Tag: meditation

National Meditation Month | Free Community Events in Evanston and Chicago

May is National Meditation Month and MSI Wellness Center in Chicago is hosting a series of free community events to honor the wonderful celebration of meditation. If you’ve been wanting to meditate or if you’ve had a desire to do more meditation, this is the month to start. Enjoy a special spring ceremony, flower meditation, the inside story of meditation with Billie Topa Tate and so much more.

Join Us For Free Community Events at our Evanston Meditation Center

MAY 2018 Meditation Classes and Events in Chicago, Illinois

Spring Ceremony & Meditation – May 4th Friday 6:30pm

Welcome Wisdom Seekers – Your  Spring Equinox Free Event.  The dawning of The Spring Equinox is a beautiful launching of celebrations. festivals, ceremonies and onset intentions to breathe in the breath of life as mother earth launches the beginning of new energy, flowers and fresh opportunities.  

Spring Flower Medicine Meditation – May 11th Friday 6:30pm

The medicine of flowers is so uplifting, especially during this time of establishing balance and healing. This is a free open to the public community event hosted by MSI Wellness Center. Billie Topa Tate will be hosting a special meditation, facilitating an empowering and healing meditation with the medicine of flowers and herbs.

Share Meditation with a Friend – May 18th Friday 6:30pm

It’s such good karma to bring a friend to the wonderful world of meditation.  Meditation is a great tool to be guided by higher thought and refresh our mind body and spirit.  Come join us for a beautiful meditation and also learn some special techniques on how to navigate positive energy to surround ourselves with great support systems and wonderful friends.

Worldwide Celebration of Meditation – May 25th Friday 6:30pm

The world is filled with such great potential and we have more options then we know.  World wide meditation is a powerful and empowering event where we can all come together to facilitate positive and peaceful energy for the plants, animals, people and mother earth.  As a global group of wisdom seekers around the world let us use this opportunity to help everyone experience moments of wisdom and loving energy.  Click the link and be connected with us to facilitate positive and empowering energy around the world.

National Meditation Month | What are the Yamas and Niyamas

“Keep your thoughts sacred, and your world will become sacred.  It’s the quiet place inside where you return over and over again which nurtures  your thoughts sacred, your heart expanded and your dreams alive.   Meditation helps you to create your sacred place.”

-Billie Topa Tate

The Practice of The Yamas and The Niyamas in Meditation:

The practice of the Yamas and Niyamas definitely inspires us to remember that meditation is a way of life — not just something we do for 20 minutes three times a week.  In fact, if they are interwoven in every fabric of our life.

The Power of Yama – Control

Yama is a process by which the actions of the body and the functions of the mind are volitionally restrained. It purifies one’s words, thoughts, and deeds, enabling the aspirant to reach the deeper aspect of his or her own self that remains dormant in an undisciplined life. Through the practice of yama, an unknown inner power is experienced, because the body becomes quiescent and the mind becomes tranquil and able to function better.

The 10 Yamas:

1. Non-Violence
2. Truth
3. Honesty
4. Sexual Continence
5. Forbearance
6. Fortitude
7. Kindness
8. Straight-Forwardness
9. Moderation in Diet
10. Purity (Bodily Cleansing)

The Power of The Niyama – Golden Rules of Contact

After following the yamas, one will be able to follow effortlessly the rules of conduct, thus enhancing the development of one’s spiritual nature that makes one harmless, selfless, friendly, loving, and respectful to all creation, from mineral to man.

The 10 Niyamas:

1. Austerity
2. Contentment
3. Belief in God
4. Charity
5. Worship of God in any form
6. Openness and constant study by reading or listening to explanations of teachings or doctrines and scriptures
7. Modesty
8. Having a discerning mind
9. Repetition of payers
10. Observance of vows and performing sacrifices

Join us, each week for our Free Friday Night Community Meditation.  Click here for more information. 

National Meditation Month

To see all our special weekly meditation offerings during the month of May, click here

Guidelines to Sacred Meditation Space

“Keep your thoughts sacred, and your world will become sacred.  It’s the quiet place inside where you return over and over again which nurtures  your thoughts sacred, your heart expanded and your dreams alive.   Meditation helps you to create your sacred place.”

-Billie Topa Tate

What Is A Sacred Meditation Space:

It is a space you keep clean and you place simply items that represent your spiritual quest. It may contain something new or old items that you wish. It may contain the book you are reading. Diagrams, mandalas that you create. Create it with CARE and ATTENTION. It is a temple on which you can focus your good intentions. One of the best ways to activate meditation is to sit and focus on this sacred space and to remember LOVE, GOODNESS and PEACE.  Keep this place simply

Often people visiting our Healing Center come from a busy and hectic work and home environment.   Some take the train or drive once a week to help become part of this spiritual community.  Each time they enter the front door gate  – the smell of burning incense, beautiful zen garden and zen pathway , the smell of clean, balanced air,  sacred statue and symbols, altars, feng shui items, and harmonic tones.   All remind them they are entering a special place – a place devoted to the practice of meditation, wisdom and balance.    They often comment – feeling their breath deepening and they minds slowing to a balanced rejuvenating pace.  Many of our students soon find that their own physical environment surrounding them is so very important and begins them on their journey to create a sacred space at home or at the office.

Perhaps you’ve seen many other sacred meditation areas which have a peaceful fountain or waterfall, serene sitting area, zen mat, and bonsai tree.

Here are a 7 steps which will help you to start creating your own sacred space:

1. Choose comfortable clothing.  Use a set of clothing which is simple, comfortable and only used for meditation (if possible). Use a meditation scarf and mala beads when meditating.

2. Because the body temperature and blood pressure tend to drop during meditation, you may get chillier than usual.  Be sure to have a clean and comfortable blanket nearby.

3. Keep it away from work. If you work at home or have a desk devoted to personal business, keep it out of sight when meditating.  If possible, remember to shut off your phone.

4. Find a spot in your home that is good for meditation.   Sample the area and make sure your feel good meditating in this area.  The more often you sit there, the more you infuse your sacred area with your meditation energy.    Find a quiet space in your home which is off the beaten path of high traffic areas.

5. Fresh air, sun light and clean surroundings are important.  Avoid must basements and windowless closets;  these tend to lower your energy level.

6. Close to nature.  If you don’t have a tree or garden outside the window, you may want to have a plant or vase full of flowers, and a few river stones nearby.   Natural object radiate a certain special energy which helps us feel more whole and balanced.

7. Although an altar is not essential to meditate, it can be a creative and evolving expression of your inner life.  Candles, flowers, incense, natural objects, statues of inspirational figures, pictures of your teacher(s) and sacred text, can all be part of your meditation space.

It is important that you create a space that is conducive to meditation, and use of meditation tools.

First, you may attune yourself to the energy of your surroundings. Things that can interfere with that flow are television sets that interrupt the thought process, high traffic areas like a living room that the whole family uses, or a room that is physically unappealing (a musty basement, or stifling attic).

Some of the negative influences can be lessened by turning off the TV or using the space when most of the family is in bed or away.

Dose this space have a good natural source of light? Can you use candles and incense in this space? It would most likely upset your landlord if you where smudging with sage and set off the smoke alarm.   Fresh air is good for meditation. Comfortable clothes and simply surroundings are perfect for your sacred space.

Once you have made this selection it is important you consecrate the space. You should perform a ritual cleaning. The walls must be washed, the windows cleaned. When sweeping do it in a circular motion to bring the dirt and dust to the middle of the room. As you do this, chant,” this is consecrated to good, this is offered to (insert name of a virtuous deity).   If any Transform  ill will, any negativity”. The sweepings should be gathered and cast outside as apart of the ritual.  Remember to transform all energy to virtuous energy.

Creating Your Own Sacred Space

When you moved into your house or your apartment, you probably didn’t designate a special room for you to go for peace and tranquility. If you did, how fortunate you are, but if not, it’s time to fix that. Of course you could always add an extra room for that purpose, which could be quite expensive, or you could create a sacred space in one of your existing rooms now.

Sacred Meditation Space Size

Since most rooms have four corners, I recommend a corner. The space should be wide enough for a 2 X 4 table top to fit into ( in case you want to seal it off with plants on each side) but you can even get by with less space than that. Under a window is always nice to allow the natural sunlight to come in which is especially nice for early morning devotions. The table should be low enough so when you kneel you are at a comfortable eye level for reading and focusing on the objects on the table. A soft pillow for kneeling should be placed in front but able to slide under the table when not in use.

Items for your meditation table

When setting up the top of your meditation table, keep in mind that each item should have a purpose or symbolize something that is close to your heart. Candles are needed to shed natural light as well as enhance the mood for meditation and/or prayer. A picture or a statue that is special to you, some form of plant or flower, to symbolize nature, a tabletop water fountain is nice to add the tranquil sound of a brook or river stream, you may be into gemstones and crystals due to the healing vibration they release, burning incense is always good to arouse the senses. All of these things help to create a feeling of peace and tranquility. Once you have reached that state of mind, you are ready to pray, meditate or just enjoy this sacred space you have created for your own peace of mind.

Join us every Friday night at our Evanston Meditation Center for Free Community Meditation.

5 Energy Bodies and Your Meditation Practice

What Are The Energy Bodies?

The five-layer Energy Body system is the third way of describing the Human Energy Field.  Note that the physical body is counted as an energy body since all matter is ultimately made up of energy.  Also of importance is the fact that the higher subtle energy bodies overlap and interpenetrate the complete physical body.  In much the same way as many different TV signals exist around us in the same space simultaneously and can be individually identified by a specific frequency, the overlapping subtle energy bodies (which are also defined by different frequencies) also penetrate into the same space as our physical body.  So when an energy practitioner places his or her hands on the client, the healing energies are sent not only to the physical body but also to each higher energetic body.  Thus, with the proper healing frequencies channeled through the practitioner, healing can occur on not only the physical level but also in the etheric, emotional, mental and spiritual energy bodies of the client.

5 Energy Bodies:

1. The Physical Energy Body.

At first, it may seem unusual to consider that the physical body is an energy body, but that is exactly what it appears to be.  And as we explore and become more accustomed to this new paradigm, we are able not only to see the physical body in a greater, more meaningful context, but also we begin to understand the role of disease and the nature of healing.  The physical body is the densest form of energy that our consciousness uses to explore its environment and interact with others.  By the densest form, it is meant that the vibrational patterns of the physical body are of a frequency low enough to be seen by our eyes (they are within the spectrum of visible light), heard by our ears (about 30 to 15,000 Hertz), and experienced with the senses of touch, taste and smell which are within the “frequency capability” of our physical body.

But there are many octaves, frequencies, and vibrations beyond the capability of our physical senses. Beyond what we can see as visible light are the higher frequencies of ultraviolet, x-ray, and cosmic radiation.  We are beginning to understand that what we can physically sense is only a small portion of the vibrational energies around us.  And if we look at our physical bodies at our atoms, molecules, and cells, again we find patterns of vibrating energy that we have traditionally called “matter”.

We need to become aware that our physical body is really a field of vibrating energy that has coalesced from higher less dense octaves.  But we also need to remember that as vibrating fields interact with each other, one field can affect another field through the phenomenon of sympathetic vibration.  If a violin player produces a note an octave above Middle C, and a second violin lying nearby on a table has a string which is tuned to Middle C, the second violin string tuned to Middle C will sympathetically begin to vibrate as well.  So as we also begin to understand that there are several vibrational fields of energy around our physical body, it becomes easier to understand how one field affects another through this principle.  And this is the key to understanding how energy-based healing techniques can achieve such visible and profound results in the physical body.

2. The Etheric Energy Body.

The etheric body is the first energy body in frequency above the physical body.  It exists within the physical body and extends outward about an inch outside the skin of the physical body.  Its purpose is to form an energy template or matrix for the development, maintenance, and repair of the physical body.  The etheric body contains a vibrational energy counterpart for each organ, blood vessel and bone found in the physical body.  Indeed, the etheric body contains the energetic blueprint for the pathways that guide the location and development of every cell of the physical body.  Our physical bodies exist only because of the vital (etheric) field behind them.  This etheric field exists prior to, not a result of, the physical body.

Since the etheric body is the physical body’s blueprint, the two are very closely related.  The energetic vibrations of the etheric body determine the pattern for not only the physical tissues and organs but also the state of health of those tissues and organs.  If the vibrations are not clear and pure, this disharmony will be reflected in the physical body as a disharmonious function — what we call “disease”.

Conversely, traumas to the physical body (e.g., broken bones, burns, incisions, and scars) will in time be reflected into the etheric body unless there is some interceding process that either prevents this reflection into the etheric body or which restores the original vibrational pattern which existed prior to the trauma.  The ability to work with a client’s vibrating energy fields is precisely what forms the basis for rapid and effective energy-based physical healings.

An illness can appear in the energy field weeks and even months before it appears in the physical body.  In his book, Vibrational Medicine, Dr. Richard Gerber, a Detroit physician, notes that “The etheric body is a holographic energy template that guides the growth and development of the physical body.”

The following description of the etheric and higher subtle energy bodies surrounding the physical body are taken from Barbara Brennan’s book, Hands of Light.  To her, the etheric body appears as a grid of tiny energy lines which has the overall structure and shape of the physical body.  This matrix extends from 1/4″ to 2 inches beyond the physical body.  It is upon this etheric grid or matrix that the cells and tissues of the body develop and are anchored.  The etheric body appears as a light blue or gray matrix of lines of light that constantly pulsate or scintillate at a rate of from 15-20 cycles per minute.

3. The Emotional Energy Body.

The emotional body contains the emotional patterns, feelings, and vibrations that determine our personality, and also how we feel about ourselves and interact with others.  If we are constantly angry, always feel helpless, or are consistently fearful, these patterns or vibrations get locked in our emotional energy field and become a part of our personality.  This determines to a very large degree how we interact with others on personal, social, and cultural levels.

The emotional body generally follows the shape of the physical and etheric bodies, but is somewhat more amorphous and fluid, and extends from one to about three inches outside the physical body.  It contains energy “blobs” of all colors of the rainbow, depending on the specific feeling or emotion.  Highly charged feelings such as love, hate, joy, and anger are associated with energy blobs that are bright and clear, while confused feelings are darker and muddier.

4. The Mental Energy Body.

The mental body contains the structure and patterns of all the thoughts and belief systems that we consider as true.  And there is a very strong connection between the mental and emotional bodies.  Although a thought or idea can in itself be very powerful, our reactions to those thoughts carry even more energy, and different people will react differently to the same thought.

For example, consider the thought form “If you are not a Catholic (or Protestant, or Muslim, or Jewish, or whatever), you can not go to Heaven.”  One person might hear that thought or idea, think it was silly, and give it absolutely no energy.  But another person might become very passionate, depending on his greater belief systems, and argue strongly either for or against the truth of that statement.  His emotional body would then record the intensity of the reaction to the thought stored in the mental body.  However, the person who thought the statement was silly in the first place would not have any resonance with it, and no energetic pattern would be stored in either the mental or emotional bodies.

The mental body usually appears as yellow light radiating around the entire body from head to toe and extends from three to eight inches beyond the physical body. Within this area, individual thought forms appear as small blobs of light of varying form and intensity.

5. The Spiritual Energy Body.

The spiritual body (i.e., all vibrational patterns in octaves higher than the mental body) contains all the information related to our experiences and reflects our gestalt consciousness of all that has been learned and experienced.  It contains our higher intentions, our sense of what is right and wrong (“conscience”), and our desires to increase our awareness of our purpose, place, and mission for this lifetime.

These five energy bodies make up one’s Human Energy Field or aura.  Its outer shape appears roughly egg-shaped and extends out to perhaps 1½ to two feet beyond the physical body; however, this shape can be extended even further out or contracted closer to the physical body depending on the situation the person is experiencing.  For example, when a person is feeling emotions of unconditional love, the aura may expand to several feet and radiate bright hues of gold or white.  But if the same person is feeling threatened physically or emotionally, the entire aura may collapse to a much denser pattern within only a few inches of the body.

Creating a Beautiful Aura During Your Meditation Practice

The Human Aura is a colorful energetic field that emanates from the body and extends several feet out from the physical body.  The Human Aura, also known as the human energy field is filled with an abundance of information from the past, present and future.  We, as people often respond to what is in our energy field whether we are just walking down the street or making direct conversations with people.

How to create a positive energy field around yourself:

Have you ever gone to the store and when you are at the cash register, the person at the cash register starts talking to someone else and ignores you slightly?  If so, try this experiment and visualization.  As you stand in line, imagine your energy field get brighter and brighter and place the following words in your energy field: “I am a valuable person and everyone wants to help me”.  Do this for a few seconds and see what happens.  The typical response to the adjustment of your aura and the words within your aura is that the person at the cash register will become more attentive and responsive to you.

Everything in our aura/energy field emanates information about us and also helps us navigate through our journey we call life.  Many things infuse our aura, such as, our past lives, our beliefs, our self talk, our principles, our words, our memories, our concepts, the sun energy, the energy around us and even our food.

There is a secret ingredient that also can infuse our aura:

We are always surrounded by energy coming from everything, including plants, man-made materials, animals, angels and other human beings. The more we develop our awareness and maturity the more we can develop our aura/energy field.

The Power of Words

Using Empowering Words within our Aura:

• Start with a wonderful morning meditation
• After meditation, close your eyes and visualize your physical body
• Next, visualize that you are in the middle of a bright ball of light and the rays of the ball of light are extending outward from our body
• Next visualize Special Empowering words with the Auric Field; Happiness, Beauty, Joy, High Self Esteem

The Power of Future Images

Using Empowering Images within our Aura:

• Using future images of what you want in the future and placing them in your aura, like gems shining brightly
• Use your smart phone to remind you to imagine your aura (target for 2pm to remind you daily )
• Take a nice photograph of yourself and then place your selected empowering words, and even images of what you would like within your aura.
• Keep this picture with you and view this picture on a daily basis

The Beautiful aura techniques can be done by placing high vibration words, images, emotions and other techniques within our energy field, which will not only enhance our energy field but also allow us to experience empowering events, people and angels within our life’s journey.

The aforementioned Beautiful Aura Techniques can be done singularly or grouped together.  Use these tips daily and you will surprisingly find exceptional outcomes.