PROBLEMS MEDITATING?

Inherent in the term "trying" to meditate is programming the brain to fail in the attempt.  The Dali Lama talks about having difficulty keeping his thoughts from interfering, so you're in the best of company.  "Trying" and relaxing don't mix, so stop trying.  Imagine the tide.  It makes a bit of noise, followed by a period of silence.  The mind chatters, but if permitted will allow for periods of silence as well.  Like the tide, silence comes in waves. 

The mind can remain active during a successful meditation if the flow of thoughts are focused on peace and inner Presence.  

No two people meditate the same way, or with the same effect.  No two meditations by the same individual are alike.  You are totally free to define your own style of meditation and allow it to evolve.  

Some can spend hours in a meditative state.  Others engage in "mini-meditations," that last seconds or minutes.  The best way to determine what's best for you is to observe how the meditation affects you over time.  You know you're on the right track when you begin feeling a sense of peaceful integrity throughout the day.  

ON FACEBOOK TROLLS

Yup! Lotsa folks on FB. Some are delightful and others are like a plague. Consider though, that bad actors challenge the strength of our spiritual understanding and compassion. The challenge itself affords an opportunity to determine what we feel deeply about our spiritual perspective and how our understanding works for us. 

If attacks are met with peaceful and compassionate responses consistently, usually one of two things happen: 1) The attacker gets bored or frustrated and fades away or 2) They become interested in how their victims maintain their peaceful and compassionate nature. At that point, the attacker could end up being a seeker of truth. 

It's very common to view forgiveness as removal of judgment or letting someone "off the hook." Yes, that's a nice thing to do, but what does it actually accomplish? Often it encourages bad behavior, as the offender depends on such forgiveness for opportunities to get away with even more bad actions. 

Some people "forgive" as a proclamation of their own virtue. Such people tend to be transparent to everyone but themselves. 

In my opinion, whether it's in cyber-land or real life, forgiveness of the greatest value takes the form of seeking healing or resolution of the pain/suffering that lead to the negative or pathological behavior. 

So, instead of singing to one's self, "How great I art, 'cause I forgave you," the focus becomes, "How can I help?"

Trolls are fellow humans who have not yet encountered the Light. They may be convinced their illusions are real. They may believe it's the spiritually oriented people who are messed up, and need help to be brought back to "reality." 

Some need to be forgiven and put in jail anyway. Some soldiers feel both forgiveness and grief when causing the death of an enemy. Far from being a mushy, feel good thing, forgiveness calls upon strength and courage. 

In this little cyber-haven, we can choose to respond in the most useful and compassionate way possible, thereby demonstrating how understanding and connection with Source serves us.