Creating Conditions Conducive to Practice

I love it when I re-discover a book I had forgotten about. Today, I was actually looking for something else when I came upon Instant Calm: Over 100 Easy-to-Use Techniques for Relaxing Mind and Body by Paul Wilson. Wilson has a page labeled "The Conditions that Lead to Calm" that he refers people back to over and over. Since we have been discussing the slogan regarding creating conditions conducive to practice in ongoing class, I thought taking a look at the "conditions of calm" might be helpful.

Comfort
Comfort in environment, in seating and in clothing is a fast and easy way to start feeling more relaxed. The ideals: a warm place, a straight-backed chair, loosened clothes and no shoes.

Air
Fresh air tends to reduce much of the pressure when you're feeling stressed or anxious. A stroll in the park will bring more relief than standing shoulder-to-shoulder in a movie queue; a chair by the window will bring more relief than one crammed between others.

Lack of Stimuli
Lack of stimuli prevents the excitation of your nervous system. Stressful states of mind often lead you to believe certain stimulants are necessary to your relaxation - but who wants to trust stressful states of mind? Silence (or a sense of silence) is one of the most powerful counterbalances to stress and anxiety. Almost all relaxation and meditation techniques insist on it. Wherever possible, seek calm in silence.

Motivation
Motivation is the most important element of all. As much as you would like external agents to do it all for you, the only way to find a real state of calm is to assume the responsibility and to go after it yourself.

I will probably share some of the Instant Calm techniques with you over the next few days. For now, see how you can avail yourself of the "conditions of calm" I've shared with you today.