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Guided Meditation,
Chants & Mantras
Guided meditation, chants and mantras make excellent tools to help you focus in qigong/chi kung. They provide auditory and visualization stimuli that help you relax and focus your concentration as you meditate. For many practitioners in meditation, it is very difficult to empty one's mind of all thoughts and distractions. In Chinese we liken it to "stilling running horses:" It seems, the more you try, the more distractions intrude, and your thoughts keep running around, out of control, like wild horses. That is why most beginners find chi kung/qigong that consists of dynamic movements to be particularly beneficial when having something on which to focus. Another way to get around the problem is to provide repetitive chants or images for the mind to focus on. Instead of emptying the mind of all thoughts — a more difficult process — provide a target for the mind to latch onto. Indian yogis believe these mantras not only have special meaning but resonate at certain frequencies that help entrain our brain. These frequencies, they believe, are the frequencies of creation. "Om" is the most often used mantra because it is the sound of creation. What are mantras? They are simply repetitive chants that have special meaning and resonance. But remember, these chants and mantras do alter brainwave patterns and resulting states of consciousness, making you susceptible to suggestion and trance-like states. Do not listen to them when driving a vehicle or operating potentially hazardous machinery. Please read the Disclaimer before undertaking any of the practices given here and elsewhere on this website.
Guided meditation can provide sensual imagery that can satisfy all five senses, while guiding you through the process of meditation. Depending on the words, they can be designed for specific types of meditation, for example, for the purpose of relaxation, past life regression and recall, improving concentration, or overcoming anxieties, and a whole lot more. Here is a little known poem that I often use for meditating on past lives: Time Ranoiri (My Law)
The Sun may be clouded, yet ever the Sun
will sweep on its course till the cycle has run.
And when into chaos the system is hurled,
again shall the Builder reshape a new world.
Your path may be clouded, uncertain your goal;
Move on — for your orbit is fixed by your soul.
And though it may lead into darkness of night
the torch of the Builder shall give us new light.
You were, You will be! Know this while you are:
Your spirit has travelled both long and afar.
It came from the source, to the source it returns.
The Spark which was lighted eternally burns.
It slept in a jewel, it leapt in a wave.
It roamed in a forest, it rose from a grave.
It took on strange garbs for long aeons of years
and now in the soul of yourself it appears.
From body to body your spirit speeds on,
it seeks a new form when the old one has gone
and the form that it finds is the fabric you wrought
ont the loom of the mind, from the fibre of thought.
As dew is drawn upward, is rain to descend,
your thoughts drift away and in Destiny blend.
You cannot escape them for petty or great
or evil or noble, they fashion your fate.
Somewhere on some planet: some time or somehow
your life will reflect your thoughts of your Now.
MY LAW is unerring, no blood can atone —
the structure you built, you'll live in alone.
From cycle to cycle, through time and through space
your lives, with your longing will ever keep pace,
and all that you ask for and all you desire
must come at your bidding, and flame out of fire.
Once listen to that Voice and all tumult is done —
Your life is the Life of the Infinite one.
In the hurrying race you're conscious of pause
with love for the purpose and love for the cause.
You are your own Devil, you are your own God,
you fashioned the path your footsteps have trod.
And no-one can save you from Evil or Sin
until you have harked to the Spirit within.Attributed to a Maori Or they can be very general, such as the following:
Breathe in relaxation.
Breathe out restfulness.
Discard the artificial and manmade
Embrace peace, solitude, with Nature
From Chaos, comes Order
Chi, God's Breath of Life
Flowing through you and throughout all Creation
The One breathes Life to Yin and Yang
And then to Spawn a Myriad of Creations
Breathe in Life and Creation.
Breathe out calm and serenity.
You, created in His Image, Mirroring the Universe
A Microcosm within the Macrocosm
Let the chi flow strong within you and throughout.
Embrace Mindfulness.
Exude healing energy.
When you sublimate the self, you become whole with the Universe.
Trust in your Conscience: God's voice speaks out.
Practice wuwei, nothingness, path to taiji, the Grand Ultimate
Inhale wisdom and humility.
Exhale truth and understanding
Life after Life, we spin out our Karma
In God's image, eternity everlasting, so is our Essence.
Mindful of Tao, the microcosm within the macrocosm.
Inhale quietness.
Exhale serenity.
Letting go to reach control. From Chaos evolves Order
Let go of the Self to achieve perfect harmony and union with Tao
Be forever at peace with all that resonates true in Nature.
If you are an auditory person, meditation chants, mantras, the beat of a metronome or a ticking clock provide repetitive sounds that can be ideal stimuli to "occupy" a distracted mind.There are many Buddhist mantras that you can use. Three kinds of mantras I teach my students also help synchronize their breathing: - so heng, meaning "I am."
Mentally say these words slowly in your mind: so as you breathe in, and heng as you breathe out. This mantra is ideal when you are breathing in and out through your nostrils, your tongue resting in a natural position just against your upper teeth and palate, and your lips pressed closed together. - heng sa
Just as in the so heng mantra, mentally chant heng as you inhale, and sa as you exhale, at the same time resting your tongue against the upper palate. - heng ha
This mantra is used when you are inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth. (See Yogic Breathing for Runners). Mentally chant heng as you inhale through the nostrils and ha as you breathe out through the mouth.
You can even create your own affirmations that you can use in repeating chants. For example, "Slow and deep," to remind you of your breathing, or "Serene and relaxed." Try to use words that have soft consonants, as the softer sounds are more compatible with the flow of vital chi energy. Auditory stimuli is not for everyone. Even though I have gotten used to using repetitive meditation chants and mantras, I still find the sound of a metronome or a ticking clock somewhat distracting. Repetitive sounds of ocean waves seem to be more relaxing for me, but for another chi kung/qigong classmate, it reminds him of motion sickness and stormy seas! So for your own meditation, you be the judge. Try out different kinds of guided meditation, chants and mantras. One meditation chant may affect you differently from another, just as one guided meditation will work for you in a way another does not. The only way to know is to experiment.
Please read Disclaimer before embarking on any of the qigong exercises!
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