Practice of Living Awareness: Smile Meditations
Smile Meditation - #1 Welcome to The Practice of Living Awareness, we're all smiles!
Meditation is a wonderful gift to give yourself. Your mind thanks you, your body thanks you, we all thank you. Right on! Below is the first podcast for Step 1, Smile. Three meditations are offered for each of the practice's 14 "steps" or meditation tools. Each one will build upon the last, so try to do them in order. It's the beginning of a great adventure and we are happy you're here. If you are new to the practice and would like to hear an introduction as well as a few meditations tips... have a listen. Otherwise enjoy this short and sweet sitting. Settle into a simple breath and a smile. Happy meditating! |
Smile Meditation - #2 Your smile will fill you with all that the present moment can bring... this is its design. It lifts and curves and catches. We'll start every meditation with a smile so as to cash-in on this feature. What's more, your time spent in meditation generates a universal smile in the ethers. Why? Because you become the bowl... uplifted around the edges and steady at the base with the intention and purpose of receiving and containing lightness of being.
Smile wide. Allow your smile to fill. |
Smile Meditation - #3 Have you ever woken up in the morning to stressful thoughts about the day ahead which lead to a sour mood which then leads to obstacles great and small that seem to turn your whole day into a wretched mess? We all have. And then... someone graces you with a beautiful smile and everything about your day changes. In fact, you find yourself spontaneously smiling back and suddenly the drama diminishes. Could it be that smiles are contagious? Magical? In fact, they are. Contagious, magical, and transformative. A smile has the potential to change any situation.
Smiles actually stimulate the release of "feel good" neurotransmitters such as dopamine, endorphins, and serotonin. This relaxes your body, which lowers your heart rate and blood pressure. You become more receptive, thanks to your body's own chemistry. When you smile at someone, it activates their orbitofrontal cortex which is the region of the brain that processes sensory rewards. This is why we naturally appreciate a genuine smile. Smiling is magnetic. People are more attracted to a smiling face than a neutral or frowning face. Our facial muscles are designed to allow us to smile with ease... and it shows. A frown takes effort... and many more muscles to execute. It also takes a conscious effort not to smile back when someone offers you a smile. Smiles put us in direct relation with one another. They confirm our innate interconnectedness. Now take all of that information and apply it to smiling with your own inner-being. Yes! Let's meditate. |