energy through meditation and mindfulness practice.
I regained a lot of balance by connecting with this flow. The process is healing and energizing.
Relying on that recharges my batteries and my mood.
And the great thing is that energy is available for me 24/7 in unlimited supply. At times, connecting with it generates a feeling of bliss and quietness that pervades throughout the day.
I know some sell this approach as an expensive form of therapy, but since it existed way before anyone started selling it, I’ll expose it here at no cost.
If you’re curious to try that for yourself here’s a starter package to discover the raw power within you.
Curiosity
Most people try to avoid the primal energy that they host. They prefer to distantiate from their gut feelings by seeking entertainment, watching movies, reading books. They numb themselves into comfort because they’re afraid of the formidable intensity of what’s going on inside of them.
They’re not even aware of that process of denial. Too bad, there’s a huge potential they could tap into, but they don’t.
You don’t have to be like them. No particular skill is needed to start connecting with your inner force, all you need is to be curious and turn your attention inside.
It’s worth it: there’s a lot to discover, you’re not going to get bored.
Investigating your own power and then befriending it through meditation is an amazing thing to do. Be curious, don’t be afraid, it won’t be long before you get addicted to that.
Here’s how to get started:
The setting
Like for any new activity, inner exploration requires a minimal setting if you want to get results.
You need to have a straight back and set yourself in an environment where you feel secure.
You can sit on a chair or lie down comfortably, your position doesn’t matter as long as your back is straight.
Target
Now that you’re quietly in your position of choice, just pick a target on which you’ll place your attention.
I suggest choosing an area in your body, like your navel, your chest or your throat for instance.
Any body part will do.
Now that you have chosen a target, keep your attention there.
Watch
Rest your mind on the target you picked, maintain your attention on it.
After about 3 minutes you should start to feel the area with more accuracy, that’s exactly like looking closely in a fish tank: gradually you can tell what’s in there: the shapes of the fish, their movement, their colors.
Your investigation will be more interesting than gazing at a fishtank, though.
And also scarier: it’s about the wildest part of yourself, the unexplored, and you’ll probably be surprised by what you discover.
If you expected a quiet and boring emotional landscape, you’ll quickly change your mind: the inner world feels brutal at first. The constant flow of tensions ressembles a hurricane, it’s usually not the peaceful garden we thought it was. But that’s only a first step, hang on.
Stay there
Your mind will want to escape, it’s normal if you’re not used to your inner chaos. Just bring your attention back to the target (gently) and investigate some more.
What sensations does your mind identify? Coldness, hotness, wetness, pain, pleasure? The more your mind enters that “sonde” mode, the more your feelings seem to intensify, like a magnifier. Don’t believe your tensions are growing though: they’re actually returning to normal thanks to your mindfulness, you only see them with more accuracy.
Continue to rest your focus on the target, don’t worry if it snaps out, bring it back gently to the area you picked.
With time, you’ll know how much tension to apply in order to optimize your presence, that varies depending on many factors: personality type, time of the day, emotional state.
If you persist in that stage, your awareness will develop.
Give yourself frequent breaks: you’re doing something completely new and you don’t want to burn out. Take breaks every 5 mn maximum. And when you come back to focus make sure you give it your all.
Travel to the core
That was the warming up part.
At this stage, let’s locate and tune up with the FORCE :)
you should quickly be able to spot a place where there is more energetic intensity (sorry for the New Age vocabulary, I have no other way to describe that).
It’s often located at the center of your chest, but it can be somewhere else in your body, or even in an area that doesn’t seem to be a physical location.
You’ll recognize that zone because that’s where the tension is strongest. To the point it almost hurts.
Move your center of attention there, and gently place it in that area.
Connect with that power spot, open up to it. Imagine that zone as a high energy knot on which you plug yourself.
To optimize your experience, apply the right amount of focus, it’s a blend of relaxation and attention:
To give an example, just look at the two pics below and notice how your eyes feel as you switch from one to the other. You should feel a particular tension as you look at the blurred pic and a release as you watch the clear one.
The feeling you have when looking at the clear pic is what you’ll feel when you apply the right attention.
Now just experience that power spot and relax into it, extend that awareness to your entire body.
With time you’ll enjoy it more.
There is no more theory, here, just practice.
Experience the release
Release is a side effect that occurs often (not everytime) during a meditation session. If you applied the above, it will happen regularly
A typical symptom as you practice: you feel like you’re melting with the target. That feels good when it happens :)
However, don’t focus on relaxation: it won’t work. Release is merely a side effect of this exercice.
Seeking relaxation just makes you more nervous, just like trying to sleep is an efficient way to drive yourself nuts.
Let it happen, and if it doesn’t, don’t see it as a failure.
Become an expert
A few months of that practice and you’ll most certainly develop a strong addiction for mindfulness, you’ll be more balanced, quieter and extremely focused in whatever you do.
If you want to progress more, here are tracks you might consider:
- Do it often – even if you do short sessions
- Do it with others – you’ll learn faster and stay motivated
- Do it everywhere – even in the bathroom
- Be creative – don’t be afraid to innovate
- Study the theory – (Meditation, Yoga, Sophrology)
Notes:
This article derives from Buddhist practices, it is meant to be an introduction to meditation. Consider the above like a warm up and whenever you can, step up to a traditional spirituality!
Also: I know that a lot of people are making money with “mindfulness” types of meditation. That’s ok if you feel inspired but quite frankly they’re usually expensive.
The science of mind exploration has been covered by oriental spiritualities since thousands of years and it was not meant to be a business.
You can find advise among yoga teachers or qualified Buddhist masters, just make sure to pick the right guides.
I wish you lots of fun, stay in touch !
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