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108 sats \ 5 replies \ @Se7enZ 6 Feb \ parent \ on: Are you satisfied with your sleeping habits? health
There are stories and accounts of yogis who don't sleep, like, ever. If you understand the body and the mind to be related, or even the same thing, then such examples imply that such different states of living necessitate the transformation or purification of the mind as well.
What "purification" means or entails? Well, that's to be discovered on the journey...
I’m getting more n more fascinated.
Erm do you need to binge sleep on weekends to compensate this sleep debt?
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Nope. My experience so far is that both my mind and body are normalizing to it. I did the retreat about three weeks ago, and presently, I find the new "routine" easier and more natural to maintain. Haven't been changing things up or getting more sleep on the weekends, each day is pretty much the same schedule. In fact, I find I have more energy recently.
Have you tried meditating before? When I first started, I began with just 10 minutes each day and could easily notice the difference in my ability to cope with adverse scenarios like bad traffic. Less reactivity. Slowly I've grown the time commitment over the years and it's become a big priority for me these days. Definitely worth experimenting with, IMHO.
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No actually. Haha
Maybe I should. I feel that being a parent puts me in this alert mode all the time.
What’s the difference between meditation and mindfulness, though? And how should I start? Download a meditation app?
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Yeah, I hear you -- it's tough to get started. I'm not a parent myself, but I understand from friends that it's an extra dimension of challenge to carve out time for yourself. However, if you can find the time, and it ends up making you less reactive, that's good for the kids, too :)
Your question is great, actually! Ideally, there is no difference between meditation and mindfulness, meaning that living and acting mindfully in the world is essentially staying in a state of meditation during daily life. This is the goal! But practically, if we say mindfulness is "acting with awareness" and meditation is "perceiving with awareness", for me they are sort of like two muscles that need to be developed and balanced between each other. So I guess I need to sit in order to remind my system to stay more present during the day, and the more I'm doing life with awareness, the deeper and more insightful the sitting meditation is.
In terms of getting started, downloading an app is a good place and finding a guided meditation that walks through concentrating on the breath. The retreat that I've been referencing is Northern Vipassana and they have a list of branches here, unfortunately none in the USA. Another very good Vipassana tradition is from S.N. Goenka and they have many locations all over the world. There is a mini introduction and guided practice here. The practices are slightly different, but both retreats are very approachable while delivering an authentic technique that sets solid foundations. All Vipassana retreats and courses are given for free, too.
Again, though, don't feel like you need to start with a 10-day retreat. Try the guided meditation or one you vibe with online, watch your breath and catch your mind running around for a few minutes every day :)
Hope this helps somewhat! Good luck to you!
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Thanks so much for your detailed reply!
Let me get back to you on whether I grasp the difference between acting with awareness and perceiving with awareness 1-2 months from now haha
!Remind me 1 month
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