I am not sure that I sufficiently covered the questions we were supposed to answer in the blog exercise so here is Part 2 of the Subtle Mind blog entry...
My frustrations of the loving kindness exercise were based on the fact that the narrator's guidance was so vague. Vague terminology and what I was supposed to do made it difficult to follow what I was supposed to be doing. I only enjoyed the ocean sounds, and music. However, in the subtle mind exercise, I was able to follow along and understand what I was being instructed to do, and again the ocean sounds were very soothing. I believe that the connection from spiritual wellness to physical wellness is a foundation that has to be built in order to maintain well-being. We cannpt disconnect the two, because what we feel and experience in our spirit manifests in the physical...be it calmness/peace or stress/anxiety. If I am calm in my spirit, then I am easier to get along with, and my mind isn't whirring with all the thoughts of what I have to accomplish that day. I always start my day nourishing my spirit by spending time with God praying, meditating, and being in silence. It makes the day so much more enjoyable, even if things go awry. Have a great weekend!
Hi Pam,
ReplyDeleteI also enjoyed the subtle mind exercise much more than the loving-kindness. I felt it was much easier to relax with the sounds of the waves. It is so nice to sit alone and just relax, especially if you are able to sit by the beach. I have always had comfort in sitting by the lake listening to nature.
The loving-kindness exercise was hard for me to understand. I’m not sure if its because its for people who have done these exercises regularly. It was hard for me to visualize taking in someone else’s suffering, all people suffer in different ways. Other people’s suffering may not be in my opinion suffering at all. I found it hard once I began to think of someone suffering how I could breath out the suffering to replace it with peace and love.
Nellie
I completely agree with you, Pam. The loving kindness exercise was tortuous, but the Subtle Mind exercise was so much better. Hearing the sound of those waves always calms my spirit. I couldn't handle or visualize the other person's suffering part. I handle that in a different way. I pray for them. I think I will be holding on to the Subtle Mind exercise so that I can do it again. It was a great way to relax and Lord knows, we all need that.
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