Tools For Meditation

Words: Dr Deborah OLENEV

The practice of meditation helps to calm the mind, relax the physical self, and amplify inner peace. One of the practical modes to enhance our meditative practice entails the usage of spiritual tools.

The most important of such meditation tools, in my view, are —

Mantra. This this is constant reciting of a spiritual phrase. This raises your spiritual vibration and gives something to redirect your mind away from depressive, negative, or fearful thoughts.

Mudra. These are hand gestures that you do in a sequence. I have been using them for many years. Mahatma Gandhi recommended them to his niece before he died as an invaluable spiritual tool. Another word is the Gayatri Mantra mudras. I learned the sequence by memorising them from Baba Hari Dass’ book, Ashtanga Yoga Primer.

Mala, or working with beads. This is used in many spiritual traditions. This helps you stay in the present moment, because you synchronise moving one bead at a time with chanting your mantra, or watching the breath. It is very comforting to hold a wrist mala, because it reminds you to stay in the present moment. I hold one as I fall asleep at night.

Breathwork, or pranayama. This is another very important spiritual tool. I combine it with mantra and mudra in my meditation every morning.

The question arises, “Why is there a need for meditation and spiritual practices?”

The answer is that people suffer in large measure from their thoughts. Their suffering causes them to look for a solution. The solution would be a way to control the thoughts that are causing their suffering. Spiritual training and meditation training are the tools. They are an invitation to grow spiritually and to heal from the pain of the thinking mind.

Homeopathy

You are exploring homeopathy, because you are on a healing journey. Now it is time to work at breaking your lifelong faulty thinking habits. It is not an easy process to break these habits. It is also not easy to suffer the consequences of not breaking them. Reduction in anxiety and depression are the rewards for breaking them.

People often believe that if they take homeopathic remedies they do not have to take personal responsibility for their thought processes. They believe that the remedy should take care of this. This is a fallacy. The homeopathic remedy can help, but it is not a substitute for developing self-awareness and healthy lifestyle practices. It is for this reason that I put so much emphasis on the importance of meditation and spiritual practices with my clients/patients, and it is also why I prioritise them in my life.

Talking To God

When you talk to god who do you talk to? Where does the answer come from? The answer comes from inside you? Wisdom is to know that god is in you, as well as in everyone else, and that it is impossible for you to be separate from god, because you are one with god. Some religions try to make you believe that god is outside of you and that you are separate from god, but this is not the truth.

From my experience the indwelling god communicates with you in ‘yes,’ ‘no’ and ‘neutral.’ You can put all your doubts and questions before god and you will receive the answer and guidance. You need to formulate your questions so that they can be answered in ‘yes,’ ‘no’ and ‘neutral.’

The way I have found that works for me to communicate is to make myself a pendulum. If I lean forward the answer is ‘yes.’ If I lean back the answer is ‘no.’ If my body does not move it is ‘neutral.’

It is necessary to practice to deepen this relationship with the One who has always been there with you and for you.

Dr DEBORAH OLENEV, CCH, RSHom [NA], is a Classical Homeopath based in Mountain View, California, US. She treats people from all over the world via phone and video conferencing. Dr Olenev has had a passion for homeopathy for nearly forty years and has been in private practice since 1991. She has a vast knowledge of homeopathic Materia Medica, and integrates homeopathy with herbal medicine too. She is the owner of First Aid Cream, where she teaches about and sells homeopathic first-aid creams. She has several years of experience treating autistic children and people of all ages for all manner of health conditions.

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