Creativity & Pure Awareness June 23, 2011
Posted by nrhatch in Life Balance, Meditation, Mindfulness.trackback
When we meditate to silence the mind, we exist in pure awareness ~ without all the extraneous monkey chatter that normally fills our brains.
Thoughts may arise during meditative practice, but we maintain our focus and allow them to drift softly away.
After meditating, we feel calm, centered and focused.
We feel relaxed and alert, with greater clarity and inner peace.
We remain mindful of all the possibilities offered in this magical moment.
As we move more consciously through our day, our awareness remains focused on the task at hand ~ be that chopping broccoli, solving a problem, painting a watercolor . . . or using our imagination to write.
Our minds in relaxed awareness are still, like the surface of a pond ~ alert and curious about the moment at hand.
No longer tossed about by turbulent and extraneous thoughts, we maneuver more easily through life.
When we need a breather, we dive deep . . . swimming beneath the current rather than wrestling with waves of worry, doubt, and fear to the point of utter exhaustion.
Through our meditation practice, we have silenced (or learned to ignore) our Inner Critic and we have exterminated our Killer ANTs. As a result, we remain mindful of the moment ~ present, calm, curious, alert, and alive.
In that stillness of pure awareness, the source of all creation resides.
Listen.
Even in the stillness, the cosmos swirls. Even when silence reigns, we hear its heartbeat.
No rules. Just write!
Spirit Lights The Way 
Is that a real live turtle? Don’t they bite?
I haven’t ridden on a tortoise since I went to Turtle Back Zoo with my grandparents . . . I don’t think they ever tried to bite me.
This one is a large lawn statuary outside a restaurant in Sarasota. 😀
Yes, and sometimes it seems to me that the universe is composed of circles within circles, Nancy, starting with the seasons. BTW that turtle has a crocodile’s face?
You get to the center of one paradox . . . and find another to ponder. The restaurant also has an alligator out front. I never noticed a similarity in their facial features. 😀
Inner critic still often gets the best of me…am working on him, and yes it is a him! My first step in defeating him is naming him which I have done!
Once we tune in to what he/she is saying . . . we learn to tune him or her out by mindfully examing each thought as it arises:
Is it True?
Is it Helpful?
Is it Informative?
Is it Necessary?
Is it Kind?
T.H.I.N.K. also works when deciding whether to share a thought with others.
Haha love the pic of you!
Thanks, Vix! Phillippi on the Creek is a lovely little seafood restaurant in Sarasota that lets me pose on the reptiles in the courtyard while we wait for our food. 😎
Just don’t try meditating when chopping broccoli! Kidding! Your posts are always so thoughtful and here I go making a joke. Just trying to protect some thumbs out there.
No worries, mon! Laughter is good! 😀
Mindful meditation while chopping broccoli protects fingers because we are fully focused and aware of our actions, instead of being lost in thought. There is nothing between us and the task at hand:
https://nrhatch.wordpress.com/2010/03/10/the-zen-of-cooking/
Chop Wood . . . Carry Water:
http://www.amazon.com/Chop-Wood-Carry-Water-Fields/dp/0874772095
good post Nancy:)
And for me i have noticed that the more I meditate and find my center…the easier it is to know…when I am away from the center.
it is good to know when you are moved from the center…for then we can get back to where we belong.
zen cooking…hmmm sounds good!
btw, if you now a good vegetarian cook book pls let me know in email:) virtual hugs :).
Exactly my experience, Debra. Now, my goal is not to meditate for 20-30 minutes a day . . . it is to remain aware of my thoughts throughout the day . . . always asking True? Helpful? Informative? Necessary? Kind?
In other words, I focus on “right thinking” . . . rather than “wrong thinking.”
I’ll send you this in an e-mail too, but my favorites are:
Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home:
http://www.amazon.com/Moosewood-Restaurant-Cooks-Home-Recipes/dp/0671679929
Three Bowl Cookbook:
http://www.amazon.com/Three-Bowl-Cookbook-David-Scott/dp/0804832390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1308844778&sr=1-1
1,000 Vegetarian Recipes:
http://www.amazon.com/000-Vegetarian-Recipes-Carol-Gelles/dp/0025429655/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308844816&sr=1-1
Also, I just added a category for Vegetarian Recipes. They’re probably not all catalogued yet, but most are.
Just hit Select Category (above the Calendar) ~ and then click Vegetarian Recipes.
thanks a bunch for the cookbook links and the recipes.) this does help.
yes being aware of ‘where’ (mind) I am. Right Thinking, yes.:)
12 Step programs present this m stuff is very important. I have never been any good at it.
Stay tuned, Carl.
Step One: Just sit and observe your thoughts for five minutes without judgment. Instead of getting attached to thoughts as they arise, just be aware of them:
Oh, a pink elephant. That’s interesting.
Oh, I’m annoyed. That’s interesting.
Oh, I’m hungry. That’s interesting.
The goal, at first, is not to perform at Carnegie Hall . . . it’s just to learn a few basic notes. 😀
Great post again Nancy – as if I didn’t think how great you are every time I read your posts! This meditation, I am reminded of Ellen DeGeneres – watch all of this clip, but mainly the first few seconds about clearing your mind and yoga:
Which made me think of this one of hers:
Later in your post you talk about “chopping broccoli,” and I was sure you were going to link us all to this clip (and amazed anyone could think of anything else!):
As you can tell – sometimes I have a hard time focusing, but at least what I DO think about is FUNNY!! Enjoy!
Great links! Thanks, PTC.
Those were great — especially Dana Carvey — never saw any of his stand-up before.
Dana Carvey is hysterical. 😀
“In that stillness of pure awareness, the source of all creation resides.” Amen! What are you sitting on in that photo? A turtle? 🙂
I notice it more when painting than when writing. The only thoughts circulating are about the next color choice, and the next, and the next.
In that state of silent awareness, I’m immediately aware of inspiration as it arises into the stream of creativity.
That’s right! A concrete sea turtle that gives turtle back rides! 😀
I need to get past all that noise in my head and try to meditate more often. Life is getting just a bit crazy!
At first, when I tried to meditate, the noise drowned out the silence.
These days, the silence drowns out the noise.
I am now able to focus my attention and awareness on one thing at a time ~ my mind listens to me tell it what to focus on . . . instead of constantly shoving ideas and thoughts my way.
And the first step is just to pay attention to the thoughts as they arise.
Dear Time Out Box:
I note that the ‘attitudes’ co-related to the T.H.I.N.K. all had to do with just that – thinking. Even kindness in ‘thought’. I’m wonder what sort of anachronism, (is that the right word) could be made out of the word F.E.E.L.I.N.G. I would certainly think “Love” for the “L” letter. Maybe it could be made into some kind of contest.
Dear Time Out Box:
Maybe I’m thinking 🙂 of anachrostic, – and it should be F.E.E.L. Maybe you know what word I’m trying to think of.
Maybe acronym is the word you’re looking for? FBI is the acronym for Federal Bureau of Investigation.
T.H.I.N.K. is more of a mnemonic device ~ an aid in remembering a list.
Dear Time Out:
Thanks for ‘acronym’ name, but there is also a name for the ‘list’ remembering letters. Just can’t place it.
If we put a phrase (Be Here Now) in verse form, it could be an acrostic poem:
B
E
H
E
R
E
N
O
W
Dear Time Out:
Back in the days when I was a child,
Each moment of my life
Hugged me with its sighs.
Every darkness and shadow too
Responded without lies.
Every light that in night shone
Nearer brought me days
Out of which both sighs and lies
Were both found to amaze.
I’m up to the challenge on F.E.E.L. too!
How about: Forgiveness, Enthusiasm, Empathy, Loving rather than just thoughtful kindness.
Wonderful poem, LL.
Be Here Now!
Cheers.
I’m loving today’s post on the heels of yesterday’s! You’ve given me a way to dive beneath the waves… I have an app on my phone that is a Scottish man’s voice guiding me through a meditation. I haven’t been doing it lately- I think today is a great day to start up that habit again!!
PS. I hope you’ll come join my note card give-away!!
Ooh . . . a Scottish brogue to guide you through meditation. That sounds lovely!
I shall be around shortly to check out your note card give-away!.
Beautifully written and very inspiring. Thanks for a great post!
Thanks, KLRS! Meditation is so beneficial and versatile ~ there are an infinite variety of ways to take advantage of the basic premise of just observing thoughts as they arise.
Thanks for the reminder. I use to meditate every morning but have let that habit lapse. I was just thinking this morning that I need to find a way to build that back into my life.
It’s a wonderful way to add clarity to life ~ it’s like weeding out the gardens of our mind.