These are my recommendations to begin-- or deepen-- your meditation practice and to understanding more about Buddhism: The apps, podcasts, websites and books that I turn to for seeking my True North.
These days, the reality of the world, society, and our future feels unsettling. Never mind the day-to-day struggle that keeps us from our Buddha-self! We owe it to ourselves to meditate. No matter how dark the storm is we’re weathering, we need to set aside a moment of kindness towards ourselves each day to cultivate love and compassion, gratitude, and intention towards our goals.
Mindfulness isn’t something that we achieve overnight, and meditation isn’t as easy as it sounds. Plenty of yogis find difficulty in their practice, either from running monkey-mind, or just finding the time in the day for stillness. For those of us that regularly feel burdened by stress, managing our emotions and our sleep patterns is essential, and that may require a daily practice in order to aspire to our higher selves.
To those who want to begin their practice, but feel apprehensive about building a new routine: its okay. Its called “Practice” for a reason— no one is perfect (it would make us immortal), and the goal is just to “get on the mat,” whether you sit, move, or momentarily levitate with enlightenment. Encourage curiosity, and borrow from different schools of Buddhism to find the meditation methods that work best for you.
Remember, Buddhism isn’t considered a religion, but a way of life. You may always continue identifying and practicing as whatever religion you associate with. In fact, you may find several examples of cross-over between concepts of your personal religion, and that of Buddhism.
Likewise, its possible that you may not affiliate with any religion, but still find that Buddhism provides guidance and satiates your soul.
Watch this short video by the Oprah Winfrey Network for her Introduction to Buddhism!
Continue reading Apps for Meditation ~ An Intro to Buddhism, for my recommendations of introductory tools and resources for establishing a stronger foundation for your practice.
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~An Intro to Buddhism~