Journey to Bliss THE MONTH OF ATTENTION One of the earliest definitions of attention was presented by William James in 1890. In his book The Principles of Psychology he wrote, "Everyone knows what attention is. It is the taking possession of the mind, in clear and vivid form, of one out of what seem several simultaneous possible objects or trains of thought. Focalisation, concentration, of consciousness are of its essence. It implies a withdrawal from some things in order to deal effectively with others." That definition is still widely accepted today. Attention is defined as a concentration of the mind on a single object of thought. Awareness, consciousness, and mindfulness are spoken interchangeably with attention, especially in yoga classes. In a society that values multi tasking, what is the benefit of being able to maintain attention on a single object and how does one do this. Luckily, research today indicates there is great value in mindfulness. Pantanjali, the sage credited for writing The Yoga Sutras tells us numerous ways we can practice and develop our ability to concentrate. The ancient yogis tell us that our inherent nature is truth, knowingness, and bliss. It can be hard for many of us to fathom this. Most of us have been in the presence of a newborn baby. It truly is astounding to witness such perfection. As a child grows it becomes more challenging to maintain, or recall this perfection. First we get the harsh reality that not every need will be met. We start to form our identity and while we think it's perfect, others don't. Our parents, teachers, and friends tell us that we should be different. It's only a matter of time before the perfection gets obscured. Slowly but surely be begin to shield certain parts of ourselves. Our perfect and true nature becomes layered and distorted with physical, mental, and emotional imbalances. We ask ourselves how I could possibly be perfect when I have a body that hurts, a mind that's filled with despair and frustration. The Vedas say that illness and dis-ease begins when day in and day out we identify only with body and mind and forget that underneath both lies spirit. The Yoga Sutras tell us how we can prevent these obstacles. It's so simple it nearly blows my mind. Concentration on a single object is listed as the best way to prevent these physical, mental, and emotional imbalances. You might be asking how this could possibly be true. Great thing is, science is now proving this statement to be absolutely true. We’ll explore this in greater depth soon. www.BarefootWorks.com • Sharon Tessandori • 859.433.7787 1 Journey to Bliss Attention is about working with your mind. The Buddha is quoted very famously as saying, “All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become.” Stop for just a moment and ponder how you are using your thoughts. On any given day list five recurring thoughts you have about your body. Write them here: 1. _____________________________________________________________________ 2. _____________________________________________________________________ 3. _____________________________________________________________________ 4. ____________________________________________________________________ 5. ____________________________________________________________________ On any given day list five recurring thoughts you have about your family or relationship. Write them here: 1. _____________________________________________________________________ 2. _____________________________________________________________________ 3. _____________________________________________________________________ 4. ____________________________________________________________________ 5. ____________________________________________________________________ On any given day list five recurring thoughts you have about your job. Write them here: 1. _____________________________________________________________________ 2. _____________________________________________________________________ 3. _____________________________________________________________________ 4. ____________________________________________________________________ 5. ____________________________________________________________________ www.BarefootWorks.com • Sharon Tessandori • 859.433.7787 2 Journey to Bliss Great job. Now take a look at those thoughts. Are they serving you in a positive way? Are they serving your family, friends, and the world in a positive way? Are those thoughts helping you to move closer to your intention for the year? If so, fabulous! Continue to hone your practice. If not, no worries. You are certainly not alone. It just means we get to do some work together. Some of you may still not be convinced of the super powers you can develop when you commit to a meditation practice. Take just a moment and recall the last yoga class you took which left you feeling like a zen princess (or prince). You know the one when you finish and feel like the pieces of you have been brilliantly put back together. Remember, there are no right or wrong answers. 1. How did your body feel? ______________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 2. What was the state of your mind like? __________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 3. Did you feel connected to your intuition? _______________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ 4. Choose three words to describe the experience overall? ___________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ I am convinced that after an amazing yoga class we feel so very good because we've taken the time to consciously integrate body, mind, and heart. Your yoga practice can be a moving meditation. By staying present and focused on the body and breath www.BarefootWorks.com • Sharon Tessandori • 859.433.7787 3 Journey to Bliss your mind gets a break. Sure the mind is still working (again, that's a great thing) but in a way that's more neutral. More relaxed. More chill. How might your brain, your thoughts, habits, and/or patterns change if you were taking time every day to meditate? In a heated and challenging moment we can't rip our yoga mat and bust into a yoga pose. However, we can pause. Within this pause we can connect to the sensations we feel in the body. We can observe what's happening with the breath. We can note what's happening in the mind. Then it is the super power of meditation to assist us in moving forward in a way that's more intentional, more wise. It is the meditation practice that provides the stability for you to be able to maintain your attention, your focus. Let's look at the two reasons I hear most often why students don't commit to a meditation practice is: 1. Not enough time. 2. I'm not able to meditate. My mind races the whole time. I must me doing it wrong. Let’s look at reason number one. The truth is we have 24 hours in any given day. No more, no less. We get to choose how we fill those 24 hours. Often times at the end of the day, week, month, and year we wonder, “Where did the time go?!” Are you using your time wisely? Are you using your time in a way that helps you to feel good in body, mind, and spirit? Are you using your time in a way that is supporting your intentions for the year? There is only one way to really know how you spend your time and that’s to keep track of it. My advice is that you start tracking how you spend your time tomorrow. On the next page you’ll find a chart to track how you spend your time. Doing so will give you a better idea on exactly how you are spending your 24 hours. I recommend doing this every day for a week. Instructions: On the left hand side chart the time and for each day fill in the activity you do during the time. Then on a scale from 1 to 5, five being the highest, rate how this activity made you feel. This is to help you to see if you spend the majority of time doing things that feed and fuel you or drain you. www.BarefootWorks.com • Sharon Tessandori • 859.433.7787 4 Journey to Bliss My Typical Week: Time Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday www.BarefootWorks.com • Sharon Tessandori • 859.433.7787 5 Journey to Bliss The next reason I hear often concerning the challenges of meditation is that the student doesn’t know how to meditate. Or if they are attempting meditation they think they are doing it wrong. In this next portion I will give you several practical ways to explore meditation. Patanjali lists six ways of focusing our mind in the Yoga Sutras: 1. Breathing exercises. Extending the exhalation is specifically mentioned. 2. Focusing on an inspiring object. 3. Concentrating on the Light within the heart. 4. Contemplating on a wise and great soul. 5. Inquiry into dreams. 6. Meditating on anything that is elevating to you. When I first learned about these tools for developing attention I was so enamored. First of all I loved how inclusive the methods were. Meaning that there is something here for everyone regardless of age, gender, race, and religion. Secondly I loved how accessible they were. I was free to explore different techniques to find which worked best for