Instinctive Meditation

[Ulises]

I love it. The approach of the "meditation coach" Lorin Roche - 40 years of experience - is one the healthiest I've found in many years...

 

"We know that we are inextricably part of nature – we smell, taste, hear and breathe Her wisdom every day. When we recognize ourselves as creature on this Earth, the texture of life is enriched and simplified. Metaphoric reality speaks of our inner nature, and is not a far stretch from the literal. We are human beasts; we are walking trees; we are the soil that gives birth to new life. This awareness makes our needs immediate and clear: What does my creature self need to thrive? Tend to your inner nature, honor it in the movement of your life, and let meditation support this self-care. (...)

 

A healthy approach to spirituality embraces the full spectrum of human experience. You do not deny anything. Meditation is a vessel of awareness, and you bring your entire being into it. You welcome every impulse, every emotion, and every desire. When you pay attention to your inner life without prejudice, you begin to appreciate all these impulses are part of your body’s innate intelligence. The instincts are sacred. They are the wise motions of life that impel us to survive, breathe, feed ourselves, rest when we are tired, heal and seek out friends and mates. These natural movements are exquisite and precious. Engaging with the wondrous process of how life renews and sustains itself on every level is a foundation of meditative practice.

 

When we honor our instincts, they put us in touch with our human creaturehood and what we require to be healthy animals. When you embrace them consciously, each impulse gives you a gift and enriches your life. As you meditate, you bring awareness to these movements that are usually subliminal. You give them all permission to be alive and shimmering in your being, so that they have a chance to integrate with each other. Having lively access to your instincts will give you a raw physical vitality, so learn to befriend them all."

Lorin Roche

http://lorinroche.com/page70/page45/page45.html

Edited February 6, 2011 by Ulises

[Birch]

I like it

 

Funny that we seem to need permission, huh?

[Ulises]

I like it

 

Funny that we seem to need permission, huh?

 

Very sad and true....Lorin's words are a great tonic for the awakening of the natural wild soul...

[The Observer]

Does "welcoming" every impulse and desire mean acting on it?

[Birch]

Does "welcoming" every impulse and desire mean acting on it?

 

No. That's why you have a brain :-)

[The Observer]

No. That's why you have a brain :-)

 

Then what does it mean? Acknowledging it in a nonjudgemental way? Because I don't know how beneficial it is for my meditation if I start eating a bag of doritos midway through just off impulse lol.

Edited February 7, 2011 by The Observer

[Otis]

Beautiful share Ulises, thanks!

 

The big problem with "self-improvement": it means the "I" (i.e. the ego) is going to start changing things about "me". But my need for control is the problem to begin with, so any amount of self-improvement just strengthens the one thing I need to surrender: "me".

 

If however, "I" learn to accept all the other qualities about me, just as I'm learning to accept the rest of the world, then "I" do not need to change anything. "I" just need to get out of the way, and enjoy the ride (i.e. the flow from within which there is no distinction between "me" and life). IME, the flow itself manages all the changing, growing and maturing that "I" could never achieve on my own. The more "I" am out of the way (i.e. the more I accept everything), the faster the growth.

Edited February 7, 2011 by Otis

[Otis]

Does "welcoming" every impulse and desire mean acting on it?

...

Because I don't know how beneficial it is for my meditation if I start eating a bag of doritos midway through just off impulse lol.

No offense to Observer, but this is what I call the "Parental Fallacy".

 

That is: the belief that if you are not actively saying "no" to your own instincts and functions, that they will wander off on you, and start doing nefarious naughty things.

 

From that reasoning, we arrive at the conclusion: I can't accept all these thoughts and instincts, because if I were to DO THEM, they would get me in trouble. But, of course, there's a huge gap between "accepting a thought or instinct", and actually "doing the action". We always have competing desires and interests, which help us find compromises, rather than being forced to act on each whim.

 

Our culture contains the myth that "no" must form the basis for raising children (or ourselves), whereas it's also possible (if a lot more difficult) for "yes" to do the trick. We don't have to deny or judge any of reality (including ourselves), in order to move forward with great positivity. Encourage a path of light, rather than denounce darkness. In fact, "no" ultimately just gets in the way, creates the imprisonment that we later have to shed to find freedom.

 

IME, if I give my desires, thoughts, creativity, etc. room to play without judgment, then they all mature on their own. After all, they are just part of the greater me, no less than "I" am.

 

The model of growth that resonates the best with me, is that of a plant. The plant doesn't have to figure it out. It doesn't have to choose this over that, or say "the petals are good, but stamen is bad". It just lives and grows, period. IME, my organism's growth is much closer to the model of a plant, then to the model of a parent trying to teach a child to be obedient.

Edited February 7, 2011 by Otis

[The Observer]

Otis,

 

I like how you put that together for me. Now I get it! It's more or less how I already operate lol. I like it. Very laid back way of going about mental things.

[Ulises]

[Ulises]

[Ulises]

A free-form ritual approach (very resonant to Shaking Medicine):

 

ICONOCLASTIC RITUAL

The Underlying Instinctual Sources of Paratheatre

http://www.paratheatrical.com/iconoclasticritual.html

[Otis]

Thanks Otis. Maybe the "making mistakes" part of the maturity process is what parents fear so much when rearing their kids? I feel that if I was allowed more freedom to act, and in acting, to find my own personal meaning as a result of my actions as a child, my creativity and natural propensity for growth would have been markedly less stifled. But then, I would have had to have had a more aware adult, or adults, to be able to allow wu wei of the developing me.

Yeah, that's how I feel. I think, too, it's worthwhile checking in now, to see how much of that need to avoid mistakes we still have. Without room to do that, it seems like we're just going to do the same old things, over and over, and get smaller and smaller, as consequence.

[surfingbudda]

Good point. During one heart opening experience this week, I neglected to prioritize a key and prudent choice in my decision making thought process. Afterwards, discussing the event with someone close to me (who was upset with my choice), I had a small awakening experience. This added awakening I would not have had if I did not fumble druing my heart opening event. In the end, I am so grateful for the unfolding of events (thanks Universe!) and the lessons I learned, and continue to learn as I reflect back...

 

"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new." - Albert Einstein

 

I find that pain/suffering/mistakes although not fun are one of the greatest tools for learning and evolving. I just came to the realization when pain/suffering/mistakes happen we should never get angry with ourselves or at others as that was the past and theres nothing we can do about what happened, instead say, "thank you universe for giving me a sign as to what is imbalanced in my life, I will now try to determine the root of my suffering so that I may learn from my mistake and better evolve as the beautiful human being that I am". Isn't that a much better way to look at suffering than simply getting yourself worked up over things that already happened , of course its easier said than done when suffering actually occurs

[Otis]

Rainbow Vein and Surfing Buddha, well said!