A Steady Focus...

It can be so difficult to focus. Our minds race this way and that. Often, there is anxiety under the surface that calls out for attention. I've heard well meaning spiritual teachers, tell others to simply let the anxiety go and return to meditation. Trouble is, there's a message in the anxiety.

In depth therapy, we listen to the inner symbols and symptoms. Anxiety can be one. As we listen to what it has to tell us, there can be healing and growth. The anxiety then often abates. In the words of Mary Shelley, "Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady purpose--a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye."

"I can do my spiritual practice," one patient related, "because I've learned that listening to my feelings and dreams, sometimes nightmares, is part of my practice. Once I've looked within and understood the meaning behind the feelings or images, meditation is easier. I am calmer."