Consciousness Known by Rhonda O'Brien

"Stop looking for something out there and begin looking within." ~Rumi

Meditation is not hard. It is just a matter of discipline. It takes the discipline to actually meditate. I recommend setting small, achievable goals at first. For instance, make it a goal to meditate 10 minutes a day and then schedule this time into your day. It also takes the discipline to clear your mind of any thoughts which can be difficult because the mind tends to wonder. I have listed a few hints that have helped me to clear my mind of the clutter in order to grasp the sweet treats of meditation.

1. Stare at the flame of a candle.

2. Say “om mani padme” over and over again.

3. Draw two dots (about one inch apart) on a piece of paper. Bring your focus to the two dots. Try, as hard as you can to focus on the two dots simultaneously while meditating.

4. Concentrate on your breathing; count to three on your inhale and three on your exhale.

5. Use the meditation YouTube videos available online. I use several, interchangeably just to mix it up. You can find a large selection by going to YouTube and using key words like “meditation,” “mandalas,” etc. These are great because they have mandalas and trance-inducing videos along with relaxing music which really accelerate your level of relaxation.

6. I picture Buddha and I focus on how relaxed he/she is and then I “model” the level of relaxation. In other words I focus on how relaxed Buddha is and I try to bring my consciousness to that same level of relaxation.





7. Walking a labrynth gets you into a meditative state. Usually I like to start the walking the labrynth with a question in my head and upon completion I usually gain some sort of insight regarding the problem/issue/question.


"Silence makes wisdom" ~ Ryuho Okawa

Click here to view channeled meditations by Rhonda O’Brien.

Copyright © 2010 Rhonda O'Brien. All Rights Reserved.

. . . Something To Think About. . .

Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

4 minutes later:

The violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

6 minutes:

A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

10 minutes:

A 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.

45 minutes:

The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

1 hour:

He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities.

The questions raised:

*In a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?

*Do we stop to appreciate it?

*Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made.

How many other things are we missing?

You cannot solve a problem with the same consciousness that created it.

So I returned from my annual 6 am Black Friday shopping venture feeling really rotten. In retrospect I have a few observations to share.

I think that the notion that Americans have to spend money in order to “save” our economy is part of the problem.

We are suffering, financially, because people, countries, banks, companies cannot pay back money that they have borrowed.

I have a feeling that a lot of the people making purchases on “Black Friday” or any given day are buying on credit. I have to tell you that that doesn’t make me more comfortable about our future as my money sometimes pays for bailing out individuals who cannot pay back their debt.

How about stay at home and bake cookies with your kids, draw, paint, laugh, play Scrabble, tell someone you love them, be present, call a long lost friend, write a note and paste it on your children’s bathroom mirror. Love is not things. If you think that someone will not think that you love them if you don’t get them an “Easy Bake Oven” you are wrong.

What I remember the most about my parents is the one on one time that they gave me. I don’t really even remember the toys, gifts and/or the money. I remember my mom drawing me stick figures, my dad playing sports with me endlessly, my dad watching me at my swim team practice at 6 am, my grandma making a ribbon box with me, etc.

Spend some quality time with the ones that you love instead of plunging deeper into debt. Spending quality time with your loved ones is a louder expression of love than any material item that you can find on the store shelves this winter season or any season.