Several readers have written in asking what I mean by meditation when I say the Lenten season is about “prayer, meditation, fasting, and service.” Do I mean “sitting in a room, legs crossed, chanting some mantra?”
Here is a rough explanation. I am sure many of you have a better one, and please send it in as a comment to this post.
Meditation is not a special posture, or a specific set of mental exercises. To me, meditation is the cultivation of awareness and mindfulness, and the actual practice of them once cultivated. You don’t have to sit to meditate, although at times it is helpful to me to be in a comfortable place. However, one can meditate walking in a park, while washing the dishes or dusting, or listening to music. I often meditate in the shower or when writing the Hubbell Pew.
Meditation is awareness, and when fully cultivated is applied to each and every activity of one’s life. It’s a turning on of all our senses to full volume and capacity, so we capture every thing that is going on around us.
Meditation is not easy, but its benefits are beyond description.
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