Meditation, mindfulness... what it's all about (for me).

We've all heard of it, but how many of us really know what it means to "meditate" or be "mindful". In France, mindfulness translates as "pleine conscience" which literally means "full awareness". I am no expert but I try and be mindful every day and meditate... whenever I remember to! (and not when I have the time, because it's specifically when you don't "have the time" that you're supposed to meditate, and even more so than someone who "has time"!)

I personally discovered meditation and mindfulness about a year ago, during a spiritual retreat in a Tibetan Buddhist retreat centre Lerab Ling near Montpellier in France. I only stayed - to my regret - 2 nights, but I learned a lot and it gave me the hunger to learn and discover more in depth what it meant to really meditate and be mindful and compassionnate towards others, the world and ultimately ourselves, on a daily basis.

To begin with, Buddhism and meditation are spiritual practises, not religious ones. There are no rules or dogma, just gentle guidelines that you personally decide to put into application or not. Some people will meditate for an hour and a half a day (little shout-out to my best friend Thea who's a confirmed yogi and yoga teacher!) whereas others will only meditate for 5 minutes at a time. There is no "right" or "wrong" really and everyone has different needs and objectives and that's absolutely fine. If I had to describe meditation in one sentence I would say that meditation consists of "Sitting or lying down (confirmed disciples insist on staying in an upright position, back straight with the shoulders open and rounded but that's only an ideal, not an obligation.) eyes closed or focused on the floor about a meter in front, while being the observer, the external witness to your temporary thoughts and emotions, allowing them to come and go like clouds in an otherwise blue sky". Sounds almost poetic, huh?!

So... you don't have to be a Buddha or religious or whatever in order to meditate. It will most likely feel very unnatural at first but give it a chance and start small (and preferably lying down or sitting comfortably with your eyes closed in order to prevent distraction). When you realize that you are not your thoughts and the consctructions and conditionings of your mind, new perspectives will arise and you will feel so much more power and... serenity. We are much more than our brains, and we're supposed to use our brain, not the other way around. Our intellectual mind should remain a tool instead of a bully, don't you think? You don't have to, and you shouldn't (if mental health and well-being is important to you) listen to and believe everything your brain "tells" you. Instead, you can just acknowledge your passing thoughts and emotions, recognize they're there and then consciously "pleine conscience" decide to give importance to them or not. You can't control your thoughts but you CAN control the amount of importance you give to them and whether you decide to believe them or not ;)

Mindfulness is about being aware and fully conscious and in any given situation, especially the ones where intense emotions or unpleasant thoughts are at play, stepping back and being the external observer instead of being sucked into the choas of your psyche.

So... in this very brief article I've talked a bit about my experience of meditation and mindfulness and of course I am no expert and everyone has different experiences and a different understanding so I'd be more than curious to know about yours!

#meditation #mindfulness #compassion #nonjudgemental #openness #experience #spirituality #pleineconscience #serenity #awareness