Corcentrum Meditation
Feeding your brain involves more than just the food you eat, but the activities that you do. One of the most beneficial is meditation. There are many different styles of meditation: mantra, visualization, kriya, mindfulness… the list goes on and on. In my own practice of over 15 years, I have found that different meditations are good for different things. At this point, the important things that I want meditation to do for me are 1) to help me relax, 2) to bring me into deeper engagement with my life, 3) to provide more self-understanding and emotional growth. Towards this end, I have created something called Corcentrum Meditation. This is a technique that brings a person into a non-judgmental, body-centered awareness, in a way that is deeply nurturing. Here is the basic idea: Find the center between the top of your head and the bottom of your pelvic bones. This is normally located in the lower chest. Horizontally, it is midway between the front of your chest and your back, and centered from side to side. With this point as your focus, breathe in deeply, naturally and easefully. Allow the breath to flow over this point, and to expand your chest from front to back. With a slightly deeper breath, your lower abdomen and back expand. And ultimately, your pelvic muscles expand into the chair. On the outbreath, relax, and allow yourself to feel that same expansion in your neck and head, so that you are more aware of the space that your body occupies, from front to back. If thoughts arise, simply acknowledge that they are present, and return to the technique. Sit with this practice for a few minutes, and observe how you feel, what you think, and what you sense. Let me know what you experience!
