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COMING HOME. AN INTRODUCTION TO CHRISTIAN MEDITATION 7 weeks course Extracted from the ‘COMING HOME’ RESOURCES BOOK TO INTRODUCE MEDITATION ACCORDING TO THE CHRISTIAN TRADITION Compiled and edited by Kim N ataraja – International Coordinator of the School of M editation
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COMING HOME AN INTRODUCTION TO CHRISTIAN MEDITATION7 weekscourse Extractedfromthe ‘COMING HOME’ RESOURCES BOOK TO INTRODUCE MEDITATION ACCORDING TO THE CHRISTIAN TRADITION Compiled and editedby Kim Nataraja – International Coordinator of theSchool of Meditation Design and extractbyMarina Müller WCCM / Argentina meditacion.cristiana.grupos@gmail.com www.meditacioncristianagrupos.blogspot.com
Each meeting includes a presentation with comments of the group leader, followed by a 30 minutes meditation, and finally a session of questions and answers First meeting
CONTENTS • WhatisMeditationaccordingtothe Christian tradition? • Twodoves: symbol of Christian Meditation • Whatisprayer? • TheWorldCommunityfor Christian Meditation
Meditation = meditatio, “remain at the center” • Meditare = meletan, “torepeat” • Forancient Christian monksitwastorepeat a portion of theScriptures as taughtby a teachertohis /herdisciples • MeditatingontheScripturesmeanttomemorize and repeatthem in ordertofocustheattention, heart and mind in one-pointedconcentration, leadingtosilence and innerattention • Torepeatonly a wordorphrasefromtheScripturesdispels “theriches of thinking” and cultivates “ thepoverty of heart”
INTRODUCTION • John Main is the founder of a Community within the wider context of Christianity. • He proposes a way back to the basics of the Christian experience, the prayer of the heart, the experience of Christ within, the Spirit who dwells within us. • Meditation and its teaching are "caught” rather than "taught." It is a personal communication, that begs to be shared and is based in the meditative experience. • To teach always means at the same time to learn. Teachers are students and students are teachers.
You have to think: Why do I want to meditate?We must want to meditate. This should be something you have a hunger to do. We introduce a way that seeks silence stillness attention / simplicity It is a path of contemplative prayer through repetition of a "sacred word" or mantra: maranatha which means "Come, Lord" or "Lord, come”
TwodovesSymbol of theWorldCommunityfor Christian Meditation This symbol is inspired by a V century mosaic in GallaPlacidia, Ravenna.The dove drinking is a metaphor for the sacred. Water evokes the symbolism of baptism. It is the feminine principle in nature, associated with the all life-giving power. As wine, it becomes the blood of Christ.The dove is the symbol of the Holy Spirit. In Greek mythology, this image was the bird of love. The seven gifts of the Holy spirit as doves came to be represented as doves perched in the Tree of Life, drinking the waters of wisdom and eternal life.The chalice evokes the mystery of sacrifice, the heart of the Christian Eucharist, where the Son offers himself to the Father in the love of the Holy Spirit, and unites all the creation in his oblation.
The two birds suggest the underlying unity of the active and contemplative life in every human being. Martha and Mary, according to the Gospel, are inseparable sisters in the lives of all who worship God in the depths of their spirit. .
The Prayer´s WheelStillness in the Centre Prayer is the wheel that moves our life spiritually towards God.To turn, the wheel must make contact with the ground. If it does not touch the ground, it cannot move the cart; the wheel will just spin. So there must be a real time and place in our daily life dedicated to prayer. The spokes are the different forms of prayer. All forms of prayer are valid and produce results. The spokes converge at the hub, The hub is the prayer of Christ that dwells in our hearts.At the hub of the wheel there is stillness. Without the still point at the center, the wheel cannot turn. Meditation is coming to stillness at the center of our being.
What is Prayer? When we meditate, we achieve stillness at the center of our being, the source of all our actions, our movement to God through Christ within us.A definition of prayer is described as "the raising of the heart and mind to God." The mind is the organ of knowledge, the heart, the organ of love. Mental consciousness must eventually give way and open up to the fuller way of knowing which is heart consciousness. Because love is complete knowledge.Most of our training in prayer is limited to the mind. We were taught, as children, to say our prayers, asking God what we need for ourselves or for others. That's one half of the mystery of prayer.
The other half is the prayer of the heart where we are not thinking of God or talking to him or asking for anything. We just stay with God who dwells in us in the Holy Spirit given to us by Jesus.Meditation is the prayer of the heart that connects us with the human consciousness of Jesus in the Spirit.
Forfurtherinformation and contactwiththe WCCM: • www.wccm.com • welcome@wccm.org
We must go beyond the level of mental prayer, to reach the depths, where the very spirit of Jesus is praying in our hearts, in the deep silence of his union with our Father in the Holy Spirit. Contemplative prayer is the dimension of prayer to which we are called. This entails contemplative consciousness as lived in daily life. Meditation is part of the total mystery of the prayer of anyone who is seeking fullness of being. Meditation as a way of contemplativeprayer
Prayer is an essential part of a fully human life • If we do not pray, we are only half -alive and our faith is only half -developed. • Prayer is like a big wheel, which turns our whole life towards God. • We pray in different ways at different times. Different people prefer different forms of prayer. What makes these different forms Christian prayer is that they all are centered in Christ.
The central hub of the wheelis Jesus' own prayer Any form of prayer flows into and out of the spirit of Jesus, worshipping God in and on behalf of creation.
The wheel of prayer in the light of Faith At the hub of the wheel,at the center of prayer, is the stillness. Without stillness at the center, there could be no movement or growth in the circumference.Meditation is the work of finding and becoming one with that stillness, which is the hallmark of the Spirit. "Be still and know that I am God."
Contemplative prayer as opening to Jesus prayer Contemplation is the heart of Jesus' prayer and his communion of love with the Father, turning his attention toward the Father in the Holy Spirit.We do not express our needs to God either to inform God of what he does not know or to persuade him to change his mind. We pray to deepen our trust that God knows our needs, knows us and cares for us.Unless our faith is clear and deep, our prayer can easily stop in its development, stuck at the level of ego.For many Christians this is the crisis of their faith today, and reflects the often-shallow level of Christian spirituality.
Christian Meditation= ContemplativePrayer The prayer of the heart, contemplative prayer, or meditation, is essentially a prayer of faith.Silently we accept that God knows our needs, and that this knowledge is responsible for all Creation, that will eventually complete us.
Theessentialteaching 1 St. Paul says we don´t know how to pray, but the Spirit prays within us (Romans 8:26). We learn to pray not by trying to pray, but by giving up or letting go of our trying. And instead, learning to be.This paves the way for prayer of the heart, where we can find "the love of God flooding our inmost heart through the Holy Spirit given to us by Him" (Romans 6:5). This is pure experience, beyond thought, dogma and imagination.Meditation is an universal spiritual practice that leads us to the prayer of Christ. It leads us to silence, stillness and simplicity.
Theessentialteaching 2 As Christians, we meditate because we believe in the risen Christ, that he lives and lives within us. As disciples of Jesus, the Teacher within, we have faith when he calls us to put aside the concerns of the ego and to follow him into the Kingdom of God, to “share in the very being of God."Meditation has to do with being in relationship with Jesus.Jesus knew that he was both from and of the Father, who was in him.This self-awareness of Jesus leads us to recognize ourselves as temples of the Holy Spirit.We understand that we do not need to seek Jesus because Jesus has already found us.We do not choose, we are chosen.
Theessentialteaching 3 It is our faith that makes our meditation Christian, being focused on the human consciousness of Jesus, in our inner being. As Christians, we naturally meditate with other Christians, and our lives are guided and enriched in community by Scripture, the sacraments and the different ways of ministering to others in the love and compassion ofthe Spirit. Jesus, by his life, death and resurrection, has opened up for us a way to God and by sending the Holy Spirit to us, he has become our way and our guide. In meditation we look for the treasure within, we need to abandon everything to find it. It is "the hidden treasure in the field", as Jesus says in the parable of the Kingdom. We are called to experience Jesus in our life, in our spiritual journey and help pass on that tradition to others.
Theessentialteaching 4 Meditation is not a way to trying to accomplish something, of wanting to get somewhere, or of twisting God’s arm, as it were: "Not my will be done but thine be done." Meditation is about realizing, rather than acquiring. Realizing the indwelling presence of God, realizing what has already been achieved. It´s about leaving the goals aside. Jesus did not teach any particular method of prayer, but by what he says about prayer in the Sermon on the Mountain, we can see that meditation is entirely consistent with his teaching on prayer.
Theessentialteaching 5 Prayer must be interior. Jesus told us to go to "our private room" to pray in the "secret place". The "private room" is a metaphor for the inner chamber of the heart. (Matthew 6:5-6). Prayer is not about quantity, the amount of "prayers" do not matter- but about quality - "attention." (Matthew 6:7-8). Prayer is not first asking God for things, because "he knows what we need before we ask." (Matthew 6:8). We need to prioritize the spiritual treasures of the Kingdom rather than material well being. (Matthew 6:19-21). Anxiety is the enemy of prayer. It makes us too self-centered and prevents us from realizing the gift already deposited in love in our hearts.
Theessentialteaching 6 Jesus said that prayer is “to set your mind on the Kingdom of God first." In other words, pay attention to the "one thing necessary“. Then all the other things will come. (Matthew 6:33). In meditation we practice these seven teachings of Jesus on prayer: humility, interiority, silence, trust, spirituality, peace and care. In meditation we stop thinking of the past and the future and learn to live fully in the present moment. We do not need to master difficult techniques or theories We need only be comfortable and alert. This is what the mantra helps us to do.
What is Meditation? Meditation is a journey of self-knowledge and self-acceptance.This is the first essential step for any knowledge of God. It isn´t primarily an intellectual knowledge. It is reached by a deep harmony in the stillness of mind and body, because the body is part of the spiritual path to God. It is not an isolated or lonely journey. The solitude of meditation makes us realize the profound interdependence with others and therefore "meditation creates community." That´s why meditating in a group is very important. John Main saw the future Church as a Community. The spiritual renewal of Christianity will bring a new appreciation of prayer. Prayer is not talking or thinking about God, but to be with God, transcending our narrow and egocentric reality. The essence of Christian prayer is the human consciousness of Jesus worshipping God in the Spirit in the center of the human person.
Openingmind and heart In meditation, our way forward to this growing awareness of the Spirit praying within us lies in the deepening fidelity to the saying the mantra.The faithful repetition of our word integrates our whole being. It does this because it leads to silence, concentration, to the necessary level of consciousness to allow the opening of the mind and heart to the work of God's love in the depths of our being.
As we begin to meditate, we have three objectives:Say the mantra for the duration of meditation. Take some time to get to that first stage. We must learn to be patient. We can not force anything to happen, but we must simply say the mantra without haste, without expectation.Say the mantra throughout the meditation without interruption. To remain calm in the face of distractions. In this phase, the mantra is like a plow going through the field of our rough mind without deviating because of obstructions or disturbances.Say the mantra throughout the meditation time, entirely free from distractions.Surface areas of the mind are in tune with the deep peace at the heart of our being. In this state we go beyond thought, imagination and images. We are in touch with reality, in the presence of God dwelling in our hearts.
Meditation and Christian message The mantra leads to this central Christian experience, leading us to know, from our own experience, that the love of God has flooded our inmost heart through the Holy Spirit. Meditation is the way to expand our hearts, broaden our vision and clarify our minds and perception. The stages of our progress will come about in their own time, God’s own time. We prevent this progression only if we are too self-conscious about our stage of development. The biggest temptation is to complicate the process and ourselves. "Unless you become like little children ..." Meditation simplifies us to the point where we can receive the fullness of truth and love.
Thepractice Meditation is experiential. This is a form of experience, not theory or thought. It is an embodied form of prayer.The body is not a barrier between God and us.It is the sacrament of our being, given us by God. Therefore, the body needs to be involved in every experience of prayer.
The simple guidelinestomeditate Simple rules are: • Sit down: the body is relaxed, but not in a position for sleep. • Sit still: The body expresses the person's attitudeof attention and reverence. • Keep your back straight: the body is alert and awake. • Breathe normally. The ideal way would be to breathe abdominally (through the belly) • Stay relaxed / but alert: the formula for peace • Gently close your eyes and begin to recite the mantra: Ma-ra-na-tha. • Repeat your word of prayer during the whole time of meditation
When meditating, try to find the position that enables you to feel comfortable and safe. Relax your body’s tension, shoulders, neck, eyes, head. The basic sitting postures are in a straight backed chair, on a prayer bench, or sit on the floor with legs crossed, with a small pillow beneath for support. • Choose a quiet time and a place, when you are not likely to be interrupted or disturbed. Treat your meditation as a priority. If possible, keep the same time and same place each day as it helps deepen the rhythm of prayer in your life. Above all be gentle with yourself. Take time to incorporate this new discipline in your life. Thepractice, 2
Thepractice, 3 Meditation begins and ends with music to help you to be quiet and focused. Meditation can be integrated with other forms of prayer as the Eucharist or Scripture. Meditating weekly with a group is a powerful means of deepening and supporting the practice. Groups allow you to share inspiration and encouragement, and provide educational opportunities to listen to the teaching. "Where two or three are gathered in my name…” (Matthew 18:20). The practical difficulty we all encounter in meditation is the constant problem of distraction. It is simply the effect of constant mental activity.The mantra is simple, effective means to combat all forms of distraction.
Distractions Facing distractions: Do not seek to fight them, whether it be thoughts, images or feelings. Pay full attention to the mantra, gently and faithfully returning to it throughout the meditation. Do not focus on the distractions. Treat it as background noise. Be humble, patient, faithful, keep your sense of humor: do not make a dark night out of every cloud. Do not underestimate the perseverance that you'll need or the grace you will receive.
Are there success or failure in Christian meditation? • The mantra is like a path through a thick jungle. However narrow the path may be, follow it faithfully, and it will take you out of the jungle of the mind to the great open space of the heart. When you find you have wandered off the path, simply return immediately. • Success and failure are not relevant terms to describe the experience of meditation. These are terms used by the ego, and in meditation we learn to "leave behind the self, or ego."
Stages in MeditationJourney The journey of meditation offers profound insights into the life of the mind and ultimately heals the soul.A diagram can show the levels of consciousness we all pass through in the pilgrimage of meditation.Meditation is a work, both our work of seeking God as God’s work of seeking us.It is a pilgrimage through the mysterious universe of the human person, a self-investigation, in which the transcendence of self gives rise to the unitive, non-dual knowledge of God. The meaning and authenticity of our lives depend on this self-knowledge.
Levels of counsciousness´diagram Distraction level of the “monkeys´s mind” Psychological distraction Facing the nakedness and ego separation feeling Place of Union with risen Christ
Firstlevel Anyone who sits down to be still, experiences indiscipline and restlessness in our "monkey mind." That proves how superficial and fickle our mind is, how it is linked to external conditions.We aim to be still in the present moment,, the encounter with God who is "I Am." But within seconds we are having thoughts of yesterday, making plans for tomorrow or weaving dreams of wish-fulfillment.Our age increases the problem of natural distraction, by the enormous mass of information we try to absorb every day. With this discovery, it is easy to get discouraged and give up meditation. We need at this early stage to perceive the meaning of meditation, and have a thirst that comes from a deeper level of consciousness from the one we seem stuck at.
Christ is both outside and within us, pushes us from outside and motivates us from inside The mantra is a discipline, 'beginning in faith and ending in love‘ which leads to poverty of spirit. We say the mantra to remove our attention from distractions: the first great awakening. It is the beginning of the deepening of consciousness that allows us to leave the distractions on the surface. We learn to put aside our religious thoughts as much as the common thoughts: it is not our prayer, but the prayer of Christ that we are interested in.
It may seem that this will never pass. Be aware of this and face it, it's the beginning of transcendence. Gradually a change occurs. We manage to sit still, we are less impatient and have more sense of the Presence of God in traffic jams or queues in the supermarket. A calmer life and a steady mind arise in everyday relationships. In meditation, we become familiar with the structures and habits of our mind and more tolerant of its restless way.
SecondLevel At this level we find all that has been stored in our lives. What we did and we said or thought and imagined, have their place here, within our psyche.Here we confront the unconscious processes, lost and forgotten memories, emotions and thoughts; they can be awakened and unleashed, if they were blocking the movement of awareness that addresses the very core of personal identity.This is a work of healing, integration and self-acceptance and can be as turbulent as the distractions of the surface. It is work that occurs beneath the surface of the conscious mind. The mantra becomes like the seeds in the parable of Jesus, a man planted it in the ground, going then to deal with his daily life. All the while, the seeds continued to grow, 'he did not know how.'
Selfknowledge Self-knowledge, to which we are journeying, is prepared for by what happens to us at this stage. It can be considered as both purification and liberation, and sometimes when our deepest fears and shadows are exposed, even as exorcism. So, we become aware of the major structures of our personality, the patterns in our relationships, and therefore we can trace them back to ourselves instead of blaming others. We become what we are, by how we react and interact (or we refuse to) rather than what the others did to us. This psychological awareness has potential for creativity and for destruction as well. You can weave a shield of self-sufficiency. Or you can show the power of forgiveness and tolerance, based on the relationship with ourselves, and give us the opportunity to live more fully with all others in the bond of compassion.
Thirdlevel The ego has been a constant companion from the beginning. Now, in the third level, we really meet it. At the first level the ego is in its most distracted state, dressed in the changing garb of daily life. In the second stage, it wears the more dramatic costumes of our psychological history.From the ego comes all resistance to the journey toward the true Self. Yet the ego is also the vehicle of the journey. Just as we make the car into an idol, when it´s only a useful means of transportation, we may emphasize both the ego and its processes so strongly that we lose sight of the spiritual significance of the whole person.In this third level we confront the ego in its nakedness. The Cloud of Unknowing describes this as an 'absolute awareness of his/her own existence'that exists between ourselves and God. Consciousness is affected by the deepest existential sadness that existence is essentially separated from Being. We need to confront and transcend this existential sadness before we can feel the joy of existence.
Fidelitytothe mantra We are invited to stay at the foot of the cross at this stage, with an increasing pure faith.John Main says there is need for more faith, as we continue the pilgrimage. Our faith is deepened by the cooperation between our spirit and the Spirit of God.The fidelity and maturity developed in previous stages are useful at this level. The mantra is now established and those doubts of the early stages give way.The Cloud of Unknowing remind us of the need to be faithful to 'the little word only' 'in peace and war', 'in prosperity and in adversity'.John Main's emphasis on simple fidelity to the mantra 'from beginning to end of each meditation' is within this ancient tradition of Christian prayer.
