Thursday, August 20, 2009

Spiritual practice


“The spiritual journey is individual, highly personal.
It can't be organized or regulated.
It isn't true that everybody should follow one path.
Listen to your own truth.”
Ram Dass

There are many spiritual practices going around.
Everything from scientology to transcendental meditation.
From anti depressant drugs to catholic sacraments.
From hypnosis to psychosis.
One for every budget and taste :)

My personal practice is meditation.
(For those of you that have never done it, it might sound like a good waste of time, like a lot of doing nothing when you could do something more constructive.)
But so far – after trying almost everything available out there – I found meditation to be the best suited practice for spiritual exploration.

Meditation is actually just a label describing a particular practice.
There are a lot of other practices like, prayer, chanting, yoga, hypnosis or self hypnosis, that are just different packages of the same thing.
In essence all spiritual practices use an altered state of mind to open a door into the subconscious and if you believe in it, into super-conscious.

I like meditation because it can be practiced without any religious strings attached.
You do not have to join a church or a cult and you don’t even have to believe in God.
It is also relatively easy to do. It doesn’t require any equipment and it can be practiced almost anywhere at any time.
Also there are many health benefits coming out of meditation – and this is not BS – Meditation is one of the few techniques that have been scientifically tested and proven to benefit your physical health.

(There are religious practices that will deliver a greater punch – at the expenses of giving up the control of your experience – but I am not very kin on organized religions – I am more of a free spirit – but for those of you that are adventurous enough I have to mention that other paths are available.)

But if you decide to practice meditation you will soon find out that meditation can also be a tool for exploration beyond the confines of our consciousness.
I know, some of you might not believe that such a wonderland exists but frankly we do not have a choice on the matter.
What lies behind the realm of human consciousness is up to the spiritual explorer to find out.
You have to see it and experience it yourself and don’t take anybody’s word for it.

8 comments:

Mariana Soffer said...

I am about to start meditating indeed, a new technique a friend is doing, I did for a while one called mindfullness, very interesting focused mainly in breathing and nothing else, I was wondering what kind of meditation you do, cause there are many, and I do not know which one to choose, or if they are all the same as long as you do them well.
Take care

Hector said...

Hi,

I was browsing the internet and by chance I came across your comment on mindfulness meditation.

I thought of getting in touch, since you and your readers may be interested in "Stillness Buddy", a software application I've just launched last week.

Stillness Buddy helps people to remain mindful of the present moment, relaxed and at peace, while working at the computer.

It works by displaying short "moments of stillness" and longer "mindfulness pauses", interspersed during the day. These breaks are designed to be very brief, so that they don't interfere with work. You can choose their duration and frequency, to suit your preferences and schedule.

By regularly practising the stillness and mindfulness exercises presented during the breaks, Stillness Buddy quickly and effectively helps to:
* Cultivate a deep sense of peace and stillness in every day life.
* Be more relaxed, less tense.
* Work in a more mindful, alert and stress-free manner
* Live more and more in the present moment

Stillness Buddy is for those of us who want to be more at peace and aware of the present moment, in the midst of our busy lives. It is also a great tool if you want to feel less tense and stressed. It is suitable for people of all walks of life, regardless of their spiritual practice or religious background.

You can find more about Stillness Buddy and download a 30-day free trial, at https://www.stillnessbuddy.com

If you like the application, would you be able to review it on your blog? I would greatly appreciate any help you can give me to spread the word.

In return, I'd be happy to provide you with a free, licensed copy of Stillness Buddy and to arrange a special discount for your readers, when they mention your name.

Also, I am setting up an affiliate program, which should be ready in about a month, which may be of interest to you too.

I look forward to hearing from you,

Hector
MindFree Ventures (Stillness Buddy)

Ted Bagley said...

Sounds like Buddha taught a spiritual multiculturalism.

Mariana Soffer said...

I quickly saw you site, it seems very interesting, I actually thought about doing an aplication for something similar with my shrink, but of course we do not have time. I will test it for sure, and tell you what I think, but I do not know about the review in my blog, I do not promote things, I do not want any kind of publicity or money involved in it, so I have to think about it, if I think is something that does people good and is worth telling to the audience that reads me, I might do it. Why don t you give me your email, so we can chat in private after I test it? or you can send me one.

Thanks for the offer

Quantum_Flux said...

My meditation routine involves VG Music (can I suggest a Tetris or Gauntlet for starters?), and a screensaver filled with zenlike photos of top secret technologies.

Mariana Soffer said...

Thanks quantum for your quick reply

Diego said...

I really like Quantum's unique meditation! There are so many types I wonder if maybe it is as individual as a fingerprint?

TALON said...

I love the Ram Dass quote and totally agree - it's very individual and very personal.