Jubilant January ~ Week 2
SD you asked about the Meditation Day at the Buddhist Retreat so I thought I'd share. The day started at 10am with an hour Buddhist reading/discussion which I find very interesting as Buddhism is new to me and you don?t have to be a Buddhist to take part in this as they encourage open discussion. Then an hour of guided meditation either the Mindfulness of Breathing or Metta Bhavana, we then have a social lunch (sharing food and engaging with everyone is a big part of the day) for an hour and a half.
Then if the weather is good a walking meditation, we did this in the snow wrapped up warm and in touch with the elements ie aware of your footprints in the snow, the sun, the snow on the leaves, snowflakes etc. A warm cuppa after this then back into the shrine room for another hour of guided meditation or a chanting meditation it depends how the day is set up. Sometimes the day ends with a puja which is the act of showing reverence to a god, a spirit, or another aspect of the divine through invocations, prayers, songs, and rituals. An essential part of puja for the Hindu devotee is making a spiritual connection with the divine. I don?t take part in the puja purely for personal reasons it reminds me too much of what I don?t like about formal religion. Although I am now questioning this as I really enjoyed the Midnight Christmas Service with my Mum.
Afterwards you can stay on and meditate yourself if you want. I left early about 3pm as the weather wasn?t good and I didn?t want to drive home in the dark. I found last year that I really needed to connect with something but didn't know how or what and this has opened the door to a whole new world of spirituality, but probably more importantly like minded people who I am connected to. It feels like the universe found the answer for me just when I needed it
Dewdrop :h
SD you asked about the Meditation Day at the Buddhist Retreat so I thought I'd share. The day started at 10am with an hour Buddhist reading/discussion which I find very interesting as Buddhism is new to me and you don?t have to be a Buddhist to take part in this as they encourage open discussion. Then an hour of guided meditation either the Mindfulness of Breathing or Metta Bhavana, we then have a social lunch (sharing food and engaging with everyone is a big part of the day) for an hour and a half.
Then if the weather is good a walking meditation, we did this in the snow wrapped up warm and in touch with the elements ie aware of your footprints in the snow, the sun, the snow on the leaves, snowflakes etc. A warm cuppa after this then back into the shrine room for another hour of guided meditation or a chanting meditation it depends how the day is set up. Sometimes the day ends with a puja which is the act of showing reverence to a god, a spirit, or another aspect of the divine through invocations, prayers, songs, and rituals. An essential part of puja for the Hindu devotee is making a spiritual connection with the divine. I don?t take part in the puja purely for personal reasons it reminds me too much of what I don?t like about formal religion. Although I am now questioning this as I really enjoyed the Midnight Christmas Service with my Mum.
Afterwards you can stay on and meditate yourself if you want. I left early about 3pm as the weather wasn?t good and I didn?t want to drive home in the dark. I found last year that I really needed to connect with something but didn't know how or what and this has opened the door to a whole new world of spirituality, but probably more importantly like minded people who I am connected to. It feels like the universe found the answer for me just when I needed it
Dewdrop :h
I need to learn how to use Photobucket. You're right, of course.
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