Quieting Your Mind

Once I read about a man who had become a Buddhist and was struggling to quiet his mind while meditating. The Buddhists use a technique that entails focusing on your own breathing. He went to a priest and asked for help. The priest said, “After you have listened to your breathing for five years come back and I will help you.” Of course, after five years he no longer needed any help.

It seems to take many, many, many years to get to a quiet mind meditating. But is the goal to have a quiet mind or to connect with God? You can connect with God even with a noisy mind. You simply need to find the quiet among all the noise and rest there as all the commotion goes past. Your mind does not have to be absolutely quiet to connect with God.

One technique I use is to take a listening attitude and to pick out the quiet in all the cacophony of thought. It is much like trying to pick out a single instrument while listening to music, or a single voice while listening to song, or a single voice in a crowded room. Always I am brought up short as I realize the quiet it right here, “closer than breathing” as Joel Goldsmith would say.

There are many techniques out there and you may have to experiment. But it is essential to connect with God every single day. You will know you have made the connection when you feel yourself suddenly taking a deep breath and relaxing. You have opened the door and your Holy Spirit has entered your mind. Now you can be assured of peace and guidance throughout the day.

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Comments

hannah said…
well then!!! laugh out loud.. But is the goal to have a quiet mind or to connect with God? happy xx
3:17 PM
Paula said…
I focus on the darkness behind my eyelids when I close my eyes and most of the time this technique will quickly quieten my mind to a dead silence. I feel peaceful and then a big breath of fresh air comes into my lungs and I'm just 'here.' Then if thoughts come up I let them cross my mind as if I were watching TV, I don't attach to them - just let them pass and then focus on the dark again.
11:31 AM
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