understand love differently<\/a>. How do you understand what love is? For me love is about knowing myself so well, I am no longer in my own way. I come to know my thoughts, emotions, reactions and responses with a mix of compassion and dispassion. Love for me is making the conscious choice and effort within the interior of my soul to move myself out of the way so I can be present for souls and all the manifestations of life. What emotion do I feel when I think about this? I feel joy. The joy of being alive and having learned from the practice of meditation how to make the ongoing effort to notice, attend, respond wholeheartedly.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe joy of being alive<\/h5>\n\n\n\n From meditating I learned that I have a limited view of what emotions are. Over the years of meditating, I discovered emotions that I didn\u2019t consider previously. For example, if the emotion of frustration arises as I meditate, I go deeper into the feeling to find there is also disappointment because of idealizations I hold. Sometimes I encounter expectations that were held beneath the surface. I may become aware of longings to be free, or wanting to change my impulsive emotional reactions in order to connect with another human being. I see that my frustration can rub off on others and cause them unhappiness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How can I discover new depth in emotions?<\/h5>\n\n\n\n Are disappointment, idealization, expectations, the longing to be free and wanting to connect with others experienced as emotions? More than emotions I think these are states of being. I have learned that awareness of emotions serves as an entrance into what lies beneath the surface. It is my view that through the practice of meditation, the soul can encounter unrealized, as yet undeveloped affective states of awareness such as desolation felt by those who suffer, disattachment from what I cling to in life, making choices about how to live integrated with my intention to love, feelings of consolation, and joy, to name a few. These affective states of awareness are integral to meditation practice in Cafh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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What is the parallel between emotions and colors?<\/h5>\n\n\n\n I sometimes try to imagine what life would be like if colors did not exist. I don\u2019t do this often because I am so grateful for colors. What if there were no colors at all in the physical environment, we take in visually? What if there were no vibrant greens and shades of blue? No rosy pink children\u2019s cheeks. Can you imagine what a loss that would be? I find the thought of a world in only black and white or in light and shadow disturbing. I imagine such a world as bland or flat, lacking a dynamic variation. When I think about how much color adds to the visual world, I feel grateful for this kaleidoscopic dimension. Color feels like a bonus, an extra delight that adds dimension, variation, shades of difference, uniqueness an awesome beauty to the physical world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not all emotions are pleasant or easy to feel. But emotions are part of being human. In my view, emotions make life interesting and bring a unique dimension that has much to teach about being human.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We all experience difficult emotions sometimes. Meditation can be a useful tool in knowing our feelings and redirecting them in positive ways. Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">→<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":369446,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,8],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEmotions and Meditation | Cafh Global | Global Spiritual Community<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n