Discursive Meditation: Phase 2

[ecosophia]

Last week's post on discursive meditation got quite a bit of interest from readers, which was good to see: we're talking, after all, about the most important practical side of the occult path, the process of training the mind to think clearly, deeply, and reflectively. The preliminary training in posture we discussed last week is essential to what follows, so if you didn't spend the last week doing that, pop back to the previous post and give it a try. If you did, why, this image of Hatshepsut, the first ruling queen of Egypt, may help you remember the details. 

This wek we're also going to work on the physical plane, but from a different angle. A little bit of theory will be helpful to clarify this next step, so let's talk about relaxation. 

Most people these days realize that it's possible to be too tense. Since the opposite of one bad idea is generally another bad idea, it's worth remembering that it's also possible to be too relaxed. Until very recently, most people in Western societies were much too tense. It was extremely rare to encounter anyone in the Western world who was too relaxed, whose body was so lacking in tension that it was limp and floppy, and so teachers of spiritual exercises put a lot of focus into relaxation. That had its effect, and now you find people on either end of the spectrum. What you find too rarely is people who have the balanced midpoint between too much tension and too much relaxation, which we can call poise. 

Last week's exercise, and the practice of sitting in a fixed and slightly unnatural posture more generally, is meant to keep you from being too relaxed. Keeping the spine straight, the head held up, the legs parallel, and the body still requires tension. Now we move to the other side of the balance and make sure you aren't too tense. This is done by relaxing your muscles while retaining the posture you've established. You don't move at all; you don't shift or wiggle or stretch; you just let go of the tensions you don't need to keep the posture. 

Here's how it's done. 

Start at the crown of the head, Consciously relax any muscular tensions you find there, and if there's any tension that won't let go, imagine that it is relaxing. (The imagination will become reality with a little practice.) Spend a little while on that part of your body, and then move further down your head to the sides of the skull. Consciously relax any tensions you find there, if you can, and if you can't, imagine the tensions dissolving. Go all the way down your whole body this way, taking it a bit at a time, and doing the same twofold relaxation on each part of your body. This should take you at least five minutes, and quite possibly more than that. All the while, maintain the seated posture without moving. Don't pay attention to your breath -- that's a later phase -- or to anything outside yourself; simply focus on your body, and on the process by which you're releasing unnecessary tensions. 

You may find that when you finish this, you ache from head to foot, or that some part of your body hurts a little -- or a lot. That's what happens when you have a lot of unnecessary tension you stopped noticing a long time ago. With repeated practice, the tension will go away. You may also find that when you finish this, some of your muscles feel as though they've had a workout. They have -- you've been holding your body in an unfamiliar position for a while, and that takes muscular effort. Your body will get used to that in due time. 

So that's the second stage of the process. Five minutes a day or more, sitting motionless in a chair, relaxing your unnecessary tensions. Got it? Go for it. 

Comments

Part One - amazing surprise!

[(Anonymous)]

I read Part One and immediately thought "Im-POSSIBLE! With a back so bad that sitting unsupported for any length of time is agony, and so rounded I could qualify for to ring the bells at Notre Dame! [Unless the Fighting Irish are playing the UFL Gators, in which case, I wouldn't dare.]And being so full of odd itches and twitches it's sometimes painful. But the challenge wouldn't let me go and wouldn't, and....

I did it. Not perfectly. A forefinger jerked up and down off the thigh once. There always seems to be a little finger slippage. Had to close my eyes to keep them from rolling towards the timer. And it was agony. I had to take "Don't move a muscle" as my mantra, which doesn't lend itself to anything more in the way of contemplating anything. But it's now part of my regular practice.

And yes, the back hurt afterwards, but I know well the kind of ache which means the muscles are trying to do what they should be doing, and don't mind one bit. What hurt during the practice was the top thigh muscles. For what that's worth. Will run it by my massage therapist tomorrow.

Pat, the bent crone. And while we're at it, a blessed Friday the 13th to you all! Don't walk under any ladders, and if a black cat crosses your path, scratch his ears for me.

Re: Part One - amazing surprise!

[ecosophia]

Delighted to hear it. One of the things that happens after a while -- and how long it takes varies from person to person -- is that your body starts getting used to resting in the position, and begins to look forward to it.