Life is in perfect balance & harmony. It is in dynamic balance or equilibrium, meaning that although it is in constant flux, with things coming and going out of existence, the net effect is total balance.

It is also in harmony because its different forms fit in and blend together. Observing nature you can see a lot of example of co-evolution and interdependence between life forms.

One life form depends on an opportunity or set of circumstances put forward by another at the right time and in the right amount.

Even violent burst of nature such as natural disasters are in harmony with the cause and effects of life seen through a larger timescale.

The Predicament of Modern Man

It is partly due to our nature and partly due to the hectic and chaotic environment we have created that we often fall out of balance and lose harmony within ourselves and with nature. This is the predicament of modern man.

Carl Gustav Jung had stated that modern Man is in a pathological state of neurosis because as cultures and civilizations evolved, Man became more rational and control-driven but in the process his psyche became more disassociated from it primitive and spiritual roots. He got rid of superstition but also lost meaning, balance and harmony in the process. He became disenchanted with the world of spirit and soul.

So it seems that as we culturally evolved our consciousness became more separated and cut off from the universe around us. This pathological state of neurosis, as Jung describes it, is the cause of so much stress, anxiety and depression – the three most common symptoms of the modern world.

As we lost our link with the spiritual dimension, we lost our balance within ourselves and harmony with the natural world around us.

But if loss of balance and harmony are such a common trait of our time, then it follows that restoring balance and harmony should also be a major top priority concern for humanity and its future. Is it not?

I cannot imagine how the world can survive if the human mind remains eternally unawake or if Man grows more out of balance with himself and in disharmony with his environment.

And this is why so many visionaries, futurologists, spiritual teachers and bleeding hearts are continually reminding us that there must be a shift and evolution of consciousness for humanity to survive. There must be a radical shift in our way of doing things whereby we restore the balance by getting more in touch with our spiritual nature and the intuitive, feminine side of our psyche.

We have to relearn our ancestral paths and regain ancient wisdom blended with life-enhancing technology. But we have to come to that point as a collective by starting from the individual.

Future Possibilities

We must find ways to regain that balance in our everyday lives. And this has become my latest contemplation – is there a universal language, a blueprint to easily teach the path of balance and harmony to individuals regardless of their cultural background or mental disposition? Perhaps this is not possible. If no one came with a simple answer in millennia it means that there is no simple answer period (the simplest and most powerful answer that comes to mind is meditation but this has remained far from being taught and practiced universally as there are religions that do not recognize it – specifically Roman catholic and Islamic cultures).

Or perhaps now is the opportune time as we have more technology and relatively more understanding of the human brain. Who knows? I am imagining a holistic system incorporating known traditional techniques such as visualization, breathing, meditation, basic Tai Chi movements together with highly advanced biofeedback devices with sensors and intelligent software (attached to our brain and nervous system via wireless micro-electrodes) able to entrain the mind into coherent patterns of activity such as those obtained by seasoned meditators. The difference is that instead of needing many years of meditation it takes just few minutes and can be practiced at schools since an early age.

We have programmed humanity for ages through educational and religious institutions with wrong types of programs such as fear, scarcity, competitiveness, greed, attachment to superficial values, and God knows what. Wouldn’t it be better to program it to become more attuned with itself and its environment? To restore balance and harmony?

If the generations to come had pretty accessible ways to learn how to develop mental balance and harmony from an early age through simple ancient and modern practices then it would mean that stress, anxiety and depression not only can be tackled but prevented from arising in the first place. What would this mean on a global scale? Think of drug abuse, suicide, crime, domestic violence, road accidents, bad decisions, sore relationships, intolerance, street violence and a million other things being drastically reduced. Think of more people being calmer and happier. What would the net effect be? Happier and healthier people in society would mean a synergistic positive effect. It would mean (or perhaps I am drifting off too far here) the so much talked about quantum leap in the collective human consciousness.

Related posts:

1. 5 ‘World views’ the world can do without
2. You Only Live Many Times – Part 1
3. The Strength of Non-Resistance

photo by h.koppdelaney

Since I started practising meditation, I have been trying out different things – little changes here and there – that although may sound small and petty, they have improved my meditation significantly and consistently.

I have written this article especially for people who have started doing meditation, take the practice at heart and are keen on improving it and taking it to the next level.

Does this describe your present situation? Have you started enjoying and feeling the benefits of meditation but would eagerly try out a few simple tips to significantly improve it?

Learning how to meditate takes a lot of time and patience in the beginning. It’s a slow and gradual progress because we have to learn new things that our mind and body are not accustomed to and unlearn old habits that we have been conditioned to for many years.

Yet there are ways to make this learning process more efficient and effective.

Tip #1. Find your spot:

What I mean by finding your spot is to try and test different spots and orientations within the space you decided to meditate in until you are feeling that you are in the right place. It’s sort of doing some ‘Feng Shui’ for your meditation spot. It may sound funny I know but I believe that space has different energy spots that affect us in different ways.

I initially chose my place casually and arbitrarily. I felt something was not right. I was not comfortable with the place. Then I started changing places and even orientations (I used a compass and took notes) until I finally found the spot where my meditation improved significantly.

Tip #2. Set your intention:

When I started doing meditation I would start the session with no plan and intention in mind.

My intentions weren’t clear. I would have different objectives for the same session such as developing awareness, concentration, visualization and if possible a bit of insight too! Of course this used to put my mind in a knot and my attempts to meditate were often unsuccessful for this reason.

That’s when I understood that I need to set my intention beforehand. If I wanted to do mindfulness meditation, for example, I would say this clearly to myself. This kept my mind from interfering with the process by having a one predefined objective.

Tip #3. Keep a journal:

This is important to help you track your progress and use feedback to keep on improving.

I use a journal to keep notes on each of my meditation sessions. I would start by logging the date/time of the session and the type of meditation.  Then I add in observations about my mood,  state of mind and body before meditating.

After the session I then take notes about the outcome of the session.

Tip #4. Find the right time:

Different people have different times when their mind and body is in better shape and more responsive. For some people it may be early morning, for some others it might be afternoon or late in the evening after unwinding from a hard day of work.

You have to try which time of the day works best for your meditation. Keeping a journal is a sure way of knowing this.

Tip #5. Exercise your body before starting meditation:

One big obstacle to meditation beside your wandering mind is your body. Sometimes you may be tense or tired and this may make your body twitchy and hard to find a comfortable and steady position. Most of my failures in meditation came from having a tense body.

Doing exercise before starting your meditation helps you immensely. Do some stretching, Yoga, Tai chi, waking or whatever gets your body moving. I found these 12 Qi Gong sitting exercises as particularly effective in improving my meditation.

Tip #6. Use Brain wave entrainment technology:

Brain wave entrainment uses sound waves with the same frequency as our brain waves when we are in particular states if mind (for example the alpha frequency when in a relaxed state).

These sound waves that are recorded on CDs, help the listener to automatically synchronize his brain waves with those frequencies and hence alter its states.

I use BWE myself for my meditation and I can attest to its efficacy. After a few minutes the mind starts ‘defragmenting’ and enters a more coherent state of mind. This drastically facilitates entering into meditative states.

Tip #7. Use the power of water:

Water has such a healing or revitalizing effect on the mind and body.

There are times when you find it difficult to meditate because you are too sleepy in the morning or too lax in the evening. In this case take a reinvigorating shower to lift up the spirit.

If on the other hand you are too tense and hyper-vigilant, take a warm bath with some bath salts to unwind your mind and relax your tense body.

Tip # 8. Do some breathing exercises to open up your lungs:

Good breathing in an essential practice in healthy living that we often overlook. It is also very important for good meditation whether you are focusing on your breath or not.

In ancient Yogic tradition, the working on the breath (Pranayama) has been considered to be an essential part of the journey to self-liberation.

Check out these breathing exercise here. I find these to have a very positive effect on my meditation when performed just before I meditate.

Tip #9. Choose a Mantra that sounds good to you:

If you use mantras for meditation, make sure that you choose a mantra that sounds good to you or you feel comfortable with. Traditionally, a mantra was chosen by a guru or master and then handed down to his student.

I have heard that a lot of people are given a mantra by their teacher or as suggested in a book but then find difficulty in using it. It somehow doesn’t click.

Since people have different tastes and dispositions I find it makes more sense to find a mantra that you feel comfortable with. After all a mantra is only an arbitrary tool that helps you anchor your mind.

Tip # 10.  Switch off electronic appliances around you:

If there are any electronic appliances within range (not just in your meditation room) such as PCs, TVs, mobile phones, etc, switch them off.

These appliances are not only a distraction because they emit audible noise but also because they emit radiation than can interfere with the coherence of our brain waves and hence with our meditation.

Related posts:

1. Mindfulness Meditation: My Path
2. How to Meditate while Being Active
3. Learn the programming language of your mind: Learn to meditate

Photo by Down Town Pictures

What if you know that 8 minutes a day or even less can change your life drastically for the better?  What if you know that in less time that you buy and drink a latte you can practice yourself into a life of better mental performance, more serenity & happiness and more control over your life?

I know it sounds like a cheesy sales page of some ‘get empowered and conquer the universe in 7 days’ self-help program. I myself am totally unimpressed and disapproving of certain ‘quick simple techniques’ to master this or achieve that.  However it’s not ‘techniques’ I am talking about here but practices or ‘good habits’ as simple and short as brushing your teeth or clipping your toe nails. The difference is that they are not that brain-numbingly mundane and of course they are ‘life-changing practices’ as against mere ‘grooming practices’.

Can 2 minute long practices change a person’s life drastically? Well the short answer to that is definitely “Yes”.  The longer answer is that these practices are accessible and user-friendly tools that routinely program the mind to develop new positive habits which then become engrained over a time period and before you know it a big inner change has happened!

The real fantastic thing about these practices is that you effectively invest little resources but yield high returns on that investment. Moreover:

1. They can be practiced everywhere at anytime
2. They don’t need to be done at the same time
3. They can be integrated in any busy schedule
4. They don’t need a learning curve
5. They are free and abundant

Energy Breathing:

Breathing is one of the most fundamental, yet taken for granted, functions in the Human body.  We have heard the advice a thousand times “When you feel stressed breathe deeply and relax” yet we still overlook the importance of breathing.

In yogic traditions, breathing exercises (Pranayama) are central. The following is a simple breathing exercise which kick-starts me every time. It instantly feels me with energy like fire running through my body.

1^st minute: Sit down straight on a chair or whichever position you prefer (must have erect spine). Inhale deeply and slowly expanding  & contracting the belly and not the chest. Exhale. Just that!

2^nd minute: This is an alternate nostril breathing exercise. Still sitting down, close your right nostril with your thumb (or second and middle finger) and inhale from your left nostril. Now close your left nostril and exhale out of your right nostril then continue to inhale from the right nostril again and close to exhale from the left. The alternate pattern should then follow an exhale/inhale from each nostril.

Selectively Positive:

Positive thinking is another widely mentioned phrase that we see appearing so many times in books and articles (quite rightly so…it’s a very good thing!). The problem with positive thinking is that it’s a bit intimidating just imagining making such a big shift in perspective from normal to positive thinking. We can’t really imagine ourselves being truly positive all the time can we? This makes it a little inaccessible.

By practicing to be positive on selected items only little by little instead of expecting your mind to be positive about everything can be a less overwhelming task while at the same time you can start seeing results immediately.

To do this in your 2 minute practice think about one thing which has some meaning to you. It may be a person, an object or an event. It may also be your job. Start focusing on its positive attributes. They could be hard to find or they could seem insignificant at first but it’s good just the same. Start filtering out the negative thoughts that arise and stop only on the positive ones no matter how silly they seem. Keep on putting focus on them. If you can’t find any positive attributes in that object, create and visualize those positive elements that you wish it had. Keep on doing this for the whole 2 minutes.

Hint: Emotions are a key. Use them as a guide and tracking system. Keep on focusing on the positive until you start feeling good about it. That’s how you know you are on the right track

Awareness of the present:

Awareness is fundamental. We live most of our daily lives unaware of our surroundings, our own inner states and the needs and feelings of those around us. We almost live on autopilot. Thoughts and feelings rush through our heads on their own. In a way this is so inefficient because most of the thoughts we think during a day or a lifetime are, I’m sorry to say, useless (apart from wasting time and energy). Our intentions are too much diluted and the times we have conscious awareness and control over our thoughts and reasoning is much less than we like to think.

Imagine if you could have a quieter, more focused mind where less useless thoughts come up and where you have more conscious awareness of those thoughts that are more effective, fruitful, life-changing and conducive to happiness.  In short this is called Mindfulness.

As Eckhart Tolle put it: Past and future are an illusion. Everything happens in the now. This alludes at the fact that we spend a lot of time clinging to the past or anxious about the future. This makes us oblivious to the present. Conscious awareness is awaking to the present which is where all things take shape

The exercise involves doing something that puts your attention in the present moment. I like to use breathing, which is great because it can be combined with the breathing exercises. Two minutes saved!

While you are doing your breathing exercises put your awareness into it. That means that instead of wandering somewhere else with your thoughts, immerse yourself in the present experience. Pay attention to how the air feels in your lungs, how your belly expands and contracts and how the air flows through your nostrils.

When you get the gist of it, try expanding your awareness to your entire body like for example by taking note of how your hand feels, how your back feels on the chair or how you feel yourself to be extending in space.

Another good mindfulness exercise is eating. While snacking on some food don’t rush into just for filling your stomach and killing off your hunger pangs. Slow down and notice how the tastes and textures feel on your tongue and mouth. Discern between the different tastes and textures, smells and colours as much as possible. This will train the mind to be more aware of your senses and immediate present.

Gratitude: Open up yourself to the power:

Gratitude is such a powerful thought and emotion. It is a generator of good vibes and positive feelings which in return brings back more positive thoughts, feelings and life situations by a tenfold. When we are grateful for something in our lives, we set so many good things in motion.

On one level we are sending a positive and affirmative message to our brain that our lives are turning just the way we want them.

The brain always acts in the present. This means that even though our current life setting may be a little bit less than perfect, when we are grateful for something or someone we are saying to our brains “right now I feel happy, blessed and thankful for this or that”. The brain will act on it as though it is a confirmation of the present which in many ways it is.

This will turn into positive feedback because as we subconsciously become more positively responsive to our surroundings we start to unknowingly interpret life situations more positively which in turn starts making things easier, brighter and lighter and so on in a feedback loop.

On another more spiritual level, we are opening our hearts to ourselves, Life and the Universe.

When we are feeling bitter, depressed, angry or resentful we are like a blocked node in the network of life. When our heart is closed our vision is shortened and life can’t flow through us.

On the other hand when we feel grateful, life starts flowing through us again in gushes. We become a healthy node in the network of life. This is an immense power, do not overlook it.

Try to think of it in terms of connections and flow. Everything is interconnected in the Universe. Our Consciousness is specially connected to the Universe (actually it is an extension of it – it is a way the Universe can be conscious of itself!).

Now the more connections we create in the network, such as meaningful relationships with others through love and compassion, being grateful to life and feeling good, making others feel good and passing on the good vibes to others, the more we are strengthening the network and we become powerful nodes through which the Universe can flow its energies. Life will flow through us and we start seeing our own destiny manifesting before our own eyes. So-called ‘miracles’ start to happen.

This may be a bit hard to understand but it’s a powerful truth to realize. It’s a game of connections. The more open and connected you are to the ‘network’ the more you are contributing to the expansion of life and the Universe and the more power and energy will flow through you.

If you are blocked and not linked then very little energy can flow through you.

The Exercise:

Everyday spend 2 minutes to be grateful about the things happening around you. Everyone has things to be grateful about. We are just blind to them sometimes. If you look around you or just look a bit deeper, you will start finding hundreds of things to be grateful about.  It doesn’t need to be something big.

It might be the beautiful morning,  or that you didn’t go late for work despite the awful weather, or that some problem was solved during the day or that some friend phoned to tell you that his health has turned for the better.

These are all very pertinent things to be grateful for. Sometimes we overlook them because of our hectic lifestyle. Instead of letting them pass by, stop and be grateful for them in your heart.

Open up your possibilities

When these 4 simple 2 minute exercises are practiced everyday and they start turning into a habit, a lot of things start taking new shape in your life. Positivity, conscious awareness, happiness and appreciation will start flowering more and more as you practice everyday.

Your life will open up to new possibilities. It’s hard to conceive it from now that all this is possible through such simple and short practises.  Just give it a try and you’ll see!

Related posts:

1. The Power of Gratitude (and why it always works wonders)
2. Developing Awareness – Part 1
3. A simple visualization technique to keep calm under pressure