If there is one perception people have about me as a yogi, it would be that I am always in a state of calmness, I can never get stressed, and I am always happy. While I wish this were the case, it is unrealistic to assume that people are always in a state of calmness or happiness regardless of varying situations. I stress a lot. Calmness and happiness are all emotions which are dependent on conditions. However, practising mindfulness and meditation can put you in a position where you can control your feelings and consciously detach from situations that trigger you or put you into anarchy. You can be Zen, too, if you set your mind to it and allow yourself to experience things you have been told “your ancestors may frown at” Your ancestors used to meditate too. I am sure those missed meditation days led them to make all those bad decisions we suffer from now. I know some of you are religious, so for my Christian family who may have doubts about meditation, visit Joshua 1:8 (I only refer to Christianity because I am Christian).

Meditation is a powerful tool that can profoundly impact your mental and physical well-being. It allows you to tap into your intuition and live more fully in the moment.

I am not always zen. I go “nuts”, too. Sometimes I wake up in the morning, meditate and set myself into that zen moment, but I get on the road, and things escalate quickly. I sit behind my laptop, see my to-do list, and then ask myself, “God why”? My dresser has a meditation board that reads “A day at a time”. I cast my mind back to it; I look at my ink (a symbol of a day at a time), take a deep breath and remind myself to remain calm. So yes, the stress creeps in, and I feel all the emotions, but the difference between you and me is that I practice mindfulness which makes me conscious of my feelings and how I react to things. Meditation is good practice if you want to remain less worried and enjoy the simple things in life. Some of you don’t even know how your loved ones smell, how beautiful the sunset is and the flavour of dark chocolate as you savour every bite. You miss out on the simplest things.

I noticed that we miss out on a lot when we focus on what we can’t do now and what already happened. To enjoy life, we need to take life a day at a time. I recommend meditation to you, even for 5 minutes a day. Detach from the world for a few minutes, focus on yourself, introspect, and reimagine things. You are probably wondering, “How on earth will I do this? Meditate on what exactly? Won’t I sleep? Is that not against my faith? What do I gain from sitting down and doing nothing?” But tell you what, the first time I tried to meditate, I felt it was a useless, challenging, and boring activity, and I fell asleep.

I will give a few tips to guide you to basic meditation, and I will add my playlist as well.

1. Explore different mediation techniques and identify which works for you. I recommend setting a mantra for each meditation. It helps you focus so you are not wandering (although wandering is a natural part of meditation)
2. Listen to guided meditations, join a class, or listen to music to put your mind in that state.
3. Practice gratitude. Tell yourself all the things you are grateful for.
4. Movement – do some basic stretches or alternate between positions you find comfortable. I am most Zen in baby pose, frog pose, corpse pose and easy pose.
5. Use essential oils. Aromatherapy oils help reduce stress and ease anxiety. These oils also set your body, soul, and spirit in alignment.
6. Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Keeping your eyes shut helps reduce external distractions. It also reduces the stimulation of your visual sense. Start by taking ten deep breaths, count to 10 during each inhale and exhale.
7. Lastly, scan through your body and notice any areas of tension. This could be warmth, pain, itchiness, or coldness—the perfect time to say things to yourself and give yourself some grace.

One of my loved ones (situation partner actually) used to call me “little Buddha” because I consciously try to radiate light. By the way, “situationships” can be stimulating, especially when practising mindfulness and detachment. That way when it ends, it ends, and then you move -lmao. Just kidding, avoid it.

If you need help to start, book a meditation or yoga session here. Until next time, please stay Zen.

Namaste

“Quiet the mind, and the soul will speak” – Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati