MEDITATION
Meditation is a word that covers a huge variety of practices, largely understood in the west as a method of relaxation or increasing our awareness of ourselves through what have been termed mindfulness practices. The way we practice meditation is to lead the practitioner through a deepening process of release of those things that obscure our connection to spirit, to the unfettered, original and true consciousness.
To do this certain qualities need to be developed, the body and channels opened through Nei Gong, and for the practitioner to have a motive to reach towards this deep aspect of his or her being. The lofty aims of merging with Dao may not be for everyone, but along the way there is much learning to be had about the nature of our minds, and the mental tension we carry. This tension is a product of, and seeds, the patterning and habits of thinking that form the obscuration’s within our mind, creating a lack of insight, clarity and kindness. Through the deepening release of these tensions, qualities naturally arise, that lead us towards a truer state of being, one of the many great treasures of the art of meditation.
Meditation is central to all the teaching I do. I began studying meditation in my teenage years, and I have explored many approaches. Having practiced a great deal over the last forty years I can safely say it’s not a particular talent I have! I think this probably gives me a way to understand some of the difficulties practitioners come across whilst learning this art. I aim (as with all the teaching) to pass on what I myself know from lived experience, as I believe this to be the best way to attempt to help others with their practice.
Alongside the meditation training we also look at the self-cultivation aspect of change and transformation. This takes the form of self-enquiry and contemplation so that we can investigate our behaviours, beliefs and motives to facilitate change. It is not possible to master something unless it is understood and known. Within the foundations of meditation training, we are attempting to get to know our sense of self so that it is possible to move beyond the clinging we have onto our identity being this sense of self. Once this insight has arisen the practice can move deeper.
The training takes two forms. Xin fa or Heart Fasting and Alchemy or Nei Dan. This is to bring together two strands of practice. The alchemical process of change initiated in the Nei Gong process of Jing, Qi and Shen, which is then progressed with initiating the firing process. And then the self-enquiry and cultivation of silent sitting or ‘fasting’ the heart. The fasting here is speaking of removing stimulus to that which fuels the mind/self. The mind in Daoism is seen as residing in the heart. So, to fast the heart is to reach towards the stillness that exists in the centre of the heart when the busy/acquired mind is no longer being fuelled with our attention. Bringing these two aspects together combines the pure consciousness approach (influenced from Buddhism) with the Tantric (body based) approach to inspire transformation of the individual towards enlightenment.