Monday

Synchronizing Body and Mind

by Shastri Kim Kelso

When we meditate we are practicing synchronizing mind and body.  We are giving ourselves a chance to collect ourselves.   Often our body is ahead of our mind or our mind is ahead of the body, or our body is sitting in the room and our mind is in yesterday or tomorrow or a fantasy.  So when we meditate we are bringing our mind into our body and our body into our mind.

This synchronization takes place in the present moment.  That is the only time/place that it can happen.

We have all experienced that sense of being in the sweet spot, in the right place at the right time,  where we feel really on, really clear and are able to do or say things that are amazing and beyond what we thought we were capable of. That is the experience of synchronized mind and body–the experience of  “embodiment.”

When we are fully present in the moment with mind and body we are in tune with the universe.   We are playing our proper role in the scheme of things. Therefore we have access to the energy of everything else that is in tune with the universe.  We have unlimited resources (thus the amazing things beyond our assumed capabilities) because we are joining in the natural hierarchy.

When we are synchronized there is a sense of coming home, a deep sense of belonging.  When there is no confusion about where we belong we feel safe and can relax.  That relaxation affects the whole body giving health and emanating brilliance.  That lack of confusion about where we belong gives the mind strength and confidence.

The moments when we are synchronized we have actually overcome duality– overcome the illusion that mind and body are separate. Instead we are experiencing the interdependence that is the nature of all things.  This experience leads us to care for others because we know we are not separate from them.  The natural compassion that arises when we see that we are not separate becomes embodied.  Then kindness and service to others is spontaneous and natural.

So what at first seems to be a simple meditation instruction –to synchronize mind and body –holds great potential.  Although we can set the intention to gather our mind and body into the present moment, we cannot force this synchronization. Through sitting meditation we gently and gradually practice moment by moment returning  body and mind to the present.   We eventually are welcomed home to our true selves and find we are basically good.  That self acceptance and the resulting relaxation are the conditions in which synchronization can become a way of life.

Shastri Kim Kelso, of Phoenix/Tucson Arizona, has been studying and practicing Shambhala Buddhism since 1980, when she became a member of the Nelson Dharmadhatu in British Columbia, Canada. Subsequently she was a member of the Vancouver and Victoria sanghas and served as a co-director of the Victoria Center. She has been teaching since 1992. In 2008 she moved to Arizona to care for her mother, and became a member of the Phoenix Shambhala Center. Retired from a career as a social worker, she continues to enjoy and be involved in community development, leadership, and social change.