Where are we?

Meditation for healing addresses the time we live in, a time of great turmoil. The existence of the very home we live in, planet earth, and all living beings, is threatened. We hear disturbing news everyday and often feel powerless. We may want to make a difference but don’t know where to begin. Then if we act we’re not sure it’s the right thing to do. Sometimes we want to hide in the comforts of our personal lives, and get by the best we can with our family and friends. Yet the news continues to stream in and we are pushed. After all this confusion we may get sick, depressed, anxious, stressed. These are  outer and inner disturbances.

Now the good news: meditation for healing

Many of us feel that the world does not have to exist in this way. There is an intelligence deep down inside us which tells us we are good, wise, strong and beautiful. It tells us we can create, or co-create, the kind of world we want to live in. We want to trust our human instincts and we want to believe in humanity. We want to live in harmony with each other, the animals and nature, the forests and oceans. Meditation for healing works on ourselves and the place we live. Our human instincts insist that we heal ourselves and the world. How do we go along with our instincts and stop the turmoil?

We need three kinds of practices: meditation,  healing, and social technology. With these we can work with the outer and inner disturbances, their causes and results. With these we can create, and co-create, the world we want to live in. By practicing them, we will gain confidence that it is very possible to change ourselves and this world. Moreover, we can experience great fulfillment and enjoyment at each step along the way.

Meditation

Meditation is awareness. It is knowing ourselves with kindness, appreciation and love. Awareness pacifies anger and makes the connection to who and what we are. It starts with mindfulness where we presence ourselves in the moment. Presence ignites inspiration and shows which direction to go. It shows the truth of the interconnectivity of all living beings and the environment. It creates the ground for healing.

Healing

Meditation for healing makes us whole. It uncovers the shadow side of our lives. Much is buried inside and needs to come out if we are to reach our full potential. We have inner obstacles which drain our energy, make us depressed, short-circuit our abilities. We need to rely not only on meditation, but on healers, teachers, medicines, nature, and therapies to heal and make ourselves whole.

 

Social Technology

Knowing who we are through meditation and healing, we will probably want to engage with friends, family, and colleagues to co-create a better world. We have discovered the amazing goodness and workability of ourselves, and we see this goodness and potential is the same for everybody. Social technology uses a methodology to engage others at the very practical real-world level. It produces change which benefits not only the interests of the group, organization or system, but also societies and the planet.

Good feedback

Meditation, healing and social technology work together and feed each other in a continuous recursive loop. Ultimately they cannot be separated, with healing strengthening meditation, and meditation inspiring social action. Many traditions and examples of these exist for us. My favorite at this point in my life are: Tibetan and Shambhala traditions for meditation, meeting with close friends for healing, and Presencing Institute for social technology. We can each look for what works best for us.

The Mindfulness Journal seeks to explore meditation, healing and social technology. Together we can create a whole world, a healing world, the kind of place we want to inhabit. Our destiny is in our hands and hearts.