Mindfulness Meditation Northern Ireland

MINDFULNESS

MEDITATION

WITH

CIARAN CORR

Newry, Co. Down,

BT34 1PJ,

Northern Ireland

FORTHCOMING

MINDFULNESS MEDITATION CLASSES

There are classes for Beginners and Continuing Practice students.

Continuing Practice classes are for those who have completed a Beginners Course.

SEPTEMBER 2010 - BEGINNERS

STARTS: Wednesday, 22nd September 2010

EVENING CLASS: 7.00pm – 8.30pm

Cost: £70

Duration: 7-week course

Payable: At your first class

Reserve a Place: Ring (028) 3026 2123 or

email: cc@flowsoftly.com

Location: Mourne Country Hotel, Newry, Co. Down

SEPTEMBER - 2010 - ADVANCED CLASS

(For those who have completed the Beginners Meditation Class)

STARTS: Tuesday, 21st September 2010

EVENING CLASS: 8.30pm – 10.00pm

Cost: £70

Duration: 7-week course

Payable: At your first class

Reserve a Place: Ring (028) 3026 2123 or

email: cc@flowsoftly.com

Location: The Scout Hall, Home Avenue (off the Warrenpoint Road) Newry City

SQ: What is Mindfulness meditation?

A: Here are two nice definitions of what mindfulness is:

“Mindfulness is a process of self-discovery, a participatory investigation in which you observe your own experiences while participating in them as they occur”

(Venerable Henepola Gunaratana)

“Mindfulness means moment-to-moment, non-judgmental awareness. It is cultivated by refining our capacity to pay attention, intentionally, in the present moment, and then sustaining that attention over time as best we can. In the process, we become more in touch with our life as it is unfolding.”

(Myla & Jon Kabat-Zinn)

Q: What is your background in meditation?

A: I first started meditation over 30 years ago when I was introduced to T.M. (Transcendental Meditation), which is a practice where you silently repeat a mantra for 20 minutes twice a day which brings deep relaxation and revitalisation. It leaves you feeling calm and with a clear mind.

There are different types of meditation – which are all beneficial – but, I have chosen Mindfulness Meditation because of the additional benefits it brings, and that’s why I have chosen to teach it for the past 8 years.

Q: What are the benefits it brings?

A: Meditation, in general, brings the following benefits:

• It brings a deep sense of calmness to your mind;

• It brings great clarity into your thinking;

• It enhances your intuition and deepens your insightfulness;

• It greatly improves your ability to concentrate and focus;

The practice of Mindfulness Meditation brings many additional benefits, including the following:

• It brings you into present-moment living;

• It makes you more resilient to changes in your life;

• It helps you in your transition to your Authentic self;

• It makes you more compassionate and understanding

Q: So do you sit and meditate mindfully once or twice a day?

A: Yes, that is part of the practice. Though this helps to create a good foundation for your practice, from your very first class you become more aware of each moment in which you live. You bring mindfulness to all aspects of your life – including such unlikely aspects as physical pain, emotional distress, addictions, and compulsions and gain insights and understanding from all of them.

All of these are a reflection of our internal world and mindfulness allows us the opportunity to explore the painful areas of our lives with gentleness and compassion.

Experiences become more intense and satisfying, even ordinary experiences like driving or ironing clothes! You are much more aware of everything you do, think, and feel, including how you are being at the time.

Q: How does it affect the body?

A: While mindfulness increases your delight and connection to all that surrounds you, it also allows you to encounter dissonance differently – dissonance is where you don’t have a good feeling about something – by acting as a gentle bell of awareness to let you know that there is something here that needs your attention. It makes you more aware of the effect that people and situations have on you

Q: How will it affect my relationships?

A: It makes us more ‘present’ with the people in our life, engaging with them on a more meaningful level. We are less likely to project our own stuff onto others, begin to feel and express from the heart in a way that not only honours ourselves, but also honours the person to whom we relate.

Whether we’re involved in some from of therapy, 12-step programmes, introspection, prayer, etc. mindfulness adds value and authenticity to our personal growth.

Not surprisingly, it speeds up our rate of progress because of our heightened state of awareness and new found gentleness towards ourselves. This results from our developing non-judgmental attitude towards ourselves, which we automatically extend to others.

Q: Tell us a bit about your course?

A: This is an introductory course which demonstrates what Mindfulness Meditation is, to show it is practiced, and how it increases our awareness of ourselves and others.

Q: What form does each week take?

A: For each class over the initial seven weeks, you’ll get course notes. We learn about the theory, experience its practice and share the insights that we each have gained from the practice.

Q: Do you get to share insights?

A: Most certainly – we often learn so much more from the sharing of our experiences, and this greatly extends our understanding of the nature of the mind, the difficulties encountered and the remedies we can use to negate them.

Q: Do you use any interesting techniques to help us through the process?

A: One of the things we use is a Reflective Journal. Each participant is asked to bring along a journal in which each will record insights into one’s practice.

This is completed after each meditation practice and normally takes no more than five minutes or so.

This is for our own private use and should not be disclosed to any other party outside the safety of the class. It is confidential and should remain so.

Even sharing in the class is not mandatory. There is no obligation to do so, but as we listen to others, we recognise ourselves in what they share, and realise that we really are all one, and that we are never alone. This is often a healing in itself.

Q: What about actually practicing Mindfulness Meditation?

A: You can expect to practice meditation during each class for approximately 20 minutes. At home, we begin with a 10 minute meditative practice each day building up to 20 minutes by the end of the course.

Q: It sounds as if this meditation is a very active practice?

A: It most certainly is. Meditation is not just about sitting there – despite the humour we sometimes use to describe meditation “Don’t just do something, sit there!” It’s about stopping and just being present in this moment – that’s all. Simplicity itself!

While it’s a very calming and relaxing exercise, it’s a very active process that teaches us a number of mental skills. Initially we learn to be alone and centered, then we begin to deepen our ability to be attentive, to focus and to be aware. As time goes on, we notice the nature of what the mind does and recognise all the devices it uses to keep us under its control.

You learn the difference between the ‘busy’ mind and the ‘active’ mind. Instead of being swept away by every thought and feeling, mindfulness steadily observes our thoughts and feelings as they come and go. Mindfulness is a meditative awareness that cultivates our ability to see things as they really are from moment to moment.

Q: Where do you teach?

A: I’m based in Newry, Co. Down in Northern Ireland and regularly teach Mindfulness Meditation at weekly classes in Newry.