A dessert is a place where nothing grows. Sands blows hither and thither as the wind dictates. A dessert is a place ideal for meeting up with God. There I said it. Meeting up with GOD. Traditionally, prayer has been the route to communicate with God. We are going to learn how to meet up with God. Using “prayer without words.” We need to create a dessert—a place with nothing in it. So when we enter this place, we need to leave ourselves behind. For most of us, just existing in the NOW is not enough. We fabricate an identity that we call ourselves. This is known as the EGO. The EGO is bold, brash, well-liked, always knows the right thing to say, and mixes with only the best kind of people. The EGO is admired, desired, and honoured by all the right people EGO knows. God, however, cannot commune with EGO. EGO will not listen. EGO is rational and calculating, and best of all, EGO is never wrong, even when he is!
So, how do we leave him outside our dessert? Man cannot stop thinking. It is how he has survived many millennia. The six senses are never turned off (yes six senses – the extra one we will look at in some depth later on)
Our mind needs something to focus on, so when we pray without words, we will use a mantra. Father John Main, who re-discovered this method, suggests (and I see no reason not to comply with it) that our mantra should be a single word. That word is in a dead, no longer used, language called Aramaic and is the language that Jesus of Nazareth spoke. The mantra word is “MaRaNaTha.” Which translated means ‘The Lord Comes’. The mantra is chanted as four separate syllables. This sounds like an easy thing to do. It is NOT. When you first try this, you will be amazed at how the mind rebels, and despite the simplicity, you will fail to get the syllables in the right order. Sometimes, you will forget your place and miss syllables. In short, you cannot carry out the simplest of tasks. As with any skill (such as learning to play guitar), do not dwell on your mistakes. Practice is the way to learn any new skill. Press on and try again. With practice, the guitar sounds better and better. With meditation, the more you practice, the better you are at doing it.
So, a typical session. The group opens with a talk about preparation for meditation. There are instructions on this website about this preparation. The bare bones are: –
- A quiet environment
- A comfortable chair
- Feet flat on the floor
- Hands rested on your lap or a table
- Some exercises that aid in releasing muscle tension.
- Some deep breathing exercises are needed to make sure you have a quiet calm about yourself.
- A gong that marks the start and end of the session.
I used to worry a lot that I had missed the gong, as the room was in complete silence because everyone else had gone home, and I was left on my own. In this first practice session, I have a clock with a loud tick going on all the way through. If you can hear the tick, then the session is still ongoing.
Without further ado, listen to this session and meditate if you can to see how you get on. John Main, right at the beginning, gives the essential instructions for this first session. Just do as he asks, and you will be an expert meditator in next to no time. (No, you will not. But later on, I will talk about what goes horribly wrong.)
The Audio File YOu Need is
The dessert is just while we meditate. The distractions in the world of the EGO are varied and many, but strangely, after a while of practising meditation, this unreal world seems better and better.
Why does Father John Main say that in the presence of God, it is so much better to listen than to speak?
Very Logically, God is always with us. He knows all our needs and wants without us presenting Him with a shopping list of things that we think would be of great benefit to us. What we need, He will provide. What is good for us will come our way. Sometimes, God’s idea of good and our own idea of what is good for us is a bit different.
So, all we need to do is listen.
How good at listening are you?
Hearing is NOT listening. Listening is a task that needs to be given time to learn and perfect. It is a very important life skill. Which means it needs practice. Practice what? Listen to a TV show next time you are in front of a TV screen. How do you listen to a show that you really like? How do you listen to a show that you find tedious and boring? When SOAPS (my wife loves them) are on, I split the time between watching them while figuring out a crossword puzzle or solving Wordle. So, let’s look at the prerequisites for effective listening.
- Sit comfortably and relax.
- No external distractions. Concentrate on listening only and not on anything else.
- No Internal distractions. Our MIND, Thought & Consciousness were designed to make us aware of dangers. It is not possible to stop thinking. Some people claim that they can stop thinking. They are deluded. Return to reciting the mantra and make it the focus of all your Thoughts.
- When we get distracted (this is bound to happen), get back to listening as soon as possible. Then, return to reciting the mantra and make it the focus of all your Thoughts.
- Acknowledge that listening takes effort, as any skill does, so don’t try to listen for too long. Ten to fifteen minutes is a long time to listen without a break.
- Some people think listening is a waste of their time. It isn’t. You may learn something.
- Listening requires one more thing – retention. No good listening if you forget what it is that you heard. Take notes. Review what you heard, either by reading your notes or going over what you heard in your mind, and try to make sense of it. Wring out of the words all the benefits therein held. Look beyond the words. What are your notes trying to say to you?
I hope you can now see how important the mantra is! It is a one-word prayer that allows us to focus entirely on something. The work means “The Lord Comes, ” but you don’t have to think about its meaning at all.
- Sit Comfortable and relax
How?
Sit upright. A Straight upright spine. Do a scan of your body. Are there any aches or pains? Sometimes acknowledging a pain can reduce its intensity as the body now knows there is something not quite right. In your scan, look also for muscle tension. Common is a tightness across the shoulders and upper arm. Rotate your shoulders if you find this. Often, the muscles will relax. Concentrate on your breathing. Breathe in for 3 seconds, hold on to the breath for 3 seconds and then breathe out for 3 seconds and repeat several times. Breathe in and out through your nose and notice that the breath going in is cool (you can feel this at the tip of your nose) and that the breath is quite warm when breathing out.
2. No external distractions. Concentrate on listening and repeating the mantra only and not on anything else.
Turn any electronic equipment off. Ideally, you should have a kitchen timer that you can set for up to 30 minutes. If the window is open, close it. It may also be a good idea to shut the door to the room and hang a do-not-disturb sign on the outer handle.
3. No internal distractions.
We experience life and the world around us by the use of three principles. MIND, Thought & Consciousness. If you have ignored the mentions of Sydney Banks on this website, then at this point, I would recommend you have a look and get the basics of these principles. To meditate, YOU DO NOT NEED to understand Sydney Banks, but it would be very helpful if you did. Everyone is an over-thinker. Everyone these days has a very busy MIND. Consciousness of what is happening here and now can be very low as we often get caught up in our own thoughts. Tara Brach (a meditation expert) says that the human condition has only two states. ONE – we are present. TWO – we are in a trance of our own making (a private little world where everything to us makes perfect sense – even if it is nonsense)
To meditate, you must be in the present mode.
4. Dealing with distractions.
Concentrate on the mantra. If you listened to the audio example of a meditation sample above, you will know that the Mantra is the one-word prayer “Maranatha.” This word is in the Aramaic language and is said as four syllables.
Ma (Mah)
Ra (Rah)
Na (Nah)
Tha. (Thah)
If you get distracted by anything, then simply acknowledge the distraction and restart saying the mantra.
5. Listening is a skill and takes a lot of effort. If you are tired then rest and come back to meditate after your rest.
Although meditation can make you feel calm, relaxed, and sleepy, this is not our intention when carrying out wordless prayer. The idea is to stay alert, awake and ready to receive insight from the inner voice that you will come to know very well indeed. This is where the process may frighten some people who are not used to spending any waking time alone with themselves.
“Can I trust what the inner voice says?”
“On what authority is the inner voice suggesting that I do X, Y, Z?”
“Don’t crazy people hear voices?”
There are a million doubts and fears to be tackled.
All I can say is that my inner voice speaks to me in a tone of love and kindness. Many people describe the experience as feeling as if they are coming home. The voice brings comfort and cheer even if we are down with our lot in life. The inner voice often displays great wisdom and comes out with some amazing truths.
6. Is spending time doing nothing a waste of time?
We are in the mess we are in because we do NOT spend enough time away from the constant bombardment of information that hits us every second of every day.
I guarantee you that if you meditate once a day, every day, your general stress levels will drop like a stone in just one week.
In fact, this is the wrong question to ask. “What do I gain by making myself busy all the time?” is a question that results in “Not a lot, but I lose so much of myself, and that is stupid.”
7. Retention
Please write any insight that you receive in a notebook to reflect on later. DO NOT FALL INTO THE TRAP OF TELLING OTHERS YOUR INSIGHTS. They are personal to you. They only benefit you. YOU are the intended recipient.
Often, an insight has great significance for the person that had it, and when told to someone else, they respond with “So, well, what of it? What possible use is that?”
Your faith in your answers will be severely tested. Here is the thing, though. I have reached the stage where I meditate for 30 minutes at a time. When the end gong goes, it makes me jump. “Surely 30 minutes cannot have gone by yet!!!” And yet it has. I think no, it has only been about 10 minutes. The question I often ask myself is where I was for the other 20 minutes.
Father John Main tells us that we have been in the presence of God for the time that appears to be missing from our sessions. The feeling is one of great safety and security. For a short while, you are totally free of this world and all its doubts and fears.
Away in the company of one who only has Love and Goodwill to give from his heart to us.
Greetings
1Co 16:19 The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house.
1Co 16:20 All the brethren greet you. Greet ye one another with an holy kiss.
1Co 16:21 The salutation of me Paul with mine own hand.
1Co 16:22 If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha.
1Co 16:23 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
1Co 16:24 My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.
The first epistle to the Corinthians was written from Philippi by Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus and Timotheus.
The Fruits of The Spirit. The Attributes the Spirit within us gives to us as his gift.
Each one of us is essentially GOOD. Our hearts delight with joy when we are engaged with good works. Not that goodness saves us but it’s not a bad side effect of knowing The Spirit.
The importance of reflection after meditation. Did we learn or feel something different? Insight into something happening in life to you at this moment? It is okay to reflect and find nothing. We do not meditate to gain something but to grow.
Meditation is a tradition that has many different beliefs. Christian, Buddhism, Hindu, Jesuit,
I’m reviewing your progress and making sure that we are getting the basics right. Yep! It’s like a sanity check. There is little point in continuing to do something incorrectly.
Do not give up. Nothing may happen for a while. A ‘light bulb moment’ strikes when least expected, where all this makes perfect sense.
Expect Nothing from meditation except a gradual change in your whole demeanour to a person more loving and compassionate to those who share this existence.
The Plan is to start WCCM Meditation on Mondays in the New Year (2025). The room that will be used is The Green Room, which is up the main staircase (there is a lift) and turn right. The door is in front of you. Toilets are available on this floor. The Meeting will be about an hour in length maximum. I am thinking of a 6.30 pm start (sharp), but it is still in the planning stages. if potential members want a different day or time, then suggest it, and we can have a vote. So what to expect? …
- Welcome to the meeting
- A quote from the founder of the order, Father John Main.
- A short introduction to the session
- a 30-minute meditation
- A brief period of reflection. (This may be very short if no one has anything to say – and as mentioned above, that does not matter)
- A closing prayer or quote
- Close of the meeting.
You would think that being silent is easy. Many people cannot be silent and feel that they have to fill every single millisecond with speaking, singing, fidgeting, laughing, smiling, coughing, sighing, etc.
The aim of this meeting is that for 30 minutes, no one will hear a pin drop. The Inner Voice is very quiet and is easily drowned out by this noisy world.
Jesus told us to go into a silent place and raise our issues with God. Only John Main says it is so much better if we keep our own counsel and listen to what is being said to us.
If He says nothing (which is very unlikely), then we still benefit from the joy of being in His presence, in which we receive from Him personally “The Peace of God that passeth all understanding,” which remains with us forever.
In CofE services, we wish each other “The PEACE”, but no one has ever explained to me what that peace feels like or what it does for the human MIND. I assumed everyone else knew and it was just me that was entirely ignorant of what was being wished for me. An unknown blessing of some sort? Now, I have been meditating for some time and now know exactly what The Peace of God actually is.
If you would like to join the group, then email admin@writingthoughts.co.uk, and you can discuss any thoughts or reservations that you have with me.
