By Stephanie Lopez
“The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and so obvious and so simple. And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic as if it were necessary to achieve something beyond themselves.”
Allen Watts
Being Fully Human
There are many reasons why you might take up a meditation practice. Perhaps you have a desire to find more ease, peace, or clarity in your life. For me, in my early twenties, it was to find inner balance. I was exhausted from identifying with my emotions and the ups and downs of college life. Intuitively I knew there was a deeper reservoir of peace below the surface waves of my life.
I now realize there is a natural impetus towards meditation. We have instinctual drives for social interaction, for survival, but we also have a drive toward awakening. It is ever clearer to me that awakening is a natural part of our human development and that meditation awakens us to our most essential nature.
Through our practice of meditation, especially iRest® meditation, we learn to embrace and inquire into our human experience. What is moving through your life right now? Is there joy, grief, awe, dismay, or neutrality? Are you paying attention to the beauty in all these movements? By learning to slow down and pay attention to our body, breath, emotions, thoughts & and beliefs, the body begins to reveal its mystery and wisdom. We start to open to inner sensation and currents of energy—a subtle pulse of life that is animating our body. And we recognize the pulse of life all around us; the birds singing, the wind blowing through the trees, the freshness of a summer rain. What a joy and relief to recognize that we are more than our thoughts and emotions! When we open to the peace and wholeness of our essential nature, it changes everything. It’s literally a new day. While we are awakening to a vastness and wholeness that is our inherent birthright, this change in perspective also awakens us to the beauty of being human.
As Allan Watts indicates, perhaps we are here to fully embrace ourselves—to celebrate the quirkiness, the shy or outrageousness of our personality. To welcome and celebrate the mundane moments of being human is to be fully alive. Our practice then brings an inner stillness and clarity that allows us to commune with each moment in life. As we align with the reservoir of peace and wholeness that is our Essential Nature, it generates authenticity and curiosity. We have space to breathe and inquire into the movements of being human and there is a great freedom in welcoming yourself and life, just as it is.
Peace begets peace … and Presence begets Presence.
This is another beautiful aspect of awakening. As you fully embrace being human, the peace you exude is contagious. It beckons itself in others. We find that our quality of Presence begins to affect the Presence of those around us. They are naturally drawn towards authenticity. We serve through our inherent Presence. What a gift (and grace!) to realize we are serving others by being more fully present and alive. Have you noticed greater authenticity and intimacy within your relationships? Inquire and notice if this may be a result of your practice. I’ve found, both in myself and students, these qualities are a natural outgrowth of meditative inquiry.
Unlock the door to your most authentic self. What shines forth will bring to light all the dark shadows along with the most joyous of joys. Celebrate them all! Come home to your true self.
Stephanie Lopez, LISW-S, C-IAYT, is Director of Operations, Senior iRest® Trainer and Retreat Leader for the iRest Institute. With a deeply embodied understanding of meditation informed by 25 years of immersion in the nondual teachings of yoga, she leads retreats and trainings internationally with a focus on living an authentic and awakened life. Stephanie is a contributing author of “Practice: Wisdom from the Downward Dog.” She lives in San Rafael, California where she enjoys hiking in the redwoods with her husband, Francisco, and basking in sun spots with their two cats, Juniper and Luna. iRest Yoga Nidra Level 2 and Enlightened Living: Recognizing Essential Nature in Daily Life both with Stephanie Lopez is being co-hosted by Yoga on High and Samyoga Institute The training is August 21-25 at YOHI in Columbus OH and the retreat is October 16-20, 2019 at the Bergamot Center, Beavercreek, OH. For more information contact Janice George or visit www.sam.yoga.