Dear Integral Meditators,
Meditating with your internal organs is a tradition of mindfulness that comes primarily from Qi gong, however there is good reason for everyone to be interested in it as the benefits are so extensive both physically, psychologically and spiritually.
The article below explores some of the focus points and benefits of the practice, and how to start. Enjoy!
Beneath the article are all the events for November, starting with this week’s Samhain Meditation (Live & Online) – Acknowledging the gifts and wounds of our ancestors, on Tuesday & Wednesday.
In the spirit of strength-in-your-centre,
Toby
Working mindfully with your stomach energy
Acknowledging & appreciating your stomach
Our body is working hard for us all the time, different organs doing different jobs. All of them depend upon the energy that our stomach and digestion make available to us by processing our food. Reflecting on this naturally brings us into a state of appreciation for our stomach, and the importance of it as a lynch pin that enables almost everything we do in our life. Like our other organs however, we often only notice our stomach when it stops working or becomes ill. If we start to acknowledge our stomach, extending some warmth and cherishing to it we discover that we can look after and build the strength of the stomach through mindfulness, thus avoiding it becoming imbalanced in the first place. Health is something that we can co- create with our organs, as they respond to our care and attention.
The importance of the location and psychological energy of your stomach
The anatomical location of our stomach is right in the literal centre of our torso. The way in which our stomach feels affects our overall sense of strength, out posture, our confidence. Quite often we store our stress and anxiety in our stomach, hence the expression “I have butterflies in my stomach” when nervous for example. If our stored stress and anxiety is sitting right in the centre of our being, this can be a substantial dis-advantage. Regularly checking in with the stomach can help us to take care of and release the anxiety, and replace it with balanced, confident energy. This in turn can affect all sorts of things:
- Our physical posture
- Our emotional range
- Our comfort in our own skin
- The way we think and relate to the world
Clearing out your stomach energetically
As well as extending appreciation to the stomach as described above, we can also work with it energetically. Here is an example:
Focusing on your stomach, imagine it surrounded by a bright yellow ball of light. As you breathe in imagine this ball becoming bright and powerful. As you breathe out, feel its energy cleansing your stomach, helping it to relax and release anxiety and other stored inbalanced energy. After you have done this for a while, then do the same breathing pattern, but imagining building the energy of confidence, self-trust and resilience in your stomach. This makes the centre of your torso feel strong and robust, so that your body and posture has a centre-point that it can rely on. Try this for a week for five minutes per day and notice for yourself the difference that starts to manifest within you.
Other area that benefit from working on your stomach
Work on your stomach also affects your pancreas, gall bladder and digestion as well, so any focus on the stomach also works implicitly on these particular organs.
Concluding thoughts
Mindfulness of the body is a foundational practice for many traditions of meditation. Working with particular organs specifically can make the practice both more varied and increase the range of benefits. Working with the stomach is one example of starting to access the potential of this type of work.
Related articles: Meditating with your internal organs
Lighting up your pathways – Helping your brain to help you
© Toby Ouvry 2022, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com
Tues 1st & Weds 2nd November, 7.30pm – Samhain Meditation (Live & Online) – Acknowledging the gifts and wounds of our ancestors
Samhain (Aka All hallows eve, or Halloween) is the time in the northern hemisphere when we enter the darker months of the year & winter. Traditionally it is said to be the time when the veil between the world of the living and the inner world of our ancestors is said to be thinnest. Consequently, it is an ideal time for us to commune with our ancestors in meditation. In this meditation, we shall focus upon… Read full details
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Tues 1st & Weds 2nd November, 7.30pm – Samhain Meditation (Live & Online) – Acknowledging the gifts and wounds of our ancestors
Saturday November 12th, 9.30-12noon – Zen deep-dive mini-retreat
Tues & Weds 25th/26th October, 7.30pm – Deepavali Meditation – Connecting to your inner light
Saturday November 26th, 9.30-11.30am – Monthly Qi Gong & Taoist Breathwork Clinic & Mini-retreat
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