Standing Meditation
Standing meditation is best learned from trees. Stand close to one, or, better still, in a stand of trees and just peer out in one direction. During Loving Kindness Meditation, nurture empathy and goodwill. Embrace warmth and kindness towards oneself and others. Remain rooted, connected to your breath; observe your surroundings before you, or with closed eyes, attune to the sensations of your environment. Sense the tree closest to you. Listen to it, feel its presence, touch it with your mind and body. Use your breath to help you to stay in the moment … feeling your own body standing, breathing, being, moment by moment.
When mind or body first signals that perhaps it is time to move on, stay with the standing a while longer, remembering that trees stand still for years, occasionally lifetimes if they are fortunate. See if they do not have something to teach you about stillness and about being in touch. After all, they are touching the ground with roots and trunk, the air with trunk and branches, sunlight and the wind with their leaves; everything about a standing tree speaks of being in touch. Experiment with standing this way yourself, even for short periods of time. Work at being in touch with the air on your skin, the feel of the feet in contact with the ground, the sounds of the world, the dance of light and color and shadow, the dance of the mind.
TRY: Standing like this wherever you find yourself, in the woods, in the mountains, by a river, in your living room, or just waiting for the bus. When you are alone, you might try opening your palms to the sky and holding your arms out in various positions, like branches and leaves, accessible, open, receptive, patient.
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