Meditation Matters
Meditation, a centuries-old practice, has re-gained its popularity over the past few years, particularly during the pandemic. I myself never naturally acclimated to the practice of mediation in the traditional sense of sitting in one spot for a lengthy period, yet as a reform rabbi, I have found aspects of Jewish prayer lay parallel to personal meditation techniques. As Dawn Groves, author of Meditation for Busy People writes, “meditation should be a daily practice like brushing your teeth”, and thus, meditation should become a habit we can easily introduce into our day either through a simple walk outside or just basking in few minutes of "you" time. Groves perpetuates the importance of mini-meditations as something we can utilize in sixty-second bouts to achieve a place of calm and serenity.
Meditation is a resource that allows us to dig deep in our souls to search for the unknown or often, to obtain the tranquility we hope for. When we meditate, we stop and listen and allow for the activity in our minds and hearts to, in a sense, speak for us. Our psyche is on auto-pilot and when we find the quiet in the brain this allows us to hear more, see more, and connect with the inner-self. Silence allows us to be more aware and more in-tune with our life, our surroundings, and our truth. Through meditation, we travel within ourselves to explore, learn, develop, and commit to our dreams. When we listen the to silence found in meditation, we embrace the chance to gain a greater perspective of the world around us, and from there, we learn about the importance of vulnerability.
When we look deep into our dreams or moments of silent thought, our answers become more visible and thus we become more cognizant of the greater world around us. All we must do is be open to listening from within.
In life, you will face challenges you thought impossible. Yet, when you overcame them you recognized your strength was stronger than imagined.
Meditation allows us to believe in ourselves when we feel hopeless and lost, therefore, meditation is the prescription for healing and growth. When a friend of mine faced the rigors of a life matter perpetrated by loss and grief, it was at their lowest moment they found faith in hope. While meditation remains by their side, having access to Judaic prayers can help one prevail and shine, as it has done for them.
The power of prayer and meditation helps us remove a judgmental lens of others but most important, of self.
When we allow our minds to sit and reflect, we are reminded of our compassion and Judaic commandment to help others, even the strongest of souls, such as my friend. May meditation and prayer be a reminder to hold fast the thoughts of love and care over ego and reckless judgment. May our hearts be in-sync with the goodness and richness of our Judaic values. As transcribed in The Talmud, Rabbi Ammi said “Man’s prayer is not accepted unless he puts his heart in his hands.” And so, I ask you all to put your heart in your hands towards greater acts of kindness and to utilize the transformative power of meditation as the key to becoming a better version of yourself. We are innately imperfect humans but together we can become better people through love, prayer, and meditation.
In meditation, we can also learn so much about our relationships with ourselves and others; happy, sad, distant, or connected…each an expression of the same language. In my following post stay tuned for my thoughts on relationship building and its sacredness.
A few meditations practices I implore you to explore:
- Take a walk in nature
- Sit by the beach, lake, or whichever landscape you are near
- Write in a journal each day
- Rabbi Merle E. Singer
