mastodon.nzoss.nz is one of the many independent Mastodon servers you can use to participate in the fediverse.
This is a te reo Māori & English instance, for folks in Aotearoa NZ. We've talked openness, technology, improving our society since 2017.

Administered by:

Server stats:

40
active users

#meditation

9 posts9 participants0 posts today

Hello! 👋 It’s time for an updated #Introduction because I’ve just moved instances to beige.party (I was formerly @brianlavelle) - any boosts would be most welcome!

I’m Brian, and I’ve been a #Fediverse dweller since April 2022. This is my only social media…er, medium.

In no particular order, I quite like:
#ImprovisedMusic & #ExperimentalMusic
#FieldRecording
#Cats (I have two)
#TTRPG (I have too many)
#Tea
#Meditation
#Books #Poetry & #SpeculativeFiction
#Trees & #Walking (but not #WalkingTrees)
#Modernism & #Brutalism
#SelfHosting & #FOSS
#AltText & #PascalCase / #CamelCase
& lots more

My website: brianlavelle.scot
My music: brianlavelle.bandcamp.com

#TransRightsAreHumanRights

Brian Lavelle | musician & writerBrian Lavelle | musician & writerWebsite of Scottish musician and writer, Brian Lavelle

Recently did an "all day" meditation retreat with my meditation sangha in town.

8am to 4pm.

A lot of sitting meditation and walking meditation.

It was exhausting.

Hahahaha! It's REALLY hard to engage in deep meditation. Like... really hard.

It's not doing nothing.
It's not silencing thoughts - per se.

Some of it was mindfulness meditation (focusing on breath. Noticing when the mind wonders and then simply returning to the breath. Very much a mental exercise. You don't fight the mind creating thoughts. You let it create thoughts. And then you come back to your breath as you notice your thoughts wandering. A really good foundational meditation practice.)

Some of it was loving kindness / metta meditation and similar practices.

Some of it was walking meditation (similar to breath sitting meditation, but focusing on the movements of the body and being present in action.)

I had to sleep the entire next day just to recoup! Hahaha!

I currently do a one hour meditation with a group, once a week. I'm gonna try to do a handful of one-day retreats throughout the year and build up to a week long retreat once a year.

It's a good anchor.

#GifsArtidote:
PERSONAL NEWS ALERT:

from last fri 19 september until fri 26th of september i am on a #NewsStrike as prescribed by my witch #PandoraDarkmoon to aid my recovery of #burnout as a result of a lifetime of #EmotionalNeglect - by #TheStateWeAreIn, #TheSystemWeAreIn, #TheFamilyIamIn, #MySelf, #MyChoices, #MyJourneyOfLearning&development.

it doesn't mean i don't share any news in that time, but it will only be occasional & i won't create crossposts with commentary & analysis, unless it's urgent, in need of a call to action for a community's sake regarding safety &/or threat to life etc.
i will continue posting about positive news/info/knowledge & personal (learning) experiences, developments & ideas.

HEALTH UPDATE:

after months of exhaustion without doing much, i broke my toe a few weeks ago, as a result of falling suddenly unconscious without clear reason. i took it as a physical signal that i needed to listen to my body & stop any activity until further notice.
over the last few weeks i have since:
☆ taken rest when needed
☆ committed to a #BedtimeRoutine as i developed #insomnia
☆ started practising #meditation
☆ limiting #YT & socials usage
☆ aiming to go outside every day ☆ practise to be aware of my senses
☆ practise to live in the moment as much as i can
☆ smoke less baccy & limit smoking my prescribed #MedicalCannabis to 2 joints daily before/during my bedtime routine
☆ be consciously kind to myself
☆ taken time to make any decision, & regarding important ones got an outside opinion from a trusted & wise friend #impulsiveBPD
☆ i aim to #SeekDiscomfort whenever i feel anxious or insecure & then do it anyway
☆ enjoy anything giving me #PositiveEnergy as intense as i can
☆ steer my self away from negative energy/thoughts
#BeMySelf to #BeReal & as open as i can
☆ learn to use #NaturalRemedies from global ancient indigenous wisdom
#educate myself on my own personal, cultural, spiritual, historical & ideological identity.

this is what i can think of so far, i'll try to add & update this list as i progress.

to aid my recovery i am transforming my flat to truly reflect my self, encourage my development & reach my true potential. i do this to my own ability at the time, in small steps, on my terms, for my self ONLY

Through the practice of shamata meditation, the tumultuous habits of mind calm down; and then we can investigate the characteristics of the calm waters beyond the monkey’s control. This is called vipashyana—or insight—meditation. I knew monkey mind intimately. I also knew that when we dismiss any value to knowing this monkey, it’s like owning a car without knowing how to drive. The less we know about the chattering, muttering voice in our heads that tells us what to do, what to believe, what to buy, which people we should love, and so forth, the more power we grant it to boss us around and convince us that whatever it says is true.

― Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, In Love with the World: A Monk's Journey Through the Bardos of Living and Dying