Jan 13, 2020
Before we get engrossed in today's episode, let me give you a moment to hit subscribe. I know you want to, and like me, you often forget. You wake up in the middle of the night and say, ah heck I forgot to hit subscribe for that nice lady who really is trying to motivate me. So here you go. Do do do do Thanks!
In today's episode, I am going to shed some light on "Who am I?" or maybe I should say, "Who are You?" We are now starting the second full week of 2020, the gyms are still packed, and I am not sick of salad with a protein on top yet. I will give it a few more weeks.
It is usually around the end of the month when people start saying to me, "Gosh, I was so excited for 2020, I was going to change my whole life, and now I have no idea what I even want to change." I hope that I get this episode out fast enough that you can skip that question by spending a little more time looking inwards at "Who you are?" but in a straightforward fashion, no fancy spreadsheets or in-depth discussions, just the simple practice of asking.
Whenever someone says I want to change my life, I always ask them first, who are they? They immediately get confused and start thinking hard. Then they get disappointed because they never can come up with an answer. I am here to tell you, don't worry, remember the answers lie within. You now want to tell me to bugger off, but I am going to ask you for a few minutes to hold tight. I am going to give you an exercise that might make the rest of your year easy peasy.
Hey There, Alexa Z here. I am all alone podcasting in my closet because my Tator Mobile is winter cold. I made a little house under my staircase in the basement. I thought I was incredibly brilliant, nailing up blankets and using a fake fur blanket for my table. I look like I am in a bear's den. Then dogs starting running up and down the stairs, and the furnace kicked on at the adjoining wall. I didn't think that through. So now I sit all alone without the furnace on (cold again by not as bad as my van) with 4 dogs locked in my bedroom 3 floors up. Ok sorry to digress but I know I always wondered where people podcast. Clothes closets are good too, but I get distracted by all the "stuff"
Ok, where was I – oh yeah Who am I?
Self-inquiry is a meditation practice that is older than dirt. It is not analyzing your childhood or looking in a magic ball. It is a questioning meditation that fits beautifully into other practices or can be used all by itself.
Before you start looking to change your life you need to get in touch with the most important person, YOU! The brilliant part of you that is filled with wisdom and intellect, passion and intuition. Most of us tend to forget how awesome we are, and this questioning meditation is the perfect way to train our brain (remember meditation is a training) to quiet down and connect with the thinker of the thoughts.
It can be fun as long as you don't get to hung up on analyzing it. The Buddha said he wouldn't get up from the Bodhi tree until he knew who he was but let's just start with a short practice ok?
There are several questions that we use in this "Self-Inquiry" practice but today we will just use one question "Who Am I?" When I teach SEED Method (Simple easy everyday meditation) I usually introduce this about halfway through the class, but I just felt like this is a great time of the year to give it a try.
Follow the audio for tips on how to start this amazing practice!