Of Greatest Value

Of greatest value: 

of greatest value to me, essential to my morning routine, is meditation, a mantra based practice I've faithfully performed upon waking for over 25 years, and now teach this method to others. Really. my routine is pretty seamless, a casual flow of small action that lead directly to the next without any sense of hurry and no emphasis placed on importance. Each one is beneficial to me, and in their own way, each brings me a certain joy through the ritual of my morning. 

yet meditation seems essential to this joy.

it's of greatest value to my morning. 

what I find is that everything's linked to this practice, that my early Sun Salutation stretches my body and allows for me to sit longer, more comfortably, and eases my mind towards a deeper silence. Pranayama, specifically Breath of Fire wakes me more fully, prepares me the day ahead, and erases the grogginess of a 4:00 a.m rise. All of this leads to sitting, although I find myself cherishing their role with a sense of contribution to a continuous whole, as the entire day hinges on the small joy of their performance. Again, it's all a seamless practice, a meditation that starts with early rise and never truly ends. 

my sitting practice itself is easy, purposely so, it's not a practice of concentration, there's no strain involved. It's not even a repetition of mantra, it's just a thought, a vibration that leads towards a letting go, a process that happens completely on its own. There's no force here, the mantra is loosely held, remembered gently even as they mind roams. It's returned to as a simple pleasure and then let go. What happens is that I gradually sink below the surface of the mind, thoughts no longer a concern, the mantra now being just a faint impression, an echoing vibration. 

meditation happens on its own. 

and this all leads of writing, part of my morning practice for as long as I've been meditating. This truly might be the most joyful aspect of the day, finding myself immersed in creative play, with words released from their silent hold through my time of meditation. My joy of writing, the ready inspiration that seems to so easily appear as my fingers reach the keyboards - there was a time when none of this was so, frustration and a demand for words to show was very often the order of the day. Meditation set my creative mind free, gave me a sense of true and ever present inspiration. 

it's been of greatest value. 

of course this is only my practice, my own morning routine, and it's offered here as lyrical prose, not a prescription for others to follow. We each find our own way to joy, or perhaps life shows us the way, waking us with an urge uniquely our own. This is my way, personal,and it's truly been a gift, unfolding in a deeper sense with every morning, an eagerness to be awake, creative, inspired. There is a way that brings us all to this same joy, it's already present, whispering its secrets the first moment that we wake...

listen, 

it's of greatest value. 

~

Peace, Eric