Nurturing

Nurture: 1. To nourish or feed; 2. To educate; train; 3. To help grow or develop.

All life needs nurturing, whether this happens through a natural process or is helped along by outside forces. Humankind is capable of recognizing the act of nurturing and thus replicating it for our own welfare. In other words, we can be our own nurture source.

The soul controls the mind, and the mind controls the body. However, the body can affect the mind, which can then dim the light of our soul. The soul is an endless well of goodness and resources. It is not that we could ever tap its wealth, it is that we don't often enough allow it to manifest.

This dependence of body on mind, and on soul, and vice- versa, is why meditation is so important. To begin with, meditation calms the body down, lowering blood pressure, alleviating, in some cases, pain, and generally giving the muscles and nervous system a break. Meditation continues to benefits us as it also begins to slow down the mind, leaving regrets of the past and anxiety of the future behind, and allowing the mind to focus on some simple thing like a word or breath, or image.

With the body and mind now in a much more relaxed state than a typical day allows, the soul is able to break through the noise, as it were, to heal the body and mind, to provide insight, to rejuvenate our hope and strength. It doesn't have to be a ritualistic meditation. It can truly just be listening to your favorite music through headphones, listening to a guided meditation tape, listening to sounds from far away, listening to a mantra or to sutras that we are repeating in our own mind - any thing that brings us out of the past and the future, and into the now - this very moment.

If there is one place to start changing your life it is to simply sit down and relax. Twenty minutes, twice a day is more than enough. Any amount is better than none. Don't expect transforming, dramatic enlightenment in the immediate sense. What you will see is a gradual, and sometimes not so gradual, improvement in your energy, your intuition, and your life.

Once your soul has a chance to nurture your mind and body, your mind will begin finding ways to nurture the body. Soon, all three parts of your being will be helping each other to grow and develop in ways you never thought possible. It is so easy to get started - no books, no classes, just quiet time and faith that your world is about to change for the better.