1.Compare and contrast the Loving Kindness exercise and the
Subtle mind exercise. Explain your experience including the benefits,
frustrations etc.
I like the subtle more because it was just that subtle. I didn’t feel like I had to focus too much on
any one thing. Where as with the loving
kindness exercise, I had to focus on absorbing the negative of others.
2.Discuss the connection of the spiritual wellness to mental
and physical wellness. Explain how the connection is manifested in your
personal life.
I find that when I am physically or mentally low, I turn to
my religious upbringing for peace and calm.
Going through the prayers and repeating the rosary is a healing balm at
times. I find if I attend church on a
regular basis it seems to help even out my mind and in turn my body(health). When my mind and health are good I tend to
forget about the spiritual. I don’t know
why that happens or maybe could it be that the spiritual is taken care of if
the mind and body are healthy? I think so.
Being raised with a heavy church schedule has caused me to have guilt feelings about some of my decisions in the past. I finally realized that not going to a formal Sunday service doesn't determine my relationship with God. I'm thankful for the base I have but we need to grow from there and I have and I'm glad my teachings say "don't throw stones"!
ReplyDeleteHi Karen,
DeleteI'm with you in that I don't feel like I need the trappings of formal organized religion in order to feel connected and express myself spiritually.
What did you think about the Subtle Mind exercise? It was a bit tougher for me than the Loving-Kindness meditation, but I think it was probably because I wasn't in the best frame of mind.
Deb
Hi Tammy,
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting you found the Subtle Mind exercise easier because you didn't need to focus on one thing so much. I found it the other way around! I really felt the lack of something to focus on in the Subtle Mind exercise, and my mind kept wandering. I don't know if it's the nature of the meditation itself that was more challenging for me, or the fact I'd had a bad day and was feeling irritable and somewhat anxious.
You bring up an interesting point, that you turn to the spiritual more when something is wrong, but not so much when your health is good. I think that's pretty common - we tend to turn towards religion when we need comfort, after all. I notice that my physical health is affected if I am not spiritually right, so it's the other way around for me.
Deb