Think of the human mind as a hard drive where all your life experiences are stored like pictures. We’re all familiar with the phrase, “I just can’t shake that picture out of my mind”, and this is also true in the metaphorical sense. We just can’t let go of certain experiences, and this affects how we go about the world. Often, this holds us back from achieving our true potential self because we are bogged down by the emotions and memories that our minds have held on to for so long.
We tend to look outside ourselves for
the answers to life’s pressing problems, but to practitioners of meditation the
answer always lies within ourselves.
Makati Meditation and Ortigas Meditation are two groups in the
Philippines that encourage the practice of subtraction meditation as a method
towards lasting happiness.
Humans take pictures of all
experiences through the five senses – eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and body- and
store those pictures in the mind. Pictures of our family, our childhood,
fighting with friends, even memories of our first love, we have taken pictures
of them and stored them in our mind. Stress, worries and all the moments of
hardships are pictures in our mind. These pictures trouble us and we cannot
escape from this for the rest of our lives. Throwing away these pictures in the
mind is the Subtraction Meditation method.
The Subtraction Meditation is a meditation
method that is composed of seven levels which is about throwing away the false
mind or pictures in the human mind. The meditation helper guides students in
each level. As one goes through the levels, practitioners eventually enlighten
by themselves. The first step is letting go. For stand-up
comedian Tim Tayag, this has been key, “Now I can let go of my past, my
mistakes, my false minds, and even meditation itself. As a result, I have a
better disposition, and I am much happier.”
The change towards lasting happiness starts
with self-reflection. Through the practice of meditation, the time and energy
spent on useless thoughts are lessened, allowing one’s self to focus on the
most important things in life. Before we start new things we should take time
to look back to the past and assess ourselves. This also applies to our
workplace, school and community. We examine our success and failures; we learn
from our past mistakes and prepare to do better in the future. For Emil Capino,
a Chief Technology Officer, this came in the form of a more efficient work
performance that has also spread to other areas in his life. “I can break-free
from all the stress, worries and anxieties coming from my job,” says Capino.
“Now I can do and accomplish more with a peace of mind and real happiness that
no amount of money can provide.”
Meditation is the process of reflecting on
one’s inner self to deeply understand ourselves. When we know ourselves
completely, we can live the life that we want. Through meditation, we can find
wise and practical solutions to all the root cause of our problems and complex
situations that we face in our daily lives. “I have realized many benefits
including mental clarity and greater patience,” says Reggie Ofrin, a Mechanical
Engineer by profession. “Now I can smile even on the road during blood-curdling
traffic jams.”
As much as we empty our mind, the more our
inner strength takes root. When we empty our minds, the human mind transforms.
Through meditation, one can have a broad and caring mind, being considerate of
others, smiling more often, being calm and becoming more focused coming from
inner peace. Having a clear mind, one can make wiser decisions in every moment.
“I can find my inner peace without self-defeating talk or having to worry about
judgement or criticism from other people,” says practitioner GerilynBaltan, who
is a marketing manager by profession. The benefits of meditation bleed onto
every aspect of your life. The normal tendency is to fix problems at hand which
may not necessarily address to root cause of those problems, meditation is a
holistic approach that everyone can do if they just take the time.
At Makati Meditation practitioners come to the
center usually after work. Some of them come around lunch time or before work
so they can make use of their time meditating in the center instead of being
stuck in traffic.
They cannot emphasize enough that anyone can do
meditation. Practitioners range from businessmen, employees, students,
housewives etc. People from all walks of
life with diverse religious beliefs and nationalities come to meditate. While
the language that surrounds meditation can be a heady concept, the objectives
are very grounded. Increasing self-confidence, overcoming traumatic
experiences, eliminating stress are just some of the main ones. So for people
who hesitate with the jargon and find that inner peace is a little too
abstract, there’s still a takeaway for them here.
At Makati Meditation and Ortigas Meditation,
they often start with a lecture before meditation, which includes achieving the
proper posture and participants are guided through the session accordingly. For
beginners, this is a helpful process to orient oneself to the practice. Even
longtime practitioners find guided meditations helpful when they’re finding it
particularly difficult to quiet the mind.
At Makati Meditation they encourage
participants to meditate twice a week. At first, a one on one session with an
instructor is advised, but after two weeks, practitioners can choose to join
the group class. Studies show that group meditations are an even more powerful
force for peace.
Entrepreneur Catherine Dy credits meditation as
a practice that helped her live a happier life, “I am free from stress, fear
and anxiety. I am living a life full of joy, peace and gratitude.”
Book your free introductory seminar at Makati
Meditation Center or at Ortigas Meditation center now.
MAKATI MEDITATION CENTER
02-856-6943
makatimeditation@gmail.com
Classica Tower 2, 114 H.V. Dela Costa, Makati
1227 Metro Manila
ORTIGAS MEDITATION CENTER
02-687-1294
#2505 AIC Gold Tower, F.Ortigas Jr. Ave.,
Pasig City
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