Mind Weeds

Whenever you're sitting in meditation or contemplative prayer do you allow other thoughts to creep into your head and disturb your focus? That happens to all of us, especially if we're new to contemplative prayer. In Zen practice they call those thoughts Mind Weeds. I rather like that term, so I've stolen it and use it myself to refer to distractions during my spiritual meditation and contemplative prayer times. I like the term because weeds tend to be unwanted visitors in our lawns and we often have trouble getting rid of them. It's the same with Mind Weeds.

O.K., just what are Mind Weeds? Well, as I mentioned above, they're thoughts that disturb your contemplation, but they can also be sounds, or maybe you're starting to daydream. All of these experiences are Mind Weeds. They take you away from the true focus of your contemplation. Dealing with them is rather easy. Just let them come and go. Don't consider them as bothersome, because as soon as you begin thinking about them they have drawn you away from your focus. Pretty soon you'll see this is how the mind learns to settle down and as you practice contemplative prayer you'll find these disturbances come less often.

Whether you're a beginner at contemplative prayer, or have been doing it for some time, another technique to combat Mind Weeds is to use the Jesus Prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have Mercy on Me, a Sinner." By focusing on the Jesus Prayer you can calm your mind and soon you'll find that peace that is part of the experience of contemplative prayer. Of course, saying the Jesus Prayer is always a good thing and should itself be a focus of your contemplative prayer life.

So, the next time you're in contemplative prayer and you experience distractions, just know they're Mind Weeds and let them go. It will be as though a pond has been disturbed and all of the muck and mire has settled to the bottom leaving the water clear and peaceful.

Coming and Going

Coming and going can be one of our biggest problems. It keeps us from being quiet and opening our hearts to God. Sometimes we just need to sit....most of the time we just need to sit. Quiet is the key.

More Merton

"We find God in our own being which is the mirror of God. But how do we find our being? Actions are the doors and windows of being. Unless we act we have no way of knowing what we are. And the experience of our existence is impossible without some experience of knowing or some experience of experience. Hence we cannot find the depths of our being by renouncing all activity...But when we act accordint to grace, our actions are not ours alone, they belong to God. If we follow them to their source, we will become at least potentially capable of an experience of God. For His actions in us reveal His being in us.

The whole of life is to spiritualize our activities by humility and faith, to silence our nature by charity."
-- Thomas Merton Thoughts in Solitude