Let's Sit!

How to Tame the Monkey Mind

Posted by Javier Rodriguez on

How to Tame the Monkey Mind

Thoughts and the mind! Ah! How do you meditate on your worries, doubts, fears or goals?? And how do you reconcile the quest for no mind?? What do you think about when you are trying to quiet it down? These are all relevant questions. One of the goals in meditation is to quiet the mind chatter - slow down the monkey mind. How do we do this? To quiet the mind we say, give the monkey a banana. This means to use breathing do calm the mind - the breath is the banana. If the mind is very active, you...

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"You're There, But You're Not There"

Posted by Javier Rodriguez on

"You're There, But You're Not There"

 "You are there, but you are not there." This is how my my teacher, Dr. Yang, describes the semi-sleeping state. When sitting, we are creating the conditions to drop into this state. It cannot be force, and it is a skill to be cultivated. It's like flying a kite and allowing the string to stretch as far as it can while still keeping control. This is similar to riding that line of the waking and the sleep state.For thousands of years, Chinese have known that alongside our visible world (Yang) there exists an invisible world (Yin). This world in not...

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Why Sit?

Posted by Javier Rodriguez on

Why Sit?

People always ask me what is essential. What do I need to practice every day? So why do we sit? Sitting brings us to the root of mind, root of body and motivation. My response is always, what is your why? What is your goal? This will give you an idea of what to practice, what is essential.For many people relaxation is what is needed. With all the things that make up our to-do list, it seems difficult to find time for self. What does that mean? Why do we need time for self? Well, spending time with just the...

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Meditate On the GO!!

Posted by Javier Rodriguez on

Meditate On the GO!!

Quick! Hurry up! Sit, breathe and find inner peace. Here's how to meditate in a rush. Get comfortable. Establish your posture. And take 3-5 breaths. Make them count! Engage your abdomen, and extend each inhale and exhale without making yourself tense.Breathe so that the exhale resembles that of a sigh. A sigh is how we naturally release tension. So all you need to do is sit and string a few together. If you can do that, you can settle your energy. If you can do that you can settle your mind and be at peace.Try it and let me know...

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WWMS (What Would Mother Say)

Posted by Javier Rodriguez on

WWMS (What Would Mother Say)

This is segment is from Mothers' Day 2017.  On this Mother's Day I'm reflective. I'm just thinking that all the drama in the world, where are the mothers? I ask you, "where is your mother?" What would she say? This is a great Question to ask yourself anytime you are not sure about an action. In addition this is a great question to ask a friend, at the moment prior to taking an action they might regret. I'm also curious about the use of the word - premeditated. We see it often used for a crime. Even in the dictionary...

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