Hypnotizing Yourself
When you think of hypnosis, two images probably come to mind. The first is from a B-grade movie where you see some Svengali-like doctor — usually deranged — dangling a pocket watch in the face of some [more…]
Discovering What Meditation Is All About
Meditation is simply the practice of focusing your attention on a particular object — generally something simple, like a word or phrase, a candle flame or geometrical figure, or the coming and going of [more…]
Preparing for Meditation: Sitting Still
If you examine the meditation poses depicted in the world's great spiritual traditions, you'll find that they all have one thing in common — the unshakable stability of a mountain or tree. Look at the [more…]
Exploring the Meaning of Spirituality
One of the great gifts of spiritual knowledge is that it realigns your sense of self to something you may not have even ever imagined was within you. Spirituality says that even if you think you're limited [more…]
Harnessing the Power of Symbols
You may not even realize it, but your life is shaped by symbols that are passed to you or inherited from your culture, your race, your peer and social groups, and your family. Newspapers, magazines, TV [more…]
Transcending Life's Problems through Spirituality
Look at the trials of your life with a spiritual approach: Until your heart has been broken to the things of this materialistic world, you can't open your heart into the higher world. [more…]
Making Meditation a Part of Your Life
Commitment is the foundation for your meditation practice. Without commitment, you won't keep meditating when you're tired, have a headache, don't feel like it, or would rather do something else. [more…]
Figuring Out How to Breathe Meditatively
Traditional cultures identified the breath with the life force that animates all things. For example, the Latin word spiritus (the root of both "spirited [more…]
Practicing Spirituality for Personal Growth
Two important goals of becoming more spiritual are growth and evolution. Yet with or without any specific spiritual efforts, human beings continue to evolve and grow. This drive is programmed into the [more…]
Cultivating Spiritual Virtues
Your spiritual growth becomes visible to yourself and others through how you think and act in each moment of your life. Although it is helpful to put efforts into watching and uplifting your outer actions [more…]
Living Spiritually in a Conscious World
Spiritual living begins with looking at day-to-day events differently. Instead of judging things by how important they are on the scales of worldly accomplishment, you focus on the depth of meaning behind [more…]
Considering the Many Faces of Spiritual Realization
If you've read the stories of the world's great mystics and sages, you find that spiritual experiences come in a dazzling array of shapes and sizes. For example: [more…]
Avoiding Roadblocks to Stress Reduction
If you recall your last attempt at losing a few pounds or getting rid of all the clutter in your house, you may recognize that good intentions do not always guarantee success. Usually, you encounter one [more…]
Planetary Symbols and Influences in Astrology
In astrology, the nine planets (Pluto retains some power in astrology), along with the sun, Earth’s moon, and associated points, have one or more areas of influence in your life. So, planetary position [more…]
Astrology Houses and What They Rule
Twelve is a big number in astrology — 12 astrological signs are influenced by 12 planetary bodies, and an astrological birth chart includes 12 houses. Each of these 12 houses affects specific areas of [more…]
Astrology Symbols, Dates, Traits, and Planetary Rulers for Sun Signs
Astrology holds that the position of the sun and other celestial bodies at the time you’re born plays a part in helping to form your personality. The following table shows the 12 sun signs and the dates [more…]
Astrology For Dummies Cheat Sheet
Whether you’re interested in astrology strictly for fun or because you feel the reality of heavenly bodies influencing your life, you need to know the astrological basics, including sun signs and what [more…]
Popular Meditation Techniques
Meditation techniques, like meditation itself, tend to be pretty simple. Following is a brief list of ten of the most commonly practiced techniques. You can use one exclusively, or you can try one method [more…]
How to Prepare for Meditation
Meditation is simple to do and doesn't require much equipment. You can, however, prepare yourself and your space in a few ways. What you may need are some basic amenities such as these: [more…]
How to Open Your Body, Mind, and Spirit to Meditation
Meditation is a practice that engages not only your mind, but your body and spirit, too. When you meditate, you aim to combine all three aspects so you can tap into your calm center, and then relax and [more…]
How to Get the Most from Your Meditation
To get the most from your meditation practice, you must commit to it. When you start meditating regularly, you can reap myriad benefits — from lower stress and cholesterol to higher levels of satisfaction [more…]
How to Make Sure You're Meditating Correctly
It doesn't take much to meditate the right way — especially because there really isn't just one correct way. If you're concerned about your meditation practice, look over the following questions. If you [more…]
Meditation For Dummies Cheat Sheet
Meditation is an age-old practice that can help relieve a host of ills brought on by the fast pace of modern life. All you need to meditate is a quiet place to sit, the ability to focus your mind, and [more…]
Discovering Key Attitudes to Nurture Mindfulness
Your attitude to life makes all the difference. Use these attitudes to develop your capacity to be mindful, enabling you to live a more mindful life: [more…]
Trying a Short Mindfulness Meditation
Your capacity to be mindful is most powerfully developed through mindfulness meditation. One of the most popular mindfulness meditations is mindfulness of breath. This involves being mindfully aware of [more…]
