Heidi said,
I’ve been raised with one religion my whole life. My parents basically sent me to parochial schools and forced me to observe rituals, holidays and laws that didn’t resonate with me. I tried to explore other sects of this religion, which I hoped could provide more spirituality and less dogma. My spiritual search led me to a type of Buddhism that requires chanting. I began seeing things more clearly, not blaming others for my problems, and learning self-reliance. But I stopped really seeing/believing in God. Now, I am straying from the Buddism as well because it’s so aggressive and peace movement-based. I don’t want to stop chanting because I see results, but I do want to connect with my spirit source. I wonder if silent meditation could help. What do you think I should try?
Dear Heidi,
This is a great question! It sounds like your upbringing and search are weeding out all of the things that may work for others but not for you. Connection with a spirit source is consistent; it never goes away/ We can’t stop it, nor can we slow it down … It is the source! The best we can do is ignore it, it is always there, it is our choice to accept it or not.
Chanting hasn’t stopped you from “really seeing/believing in God.” Chanting is merely creating a sound vibration and sending it down inside the body. By directing the sound to each of the 7 major energy centers (known as chakras), one at a time, chanting actually helps increase the speed at which the center vibrates. Think of the chakras as a built-in storage unit we all have within our energy fields. We store all of our memories in the chakra system. For some reason, we choose to store the hardest memories deep into the back corners, and we tend to forget they are there. The more we have stored, the slower our vibration. Chanting is an effective way of disrupting the slow energy with blasts of high-vibrating energy.
I feel you are in the process of a healing, a letting go of the past. The energy has been disturbed in its storage place by the vibration of the sound. It would serve you to continue with the chanting practice you started or any other form of meditation. You can mix in guided meditation one day and active or silent meditation on another day. There are no rules except to be consistent in the act. Set aside 20 minutes everyday and make a commitment to do some form of meditation.
If you find yourself in judgment of others, focus awareness on your feet. What do they feel like in your shoes? Can you feel the texture of your socks? What does your foot feel like as it connects with the earth? This process will bring you into an active state of meditation, to the present, and you will view the situation without personal opinion — no judgment. Judgment of self or others only slows the vibration of your energy field.
I hope this helps you!
In love and light,
Claire ext. 5242
