Are memories of the past dragging you down and interfering with your ability to move on? Is there an old lover that you heart can’t move away from, or a recent job loss that is weighing heavily in your thoughts? This meditation will assist you with releasing emotional wounds and the mental baggage that often accompanies that “stuck” feeling we sometimes find ourselves stranded in.
The reason why it is often hard to let go of the past is because these memories have emotional pain associated with them. So not only are there visual memories, but additionally physical pain that has further ingrained the past into your psyche. Keeping the memories of the past alive by lifestyle patterns, old habits, or waiting for that phone call, makes it difficult for you to see the opportunities that await. When stuck in this situation, you are hindered from receiving or recognizing a divine moment that may give you the chance to move forward and begin to heal.
If you are stuck in a painful past, try this meditation to help you pack for a trip into the future.
1. Close your eyes. Sitting comfortably, or lying down, take several deep, calming breaths until you feel the daily worries and to-do list escape your thoughts. You are left with an intense focus on your breath and a clear mind.
2. Begin to recall any or all emotional memories from your past. It can be one specific focus area in your life, such as a bad break-up, or it could be a variety of memories of strained childhood pains that developed into a lifetime of difficulties. Whatever issues anger you, whenever you feel that “grrrr” forming inside, it is time to bring that hidden emotion to the surface to dispose of it for good!
3. Visualize these feelings and emotions as different pieces of luggage. Perhaps the most old and beat-up suit case has been packed around since early childhood. Maybe there is a newer, fancy piece of luggage that will be much easier to dispose of, since the attachment is not as great. See these different pieces of luggage as “baggage” that you drag around wherever you may go. Notice the broken handles from years of lugging them around, and tattered or duct-taped corners to prolong wear. Some may have been locked years ago and the key has gone missing. What does your baggage look like?
4. How in the world have you been able to transport all of this baggage, all of these years, alone?
5. It is time to lighten your load! Begin to realize that most of the pain and anger you are harboring arose from events that occurred years ago and has been processed, yet you are still carting around the residual emotions. The actual processing of the initial situation has been dealt with, and what remains is the stagnant, limiting energy that is ready to toss.
6. Thank each bag for the lessons and service they have offered, but it is now time to let them go.
7. Take a road trip and dispose of these bags in various locations. Go ahead… Chuck the heaviest bag (the relationship bag?) off the Golden Gate Bridge and visualize it splashing into the sea. Climb to the top of a volcano and toss a piece of luggage into the swirling lava and watch it burn. Maybe you want to take a hot air balloon ride and toss the bags off the side of the basket, one-by-one, and watch your balloon soar higher as you remove the excess weight. Begin to visualize yourself getting rid of the individual pieces of luggage, as you dispose of the old wounds.
8. Notice the smile that begins to appear on your face while performing this meditation. Recognize how much lighter you feel.
9. Breathe deeply and relax into the new, lighter you. Begin to see new possibilities in front of you, and the new future that awaits.
All of us have something in our past that has been an emotional set-back and getting past the associated pain can seem impossible. After completing this exercise and beginning to recognize new possibilities that await, you will be on the road to recovery in no time, with a new set of luggage in tow.
