Candle lit Meditation

Candle lit Meditation will help to focus and calm the mind bringing a sense of inner peace. It can help improve patience, willpower and your eyesight. It may help overcome mental blockages. A candle can be lit in memory of a loved one or to celebrate a new beginning. This meditation will help to bring warmth and light into the body. All you need is a candle, my favourite is an Aromatherapy candle which is scented naturally with Essential oils. I have listed a few scents and their benefits;

  • Lavender- will calm the mind, reducing stress and anxiety
  • Eucalyptus- good for relaxation can help you with sleep and clear sinuses
  • Jasmine- brings romantic and positive feelings, increasing energy levels
  • Rosemary- will improve mental activity, encourage clarity and relieve fatigue 
  • Sandalwood- can encourage openness, compassion and enhance benefits of meditation
  • Vanilla- brings a comforting feeling reducing nervous tension

Once you have picked the right candle for you. Sit comfortable at a table, try not to lean back into a chair but to lift and lengthen the spine relaxing the shoulders down. Place the candle in-front of you and light the candle. Take a moment to tune into your breath. If your candle has a scent take a moment to enjoy it. Look at the candles flame and soften your gaze. With each inhale imagine the light flowing into your body and slowly filling the body. The body begins to feel warmth. Notice which areas feel the warmest this could be physically, or it may be your heart. Close your eyes and visualise  the flame at your third eye (space between your eyebrows). In your mind see the colours of the candlelight and how it dances with your breath. Again, feel the warmth from the candle and draw the light into you so you become one with the light.  Visualise your body glowing and the light shining within you. How do you feel? Once you feel relaxed let everything settle. slowly open your eyes again to see the candle. Stay as long as you need allowing your breath to flow naturally. When you are ready to finish your meditation notice any unhappy thoughts or feelings that come up, acknowledge these thoughts as they have come for a reason. Now blow out the candle visualise any unhappy energy disappear with the smoke.

Using a candle can help you practice balance. You can do this practice before and after the meditation, noticing any change. Focus on the candlelight as you do the balance. I like to do a balance I call the Candle Balance. Start with feet parallel about hip width apart, focus on the light and bring your weight forwards on to your toes, possibly lifting your heels, bring your hands to prey at your heart and notice how balanced you feel. To go deeper raise the hands in prey above the head creating the flame, pull shoulders down, make the body as long as possible and if you can close your eyes picturing a candlelight in-front of you. You may only do this for a second or 2 depending on how you feel, this can change from day to day.

Chocolate Meditation

This is one of my favourite meditations! I think you can guess why. Chocolate meditation helps to bring a focus and includes the use of all your senses. Chocolate will release happy endorphins into the brain meaning it will de-stress and leave you feeling happy. All you need is a bar of chocolate, but choose carefully and note why you have picked it.

Start by getting into a comfortable seated position, this could be on a chair or on the floor. Place your chosen chocolate in-front of you. Take a moment first to lift and lengthen through the spine and roll the shoulders back and down. Take a few deeper breaths to relax breathing in through the nose and out through the nose.

Now look at the chocolate bar, notice the packaging, the colours and the writing. Does this make you think of anything?

Pick up the packet and look closer. Does the packet make a sound? Is there anything you see you haven’t seen before? Notice how you feel, are you excited to open the chocolate?

Open it and listen to the sound the packet makes. How does the chocolate feel? Is it smooth? Smell the chocolate and imagine what its going to taste like in your mouth. Brake off a square and again listen. Do you like that sound?

Place a square in your mouth and just let it dissolve, try not to bite it. How does the chocolate feel in your mouth? Is it what you expected? Does it taste how you imagined it? Are there any flavours you didn’t expect?

Once the square has melted in your mouth notice if you want or need any more? Was that one square enough? If you do want more, again take your time, notice all of the flavours in your mouth. Do you still like this chocolate? Has the reason you picked it changed? Will you pick the same bar again?

We so often open a chocolate bar and chuck the wrapper away taking no notice of the work and thought behind it. The packaging is important, it needs attract the target audience. We then eat the chocolate quickly not noticing the flavours with detail, therefore overeat. I previously had a client take a chocolate infused with ginger as they had it before and enjoyed it, but by the end of the meditation realised they had never tasted the bar properly.

Guided relaxation

Guided relaxation meditation is used to relax the body and mind. This is a perfect practice after a hard day or just before bed, to help get to sleep. It can also be used after a workout to relax the muscles. It should only take 10 mins but feel free to take as long as you like.

Start by laying in a comfortable position. If you are laying on the back, you can place a pillow under your head for more comfort and bend the knees if you need to support your lower back. Bring your awareness to your body. Scan your body. How does the physical body feel?  Notice areas of tension, tenderness or discomfort. Feel those areas soften and adjust your position if needed.

Take 5 or more deeper breaths.

Bring your awareness to the feet and say to yourself “my feet are feeling relaxed” 2 times then say, “my feet are relaxed.”

Bring awareness to your legs and say to yourself “my legs are feeling relaxed” 2 times then say, “my legs are relaxed.”

Do the same for;  

  • Belly 
  • Back 
  • Chest
  • Shoulders 
  • Arms
  • Hands 
  • Neck 
  • Face 

Finish by saying to yourself 2 times, “my whole body is feeling relaxed” then, “my whole body is completely relaxed.”

Now enjoy this moment. Scan the body again and notice if there is any difference. Repeat for any areas of the body that need help relaxing. Once the whole body is feeling relaxed, bring your focus back to the breath and follow the breath for as long as you like.

“Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.” –Chinese Proverb