Meditating to Noise July 20, 2009
Posted by admin in : Meditation Tags:distractions, meditate, peace, silence , trackbackThere’s nothing more unsettling than the sound of a dog barking continuously because the owner chained the poor little guy outside and then left for the day. The yelping and howling a couple doors down superseded the soothing sounds of my Chi Gong alarm. Since there was no option to snooze, I reluctantly dragged myself out of bed earlier than I wanted. I went and taught a class and then came home to meditate, but realized as soon as I sat down, the barking prevailed. The mongrel was still at it and driving me absolutely insane. I couldn’t relax and my central nervous system was kindling. Normally I can drop right in to the silence and let my body settle with very little effort, but this morning was mentally taxing.
I typically use a mantra when I meditate, but not even the soothing vibration of the sacred Sanskrit word could settle my mind in to silence. I took a breath in and silently cursed cujo on the exhale and then I breathed in and said my mantra and then I went right back to wishing the dog would roll over and die. The first 10 minutes were excruciating, but then one of two things happened. Either the dog took a short break or I completely let go and sank deep in to a place of silence because one moment there was nothing and then the next, the sound of the dog’s voice barking in my head again.
It took everything in my power to sit the entire 20 minutes, but it was a good lesson. Sure it’s easy to meditate when there’s silence, but isn’t it just as essential to be able to drop in to a similar quiet space amongst the backdrop of constant noise in our life? A regular meditation practice is definitely a reprieve from the mental chatter and external stimulation we face every day, but why settle for 20 minutes a day? Why can’t we incorporate the same philosophy to our every day life? The racket will always be there whether we want it or not so it’s about sifting through all the hullabaloo and focusing on the things that really matter…the things that bring us peace and make us feel good. Too much of our attention is put on the negative, the noise, and the chaos in our lives. Why not put more attention and emphasis on the other?
Comments»
so what do you do if the barking noise is inside your own head… not really a question, I know that the answer is doing the same thing…
Silence is such an under appreciated sound, You go girl