Look at the Future!
This is from the Art of Living Website - Meditation

Women, Compassion & Service by Emma Seppala, Ph.D.

Everyone needs to know that I love Emma Seppala.

She takes what we feel & gives us the science that says "yes, that's how it is."

It takes my intuitive self and wraps it around my intellectual self and makes things OK again.

Looky here at her talk on "Women, Compassion & Service."

You know, Emma has a PhD from Stanford having studied the effects of meditation and the like on Well Being. She's doctor Emma. And She's an Art of Living Teacher.

Day 7 : Manana – The Week in Review

1:23 PM

Well, is it working? I figure I should check-in on the wisdom gained this week and see if it’s sticking. Manana is the “chewing” of the knowledge in the mind - going back again & again to the knowledge. Let’s chew!

Wisdom, Where for Art Thou?

Day 1: Being with What Is: I give myself an A+ (I love A+’s!) for keeping cool when the mind has said, “Oh no! This is a problem.” Even this very moment Chetana is contemplating napping (I hear chattering) rather than napping and I’m calm, cool, collected. What will be, will be. And we’ll move on.

Day 2: Annoyed with Annoyed: Oh, I’ll give myself another A+. (I’m so sweet.) Yes, I am aware of having observed the sensations of rising-up “annoyed” in my body and not getting hooked into being annoyed. I am the witness. Koo Koo Kachoo.

Day 3:Unplugging to Plug in: Oh, is there something bigger than an A+? Give it to me! I’ve been really good about stop, drop & roll into meditation to get centered when I’ve got the fever to Go! Go! Go! and am being just a jumpin’ jack of getting nowhere.

Day 4: Speak Slowly & Listen: Another A+ moment. (Is the grader biased? Perhaps a wee bit.) But, I did! I have slowed way down and stopped myself many times from thinking “Oh, I know what I’ll say next. Me next! Me next!” and instead dropped the thoughts to listen. Pause. Respond. It’s Revolutionary!

Day 5: Feelin’ Hip!: Hmmm, I’ll give myself an B for this one. Not for what you may think. I noticed in re-spotlighting that moment that I was a bit more rajastic / antsy and not so saatvic/centered. I do get credit, though, for checking the Prana chart again & again. This is a great example of Manana - Chewing the Knowledge has pushed me to go deeper into understanding. Does that make my B a B+? Oh, sure.

Day 6: Icky in the Belly = Icky in the Mind: Oh, indeed I get an A here – although, not an A+. I have been cooking fresh, healthy, veggies. However, I know my potential is greater than what I’ve been doing. Good show. More to go!

And that is the week in review. 

Day 5: Feelin' Hip!

8:42 AM

I’m smiley. I feel “up to the moon.” I get where the saying “on cloud 9” comes from because I feel E X P A N D E D to the clouds. JOY! When happy we feel expanded. And when sad – contracted. Well, label me Joy!

Wisdom Here?

Indeed! Good to check in & make note of what pushed my Prana (life force energy) up. I do this check in usually when I’m spiraling down in moods. But, here’s a chance to look at “up.” I’ll walk you through my formula:

Fist Step: Ask myself, “Is my Prana high? Or low?”

Low Prana = Tired, negative thoughts coming up, low moods, depressed, annoyed with every little thing (even before they happen), snappy, etc.

High Prana = Energized, feeling alive!, Positive thoughts bubbling up, happy, content, sweet, "oh, it's ok," etc.

Second Step: Take Action by checking in with the Prana Chart 


Prana Check-in Chart  

The 4 Sources of Energy/Prana	Check in	Solution
Food & Water	Did I eat well? Fresh foods in the right amounts? Am I hydrated?	*Eat something healthy. *Drink some water.
Sleep / Activity	Did I get 8 hours of sleep? Am I exercising? Doing enough yoga?	*Go to sleep earlier. *Take a walk. *Ride the exercise bike. *Do yoga!
Breath	Am I taking full breaths? Or am I shallow breathing in the chest & not the lower lungs?	*Do pranayama – yogic breathing! e.g., Alternate nostril breathing, or some good long, slow breaths from the belly.
Calm, Meditative Mind	Have I been honoring my meditations by giving myself enough time & a good place to do them? Am I in the company of folks who uplift me?	*Meditate! *Go hang out with people who are saatvic – centered, loving, in joy & celebration. *Read wisdom-filled words of the wise & get a new perspective.

So, what was it for me that raised my Prana? I added in an excellent yoga class the day before. But, most of all? I started this blog and that has kept my head in “inquiry” and “wonder”! I'm giving myself a Calm, Cool Meditative Mind = Fabu!

Meditation - Then and Now

This is one of my favorite little jaunts into "What is meditation."
It's a few minutes of cuteness & fun. Enjoy!

Day 3: Unplugging to Plug In

Day 3:

Spotlighted Moment

2:05 PM 

Chatie is napping and I’m feeling anxious. Rushing. Rushing. Rushing. I’ve hurried two friends off the phone. Rushed with squinting eyes through a web search for “chanting for kids” and…. It would go on and on. But I’ve stopped. Cold turkey. Pulled the plug on the “busy-ness” and “doership.” That “I’ve-got-to-hurry-up-and-get-it-all-done-before-she-wakes-up! – ness.”

Wisdom! Find me now!

Hmmm…Well, pulling the plug on the “busy” or, as yogis say, “rajastic” mind is the way to go here to get back to a “centered” or “saatvic” mind. (Feeling “dull” in the head and lazy in the body is the sign of a “tamasic” mind.) I may be moving fast, but I’m really spinning my wheels and just getting more and more anxious. I’m finishing this sentence, putting down the computer, closing my eyes & meditating.

2:38 PM

Here’s to meditation! Twenty minutes, twice a day. Makes me the Mommy I am today. Send every mom, pregnant woman…everyone…to learn Sahaj Samdhi in the Art of Meditation Course. I didn’t “unplug.” I actually “plugged in” to my wealth of silence and focus and calm and infinite energy inside me.  My mind is now so focused, calm and feels super efficient. I’m going to get on the phone with the cable company now…no exhaustion in me. I say it again – Jai Gurudev – Victory to the Big, Playful, Wise Mind.

Need a meditation now? There a wonderful bunch of online guided meditations by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar - some as short as 7 minutes, if that's what you've got. But, don't jip yourself out of a longer meditation!