 |
|
 |
| |
| Departments |
Home
Columns, Special
Topics & Features:
The Columns:
Angels, Guides, &
Loving Spirits:
Angel Blessings:
with Dr. Doreen Virtue
Ask Valerie Morrison,
Internationally
Acclaimed Psychic
Astrologer's Notes:
Ask Carrin Martin,
Astrologer
Basil Fearrington,
Astrology
Diana Stone,
Astrologer &
Huna Shaman
Jeff Jawer
Astrologer
Martin Lass,
Astrologer
Alan Oken,
Astrology
Glenn Perry,
Astrologer
Ray Merriman,
Financial Astrology:
MMA Market Week
Erin Sullivan,
Astrologer
Noel Tyl,
Astrologer
Daily Aspect Calendar
by Care
Monthly Horoscope:
Stellar Scopes
by Daija De Mornay
Creating Bridges:
The Spiritual &
Philosophical
Awakening to the
Miracle of Ordinary Life by Dennis Lewis
Avant-Gardening:
Insights by Frank &
Vicky Giannangelo
Bodymind Integration: A Psychology of Potential
by Kevin Roberts
Breaking Free:
Anne Brewer
Choices: The Art of Conscious Creation:
by Teri Harris Saa
From The Heart:
Alan Cohen
Teachings from the Western Mystery Traditions: The Esoteric "Paths of Return"
by Jacquelyn Small, Eupsychia
Kabbalah:
"Letters from Heaven:" Spiritual Guidance from
the Hebrew Alphabet
by Avigayil Landsman
Memos From The
First Tabugian
Art Rosengarten, Ph.D.
The Path of Wisdom and Love
Dr. John Demartini,
Concourse of Wisdom School of Philosophy and Healing
Spirituality in Daily Life: by Bhikshuni Thubten Chodron
Understanding
Wicca: Ask Fyre
Pathways to the Self
Connie Rodriguez, Ph.D.
Mythology & Legends
Pearls of Wisdom:
with Care
The Practical
Practitioner
Feng Shui:
Wind & Water:
Carole J. Hyder
Parenting:
Living With Your
Intuitive Child:
Sherry Healy
Pet Care:
Dr. Carson's Holistic Animal Care
by Dr. Kathleen Carson, D.V.M.
Tarot:
Soulforest:
Tarot and Spirituality
Rachel Pollack,
Tarot Grand Master
Gateway to Tarot:
by Bonnie Cehovet,
Tarot Master
Unexplained Phenomena:
Paranormal Potpourri:
By Dr. Gerri Leigh, Ph.D
Humor:
Wake Up Laughing.Com:
Swami Beyondananda
Features:
Blessings & Messages
Crystals, Gemstones & Minerals by Mirabai of MoonCave
Event Calendar
Historical Notes & Data
The MetaPersonals
Predictions
Reviews:
Tarot, Cartomancy,
Oracle Decks,
Books, & Software.
by Bonnie Cehovet,
Tarot Master
Symbols, Seals,
Amulets & Talismans
The What in the
World Department
Trivia & Other
Novel Moments
Your Views
Interviews:
Erin Sullivan,
Astrologer
Healing & Alternative
Health:
"The Ancient Way of Chinese Medicine"
by Kevin O'Neil
Flower Essences
by Donna Cunningham
Empower Yourself
to Heal
by Gerri Shapiro
Herbology:
Ron Norwood
Homeopathic Medicine
by Deborah Olenev, CCH, RSHom (NA)
Integrated Healing Arts
Living in Harmony-Astrology, Yoga & Ayurveda:
by Venkat & Christine Machiraju
"Spirit and Practice
of the Wise Woman
Tradition"
By Susun Weed
Tai Chi & Qigong
by Bill Douglas
The Holistic Mystic,
by Lonny Brown
The Directory
The Gift Guide
Archives:
Past Issues
General Information:
Synopsis of Contents
Editorial Submission
Information:
Articles
Columns
Editorial Opinions
"Your Views"
General Content
Event Calendars
Graphics & Photos
Editorial Deadlines
Advertising
Information &
Opportunities
About
The Meta Arts
Magazine
Department
Contacts:
Publishers
Editorial
Advertising Sales
Graphic Design
Promotion Dept.
Employment
Contact Us
Legal Notices
|
|
|
Creating Bridges: Spirituality & Philosophy:
|
|
|
Awakening To The
Miracle Of Ordinary Life:
The Need to Pay Attention
by Dennis Lewis |
|
|
|
|
One of the most unfortunate things about the Internet is the lack of attentiveness that many of us demonstrate when "surfing." Many of us are in such a hurry to get some information or accomplish some goal that we lose ourselves entirely in stress and anxiety and are unable to see, taste, smell, hear, or touch what is right in front of us.
Each month or so, for example, we send notifications to our newsletter subscribers that gives them the exact address, user name and password they need to access the new issue of the newsletter. Some of the people we send this short notification to reply to it (including in their reply the original notification we sent) with messages such as the following: "Help, I've forgotten my user name and password and don't know how to get the newsletter. What should I do?"
Inattention is rampant not only on the Internet but in almost every area of everyday life. Many of us move through our lives so quickly (which is reflected in our fast upper chest breathing), that any real connection with ourselves, our friends, our families, and our environments is next to impossible. Inattention in one person causes problems and wasted time not only for that person but also often for others. For anyone who wishes to live a more intelligent, conscious, or spiritual life, the study of attention is crucial. Our attention is what connects us with the world in and around us. Without it, we are simply sleep walkers, experiencing little more than tiny fragments of ourselves, and out of touch with the energies and rhythms of wholeness and relationship.
If you feel called to do so, you can begin the study of attention right now, right here. Allow yourself to slow down enough while reading this so that you can be attentive to your posture and how you are breathing. Without any judgment or analysis, take a kind of inner snapshot of yourself and how you feel at this moment. Be sincere in your observations. Notice any unnecessary tension or nervousness in your body/mind. Are you tense, relaxed, angry, anxious, worried, in a hurry? Is your breathing narrow and constricted, or is it free and open? As you become more attentive to what is going on inside you, you may begin to hear a voice from your heart, or from some other more-central place in yourself, giving you a new, more-complete perspective on your situation. The voice may tell you to take your time reading and simply experience what is being said. Or it may even tell you to stop reading, get off the Internet, take a walk, and just breathe. Or it may tell you to sit quietly for a few minutes and ask yourself what is really important in your life. Whatever the voice has to say, the key is to listen, to pay attention.
As you try this work as often as possible over a period of days, weeks, and months, you will begin to understand what the great spiritual masters mean when they tell us that we live mostly in dreams, with little direct contact with reality. You will also begin to understand what they mean when they tell us that self-knowledge and self-transformation begin at the very moment that we sense and feel our inattentiveness in relation to the things we are doing. It is this experience, if we allow its significance to touch the various sides of our being, that can begin to awaken us and bring us into a more honest relationship with ourselves and others.
|
|
|
Dennis Lewis,
Teacher of meditation |
 |
Dennis Lewis is a teacher of meditation, authentic breathing, and qigong. A long-time student and group leader in the Gurdjieff Work, he also studied for three years with Advaita Vedanta master Jean Klein.
Lewis has been certified to teach various qigong and Taoist meditation practices by Bruce Kumar Frantzis, Mantak Chia, and Dr. Wang Shan Long. The foundation of his approach today is the awakening of consciousness, of presence, in our everyday lives.
His writing has appeared in numerous publications, including Yoga Journal, Gnosis, Parabola, Somatics, Library Journal, Manas, and the San Francisco Chronicle. He is co-editor, with Jacob Needleman, of two books: Sacred Tradition & Present Need (Viking) and On the Way to Self Knowledge (Knopf).
His acclaimed book The Tao of Natural Breathing: For Health, Well-Being and Inner Growth, published in 1997, is now available in eight languages. His audio program Breathing as a Metaphor for Living was produced in 1998 by Sounds True.
His new book Boundless Breathing: Teachings, Exercises, and Meditations for Health and Self-Transformation will be published soon.
www.authentic-
breathing.com
|
| 11111 |
 |
You'll find it in
The
Directory!
|
|
|
|
|
