Meditation Archives - John Oliver MasonJohn Oliver Mason

The High Holy Days-Rosh haShona and Yom Kippur-are almost upon us. this is the time when we are called to look at our lives, look at how we behaved in the past year, noted where we dome well as people, and where we need to improve.

this is the time to put our mistakes and errors of the past year behind us, and to forgive ourselves of them, and know we can be better people. To any person I may have offended, I ask your forgiveness; and to all who have offended me, I forgive them.

One practice I have is my Resolutions for Rosh HaShona, like the resolutions I write also for the New Year-and for my birthday and Pesach. Here they are:

I will continue conduct myself with self-live, self-esteem, and self respect. I will not be bound by errors of the past, but continue to improve as a person, to think positively about myself and my life, and challenge negative thoughts and replace them with positive thoughts.

I will continue such spiritual practices as Torah study, yoga, affirmations, meditation, etc.

I will continue my art and business as a writer, seeking journals, attending writing events, practicing writing, etc. I will continue my activism for my various social and political causes.

I will continue to be loyal to Jewish relation, culture, history, Israel, etc.

I call this my spirit work, reading and saying affirmations-short, positive statements-and mediation, which I’ve done for many years.

With the affirmations, I have index cards on which I write the short positive statements, like “I am a man of the greatest intellect,” and “I’m ready to help out when people need a hand right away,” and “I am an avid reader, and I have excellent reading and vocabulary skills,” and “I am a man of many many talents,” and “I am the sexiest man and most wonderful lover.” (Hey, why not?) I read these cards regularly, over and over, once a day, and it sinks in gradually, entering your subconcious mind, and so your attitude about yourself and your life gets better.

With the mediation, I find a quiet space and time, and I sit with eyes closed and breathe deeply, and I ofter visualize something positive, or I listen to recordings, audio tapes or CDs, with guided meditations to direct your mind, again, positively; I do this for twenty minutes to an hour, and my mind and body untenses and I think clearly. I urge you to give them a try, they’ll work for you.