There is something incredibly peaceful about water. Oceans. Lakes. Rivers. Waterfalls. Light rain. And, even blowing down-pours. Water cleanses away negative energy and re-sets the mind-body and spirit.
Placing yourself in nature near water is healing. It is restorative and it can be used in your visual meditations to do the same. Imagine yourself at your favourite lake. Feel the warm sun on your face, a light breeze, the smell of trees [ pine trees in my happy place!] and let the feeling of being in a peaceful place flood your meditation.
A river cuts through rock not because of its power but because of its persistence.
-Jim Watkins
Expanding your senses and meditation practice.
If you are having trouble imagining yourself being near a lake, or an ocean, try listening to the sound of waves, rain, forest sounds and step into the feeling of that place, first. Feed your senses and then, expand them. Keep adding layers of dimension to what you see in your mind’s eye. Senses expand your meditation practice and level of discernment. They shape your intuitive skills and open your thoughts to a new realm of self-mastery and inner guidance.
Short focused sessions create more impact.
It might seem counter-intuitive, but shorter meditations are healing. Use them to break free from the stronghold and dis-functional habit of distraction. We can teach ourselves to become more mentally sharp; observing more detail, allowing greater focus by deliberately playing with mental images.
Water experiments.
Here’s something to experiment with. Stand in a shower and imagine yourself washing away all the negative thoughts, disappointments and distractions. Energize yourself by feeling the water soothe in the moment. Follow the flow of it. The sound of it. The pattern of it touching your skin. Or, just focus on the temperature. Realize by just focusing on any one of these and nothing else you have stepped into a natural peace zone. You have “detached” from troubling conditions for a moment. You will naturally feel more relaxed and armed with the strengthened ability to focus on moving forward. This is deep relaxation and meditation, re-invented.
Walking meditations in natural settings.
The path way of inner peace can be painted with each deliberate step. Use the closeness to nature and listening to the sound of water such as waves, river streams, rain and light forest sounds and rain drops calm your mind.
So often we are too busy to notice the small things. By just indulging in the small details of the moment, we can escape to a peaceful mind-space and create more healing in our day and lives. It doesn’t have to be a formal meditation session to create incredible benefits. Use your time and nature to suit who you are, either sitting still or moving. Both work well and can offer powerful re-sets for over-active minds or for most high stress environments.
Re-defining Meditation.
Incorporating meditation into sport and active movements might seem radical but it can still produce stellar effects as if one spent longer periods of time in meditation. Repetition is a release button that unhinges the mind. Use the patterns of movement and subtle aspects of it to shift your focus. Like water moving effortlessly, allow the movements to flow and be in the moment. It will widen your peace zone to many places and situations.
Let’s use cycling as an example. Choose one aspect of how your feet feel on the peddles. For instance, notice how your toes move as each full revolution and spin completes itself. Follow the pressure on your toes and rest in that repetitive movement. This is quite meditative, relaxing, yet your mind still stays sharp and focused.
There are many water ways of the spirit to explore in meditation. Water carves its own path and has incredible force. Spend time near water or see yourself in nature. Whether you choose to sit still, lay down and sleep or test out an active meditation to breakthrough into a more peaceful and serene state, makes no difference. Each form allows you the freedom to carve out your own path and move powerfully like water toward inner peace.
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