I was introduced to the Early Morning Meditation in Findhorn by Angus Marland, a long term community member. Angus held the focus for the Main Sanctuary in Findhorn for a very long time. He told me, 'we are making a Field.' I didn't know what he was talking about when he first mentioned this to me. I started going to the early morning meditations, starting at 6.30 am and lasting for one hour in 2014. At first I could not even sit straight for the whole hour. But after a week or two of falling asleep, my body learned to stay awake. At first I sat on a chair to support my back. When I learned to stay awake, I could then sit on a 'zafu' a meditation cushion, like the one in the photo above, for a whole hour. Then the magic started to happen.
At first my mind was so noisy. My head was a chatter-box of constant talk, talk, talk. I learned to let my mind have its way, to say everything it wants to say. Then came a moment of perfect silence, a touch of profound space. I noticed it and welcomed it to my 'being.' In the summer time, I went to the early morning meditation in the Main Sanctuary almost every day, five days a week. It is easier here, in the far north (57 degrees North) to be up early in the summer, than in the winter. With constant 'turning up' and practice the quality of the silence and my contact with the 'source' kept growing. The practice of early morning meditation has had a noticeable impact on the quality of my daily life. Sometimes I would grow tired during the day because of the early morning start. I also had to sleep earlier than before. These minor adjustments were definitely worth the exchange. I felt like I had reached a gold-mine inside me during the long, quiet, and peaceful morning meditations.
When the fires came to swallow our Sanctuary in April 2021, I was a Sanctuary holder, which meant I would arrive 10-15 minutes before the others to light the candle, open the curtains, sit down quietly to hold the space for our hour long meditation. I also marked the hour by ringing the bell at the start and end of the hour. The early morning meditation is held in complete silence. So I didn't need to think about what to say, or not to say to the other community meditators or guests. Since that Monday morning in April, we didn't have a home for our community practice. No early morning meditation was held for the community, although the 8.35 am meditations were held both in the Singing Chamber, and in the Universal Hall, sometimes simultaneously.
I am excited to say that we will resume our practice from tomorrow morning. I have re-organised my massage practice room, to make it available for our golden hour of meditation from 7.00 - 7.50. We will experiment with the time and place, until it will find a form that will work for us.
Recently I've been introduced to Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche. I've listened to this talk of his at the London School of Economics in August 2019. He explains the process of meditation in a humorous and easy-to-relate-to way. It is 1:44:40 long. A great help to re-start our early morning practice here in Findhorn. You can think of anything except for cheese, beens, chips. Have fun with this great teacher and your own golden hour of space and time for your mind, body, and spirit.
At first my mind was so noisy. My head was a chatter-box of constant talk, talk, talk. I learned to let my mind have its way, to say everything it wants to say. Then came a moment of perfect silence, a touch of profound space. I noticed it and welcomed it to my 'being.' In the summer time, I went to the early morning meditation in the Main Sanctuary almost every day, five days a week. It is easier here, in the far north (57 degrees North) to be up early in the summer, than in the winter. With constant 'turning up' and practice the quality of the silence and my contact with the 'source' kept growing. The practice of early morning meditation has had a noticeable impact on the quality of my daily life. Sometimes I would grow tired during the day because of the early morning start. I also had to sleep earlier than before. These minor adjustments were definitely worth the exchange. I felt like I had reached a gold-mine inside me during the long, quiet, and peaceful morning meditations.
When the fires came to swallow our Sanctuary in April 2021, I was a Sanctuary holder, which meant I would arrive 10-15 minutes before the others to light the candle, open the curtains, sit down quietly to hold the space for our hour long meditation. I also marked the hour by ringing the bell at the start and end of the hour. The early morning meditation is held in complete silence. So I didn't need to think about what to say, or not to say to the other community meditators or guests. Since that Monday morning in April, we didn't have a home for our community practice. No early morning meditation was held for the community, although the 8.35 am meditations were held both in the Singing Chamber, and in the Universal Hall, sometimes simultaneously.
I am excited to say that we will resume our practice from tomorrow morning. I have re-organised my massage practice room, to make it available for our golden hour of meditation from 7.00 - 7.50. We will experiment with the time and place, until it will find a form that will work for us.
Recently I've been introduced to Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche. I've listened to this talk of his at the London School of Economics in August 2019. He explains the process of meditation in a humorous and easy-to-relate-to way. It is 1:44:40 long. A great help to re-start our early morning practice here in Findhorn. You can think of anything except for cheese, beens, chips. Have fun with this great teacher and your own golden hour of space and time for your mind, body, and spirit.