I recently decided to reread Eckhart Tolle’s famous book “The Power of Now”. It had been probably six years since I last read it and as with most great books it was equally fulfilling the second time although in entirely new ways. One of the things that really stood out for me in this second reading is his focus on the body’s energy field, which is a significant overlap in his teaching with the practice of using Mandala Time. For Tolle, an essential way to escape compulsive thinking and enter into Being is to focus your attention on the energy present in the body.
Tolle states, “To become conscious of Being, you need to reclaim consciousness from the mind. This is one of the most essential tasks on your spiritual journey. It will free vast amounts of consciousness that previously had been trapped in useless and compulsive thinking. A very effective way of doing this is simply to take the focus of your attention away from thinking and direct it into the body, where Being can be felt in the first instance as the invisible energy field that gives life to what you perceive as the physical body.”
Tolle goes on to ask his readers to direct their attention into their body and poses the question, “Can you feel the subtle energy field that pervades the entire body and gives vibrant life to every organ and every cell? Can you feel it simultaneously in all parts of the body as a single field of energy?”
This is a question I too would ask you as you meditate with Mandala Time. It is my experience, as well as many others, that Mandala Time can be a fast-acting catalyst for experiencing the body’s inner energy field. Tapping into this energy field and experiencing its pleasant effervescence, is where real transformation happens and where you begin to experience the full benefits of a mediation practice.
While softy focusing your eyes on the Mandala during mediation, keep a portion of your attention on the inner body. Part of the reason for doing this is to continue to relax and release tension. But the result of that is you will begin to feel your body’s energy field more and more as tension dissipates. Feeling the energy in every cell can be quite pleasant and an attractive alternative to focusing on the incessant, mostly useless thoughts of your mind.
Once you’ve learned to tap into your bodies energy field and know what that feels like, you can continue to keep part of your attention there throughout the day. When you lose it, simply do a quick Mandala Time mediation to regain it. The benefit is that you continually practice taking your conscious energy away from compulsive thinking and into the body, into Being.
The more energy you remove from compulsive thinking and place it into Being, the better life gets. Test it for yourself, and as you do, come back and tell us about it by commenting below.