I’ve tried to meditate. I mean, I’ve tried sitting cross-legged with my hands on my knees, eyes closed, breathing deeply. I’ve tried laying in a dark room and listening to the CD of tones someone once gave me when I did an article on a New Agey-wellness center outside of Buffalo.
It doesn’t work. The harder I try to clear my head, the more my mind races with thoughts that are anything but calming.
But I’ve realized recently that even though I can’t meditate in the traditional way, I do meditate regularly (if not every day). Last Saturday, my book club met to discuss Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. The woman who suggested the book is Indian and Hindu. When the conversation turned to the pray part of the book (which, for those who haven’t read it, is actually meditation), I talked about how I can’t meditate the traditional way, but that my thoughts clear and my best creative ideas come to me when I exercise, especially outside. I said I realized that is my own way of meditating, and I think I get the same results as those who can sit still in a quiet room and concentrate on a mantra.
And the Hindu doctor in the room told me that I was, in fact, meditating. She said (and I consider her an expert) there are thousands of ways one can meditate, and there really is no right way or wrong way.
I decided to write about this today because my friend Leslee wrote her blog today about how much she hates cleaning. As I read it, I thought about how much I actually enjoy cleaning. I don’t know if it’s because I have to concentrate on one thing, if it’s the white noise of the vacuum or the repetitiveness involved, but cleaning has a Zen affect on my mind. I go into a zone and my head clears and I make a lot of important decisions while scrubbing toilets, folding clothes, mopping the kitchen or washing dishes (I don’t use my dishwasher, it doesn’t get anything clean).
I can’t be comfortable in a messy house. It drives me insane. It’s too chaotic and disorganized. I can’t be creative or useful in a room with items strewn about the floor or in a house where dishes litter the counter. My grandmother would be proud. My mother would probably be mortified that she raised someone with anal retentive qualities. But it is who I am.
And it’s a good thing. Because meditation or prayer, I think, are essential to emotional and mental health and overall happiness with one’s life, no matter what state it may be in. And if I can get that through exercise and cleaning, well, there are worse things, right?
Can you come meditate at my house? Please?
I actually did some cleaning for someone once for money between jobs. I enjoyed it a lot. I should just start a housecleaning business.
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/silananda/bl137.html
also, when you meditate, your mind doesn’t necessarily stop. the point of meditation is to realize you are not your thoughts. if thoughts continue to flow while meditating, treat the thoughts as if you were watching clouds in the sky. thoughts are actually valuable things, we solve problems with thoughts, we create with thoughts. we need thoughts to survive. so don’t become discouraged and think you’re not meditating if you’re still thinking.
It’s not so much that I think as it is WHAT I think. When I try to meditate, stupid things start jumping into my head. When I clean or exercise, useful things come into my head.
My meditation teacher calls those thoughts “stress bubbles” and it’s great when they pop up and get out of there. I get some really good ideas when I am mowing the lawn. I actually do LOVE to mow the lawn, except for the heat part of it. But the housework…yuck! And it sucks that my husband was raised by someone just like you and doesn’t seem to get why I don’t want to clean the house everyday.
Aw! Poor Mark.
Your house wasn’t bad when I was there. I kind of expect a little clutter if someone has small children. When Emma was little, it was nearly impossible to keep things truly neat.
walking, any kind of movement, is great for meditation. when i did walking meditation, poems would appear in my head, i needed a little tape recorder, but never managed to capture them.
walking meditation is awesome. i should do it again.
See? There’s a reason to exercise. And you can record your thoughts in your cell phone.