Violence of any kind, physical, emotional, or psychological has a debilitating effect on human beings. We are only beginning to understand the neuroscience of violence (https://www.brainfacts.org/thinking-sensing-and-behaving/emotions-stress-and-anxiety/2016/the-neuroscience-of-violence), but one thing is clear: Children are especially compromised by the deleterious effects of violence, including, but not limited to sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, borderline personality disorder, substance use disorders, sleep and eating disorders, and suicide. ("Hidden Scars: How Violence Harms the Mental Health of Children," https://violenceagainstchildren.un.org/sites/violenceagainstchildren.un.org/files/documents/publications/final_hidden_scars_lhow_violence_harms_the_mental_health_of_children.pdf)
When violence is omnipresent in the news, in our political rhetoric, daily traffic, business and personal relationships, and even our entertainment, or we encounter or experience violence personally, our natural response matters. We sometimes refer to this response as "flight or fight." Flight - revulsion, recoiling, or avoiding can protect us in the moment, but the experience of violence lingers in our bodily and energetic awareness. It leaves scars. Similarly, our response of confrontation - i.e., reacting with similar violent energy - is also debilitating and toxic to our own well-being. There is a simple practice and meditation that can help bolster our capacity to transform toxic energy around and within us into healing and renewal.
First the Practice: Nature immersion - sometimes called "Shinrin Yoku" - is a practice that enables us to engage the natural world with our full sensorium. It helps shift our attitude and perception, and allows us to tap into that endorphin-sousing experience we call "Awe." Reverential respect, a feeling of the vastness of the natural world, and an appreciation for our participation in the web of life accompany the experience. And this in turn often leads to feelings of profound gratitude by leading us outside our myopic perception and into a new horizon, an experience of the wider "We." Feelings of isolation morph into feelings of belonging and communion.
Nature immersion just takes practice. By focusing on one facet of sensory perception at a time, and then integrating sensory awareness through quiet and disciplined attention, we reap every benefit that Nature offers. Respiration, heart rate, and blood pressure all decrease. Negative self-talk abates. Self-preoccupation vanishes. Improved balance, focus, and energy return. Feelings of equanimity, peace, gratitude and contentment replace surges of anger, anxiety, restlessness, fear, and overwhelm. If you want a guide to help you learn the art and practice of full-sensory nature immersion, please reach out to me. (LAW.EnvSoul@gmail.com) For a simple self-guide to Shinrin Yoku: https://www.environmentalsoulutions.com/post/soulscape-101-7-steps-to-full-sensorium-nature-therapy
Now the Meditation : There are many excellent Loving-Kindness meditations available to beginners (e.g., consider this one from Mindfulness Teacher, John Kabat-Zinn, https://www.mindful.org/this-loving-kindness-meditation-is-a-radical-act-of-love/)
From Buddhist tradition, a metta (loving-kindness) meditation consists of a mantram (repetitive refrain) that may take many forms. It is generally directed to self, others, and all beings. Many spiritual traditions embrace such an approach to compassionate prayer and meditation. It includes:
Loving Kindness For Yourself.
Loving Kindness For a Good Friend.
Loving Kindness For a Neutral Person.
Loving Kindness For a Difficult Person.
Loving Kindness For All Beings.
Here's one metta refrain to consider: "May I/you be healthy, well, at ease, light, happy, peaceful, strong, safe."
And another: "Gentle peace, my soul. Loving rest, your soul. Kind compassion, all beings of light."
And another: "May I be well, loving, and peaceful. May all beings be well, loving, and peaceful. May I be at ease in my body, feeling the ground beneath my seat and feet, letting my back be long and straight, enjoying breath as it rises and falls and rises."
Your metta refrain can be uniquely your own. Create one from the depths of your own heart. What might it be? Take a moment and go deeper. What metta refrain do you hear? Breathe it into being. Proclaim it from the center of your soul. Let it rest deeply in your own inner calm. Then...
Repeat.
Repeat.
Repeat.
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