Overwhelmed? Anxious?
This week, give yourself some peace of mind.
Julia Ferganchick teaches an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism philosophy class at Three Jewels that includes how to meditate. The two-hour session is held the first and third Monday of each month.
Many of the people who come to the class have some stress, anxiety or trauma they are trying to overcome, she said.
"Your experience of the world depends solely on the state of your mind -- and that you can control, but you have to learn how," said Ferganchick, who started studying Buddhist philosophy after surviving the crash of an American Airlines jet in Little Rock, Ark., in 1999.
Arjahn Sarayut Arnanta leads a meditation session that draws about 30 people, including many beginners, on Sundays to Wat Budhhametta: Tucson Buddhist Meditation Center, which opened earlier this year on North Swan Road.
"They have busy lives. They have stressful situations at work. They want something that can help them to relax from that," said Arnanta, a theravada Buddhist monk and a meditation master from Thailand.
Meditation can be used to find calmness, insight and happiness, and it can help people coping with stress and depression. Ultimately, he said, it's a way to attain spiritual enlightenment.
Concentrating on your breaths is one of many ways to meditate, Arnanta said. While breathing is the very definition of being alive, he said, many people rarely think about it until they are drowning or suffocating -- or feel that they are.
Getting started
Choose a quiet, private place. Sit on the floor. Sitting on a chair or couch is acceptable.
1. Keep your eyes closed gently to reduce distraction.
2. Breathe in and out until you find the rhythm of your own breathing.
3. Be aware of your breathing and its sensation from the nostril, throat, chest, ribs, abdomen and throughout your body. If you are mindful of these sensations, you will feel your body expand and contract.
4. While your eyes are closed your other senses are still awake and alive.
5. The heart of mindfulness practice is being in the present moment. If you find yourself in the middle of hearing, smelling, tasting, feeling and thinking (anything), take a moment to acknowledge it because it is part of your present moment. Then, bring the attention back to your mindful breathing again.
6. When you find your breathing rhythm then scan your body sensations from the nostrils, throat, chest and abdomen. You may feel the sensation more clearly in the abdomen while you are breathing in and out. Fix your attention to this spot. When you breathe in you are aware of the rising sensation of your abdomen and then make a soft mental note to yourself "Rising." For your out breath, make a soft mental note "Falling." Keep making the mental note of these two sensations as long as you remain sitting.
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