The Meditating Philosopher | After Socrates' Ecology of Practices : Mindfulness Meditation Basics | Episode 1 @TheMeditatingPhilosopher | Uploaded January 2023 | Updated October 2024, 13 hours ago.
In Episode 1 John shares many insights into the imaginal as a part of the psyche/soul that can help us move towards our aspirational selves as well as open up aspects of the world to us in profound and real ways.
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Basics of Mindfulness Meditation
Context: There are 3 dimensions to finding your center. This practice aims at improving the relationship between mind and body - more fluid and fluent. At each step, create a felt memory so you can find your way back again.
Centering your Posture - cultivating a feeling of your center, not calculating your center.
Shift forward and back from your torso slowly until you come to a centered feeling.
Repeat the shifting action from left to right from your torso shrinking your movements until you come to a centered feeling.
Now from your neck, shift your head forward and back until you come to a centered feeling
Repeat the process from your neck shifting your head right and left until you come to a centered feeling
Relax your chest, let it open; shoulders are down, not up.
Relax your abdomen, let it go. This affords baby breathing.
Relax your legs, make sure your feet aren’t crossed, that they are touching the floor.
Relax your face; sinking down, syncing, dropping into the posture.
Try to notice what it feels like (tastes like) to be centered.
What effect does it have on yourself, how you notice the world?
Centering your Attention - concentration
Stepping back and looking at the normally transparent way you’re looking at the world.
Analogy: what are you normally looking through? Your sensations. You don’t look at them, you look through them. We’re trying to look at them.
Which sensations? The sensation of the breath.
Gently say “in” to track and follow the sensations of the breath. Gently say “out” when you breath out, looking at the sensations.
Pretty fast your mind will leap away, planning, remembering, listening, etc.
Step back, label the distracting process, not involving with the content but labeling with an “ing” word.
Return to following the sensation of the breath, noticing and being absorbed into following the breath.
Centering your Attitude
We all have a “monkey mind” that goes from thought to thought. We’re trying to get that “monkey” to stay still.
Not angrily or fighting (will train it to fear/fight you), nor just letting things be or go with the flow (will just feed it’s misbehavior/indulging it).
Centered between these.
“Trying to befriend yourself”
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After Socrates' Ecology of Practices Playlist: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPKjpRj385otRm0GRAQhYvdWWHb7_3oLC
I'll update this as new episodes are released.
_______
Thanks!
In Episode 1 John shares many insights into the imaginal as a part of the psyche/soul that can help us move towards our aspirational selves as well as open up aspects of the world to us in profound and real ways.
_______
Basics of Mindfulness Meditation
Context: There are 3 dimensions to finding your center. This practice aims at improving the relationship between mind and body - more fluid and fluent. At each step, create a felt memory so you can find your way back again.
Centering your Posture - cultivating a feeling of your center, not calculating your center.
Shift forward and back from your torso slowly until you come to a centered feeling.
Repeat the shifting action from left to right from your torso shrinking your movements until you come to a centered feeling.
Now from your neck, shift your head forward and back until you come to a centered feeling
Repeat the process from your neck shifting your head right and left until you come to a centered feeling
Relax your chest, let it open; shoulders are down, not up.
Relax your abdomen, let it go. This affords baby breathing.
Relax your legs, make sure your feet aren’t crossed, that they are touching the floor.
Relax your face; sinking down, syncing, dropping into the posture.
Try to notice what it feels like (tastes like) to be centered.
What effect does it have on yourself, how you notice the world?
Centering your Attention - concentration
Stepping back and looking at the normally transparent way you’re looking at the world.
Analogy: what are you normally looking through? Your sensations. You don’t look at them, you look through them. We’re trying to look at them.
Which sensations? The sensation of the breath.
Gently say “in” to track and follow the sensations of the breath. Gently say “out” when you breath out, looking at the sensations.
Pretty fast your mind will leap away, planning, remembering, listening, etc.
Step back, label the distracting process, not involving with the content but labeling with an “ing” word.
Return to following the sensation of the breath, noticing and being absorbed into following the breath.
Centering your Attitude
We all have a “monkey mind” that goes from thought to thought. We’re trying to get that “monkey” to stay still.
Not angrily or fighting (will train it to fear/fight you), nor just letting things be or go with the flow (will just feed it’s misbehavior/indulging it).
Centered between these.
“Trying to befriend yourself”
_______
After Socrates' Ecology of Practices Playlist: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPKjpRj385otRm0GRAQhYvdWWHb7_3oLC
I'll update this as new episodes are released.
_______
Thanks!
