Types of Meditation
Comments
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Good morning @SmellyBin 😊
Thinking of connection with others and of people rooting for you is a beautiful focus. So very beautiful. And we are connected as you were one of the first thoughts in my head this morning, wondering if you're okay. I had breakfast with some friends this morning, and imagined you were amongst us. It was a lovely feeling. 😊 Here is my yummy breakfast. (The bread isn't as enormous as it looks 🤭)
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It sounds like you are/were rooting for me, @StarryEyed! That is such a cool idea of you thinking of me amongst your friends and very kind as well. We all need a bit of that sort perspective from time to time. And I am so glad you had a nice time.
But yeah, the bread looks HUMONGUOUS, not too mention the bit of blob you dropped on the paper napkin. This won't do, Starry - no way is this is instagrammable 🤭
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Yes @SmellyBin I was, am and will be rooting for you. 😊
Lucky I'm not on Instagram. Phew! 😉
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It has been said before here on the forum that Xmas can be difficult for lots of us. I came across this and wonder if it would be helpful for some of us: a talk and meditation session, live event on 04:00pm Saturday, 20 December.
Navigating Griefmas
With Dr. Megan Kirk ChangThe holidays can magnify loss, and “Griefmas” often arrives with a mix of love, ache, memory, and overwhelm. This live session offers a gentle, authentic space for anyone moving through the season while carrying the absence of someone they love or another type of loss (e.g., job loss, illness, distance/separation). Together, we’ll gather in community to feel a little less alone, share helpful tips and tools for navigating holiday triggers and expectations, and explore ways to honour both grief and joy without forcing either one. You’ll also be guided through a calming mindfulness practice to help you soften the edges of the season, reconnect with yourself, and anchor in moments of steadiness. Come as you are, whether tender, tired, hopeful, or unsure.
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I regularly meditate via Youtube
This one works best for me
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What a beautiful idea. Griefmas. Yes! Thank you for posting that. I've registered. Are you doing it?
Fabulous! I listened to it last night to put me to sleep. It knocked me out before the end! Thank you 🙏🏼😊
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I really appreciate it that she mentions different kind of griefs (from time to time I am so fed up with chronics or disabled people being invisible, but thankfully not today), but the session of an hour is too long for me, @StarryEyed.
There is also this session on Sunday night with Vimalasara, it is an hour and a half, but I'm hoping to be there for the first 30 min. Fingers crossed.
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Hi @SmellyBin. I've already got plans on the date of that meditation. But thank you for the suggestion. Hopefully we can do another one together. That would be great!
Back in the '90s, one of my favorite therapists introduced me to the classic model of grieving by Kubler-Ross, which defines five stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance). My therapist had done her thesis on grieving using this model, with an undergraduate degree in nursing. So it was a very interesting perspective on the model. By that time already in the '90s, this model, which had been created in the 60s, was being used for grieving many different things, like this grief meditation will be doing. This model is one of the cornerstones of my living. One of the biggest concerns in my life right now is grieving my able body and my able-bodied life. So you see your suggestion is quite fitting and very much appreciated. Again, thank you.
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Yo @StarryEyed
Unlike IT, on Sangha Live the sessions are being recorded and available through the Dharma Library a few days later.
Yeah, about grief… Manu Keirse has written about grief, I read his book Grief is Love, because if you didn’t love it, you wouldn’t be crying for losing it.
I am not exactly sure, but I think he is the one who came up with a different sort of grief that translates as ‘loss that is alive’ (levend verlies), about grieving things that are not linear or a one-way street, becoming ill is like that, he states.
It is not just about having to deal with new boundaries, but how – with a disabled body – these boundaries can differ from time to time. The same goes for other consequences about no longer being the able-bodied version of yourself: losing friends and family members, lack of support, ignorance, staying behind when people around you move on (sometimes literally by going from A to B, or proverbially by getting a new job, house, going on holidays), being invisible to society, dreams being squashed, you name it.
His books are published in Dutch and French.For some (I remember from a blog, unfortunately also not in English) this sort of ‘loss that is alive’ gets more intense the longer they are ill, instead of (like I was expecting and unnecessarily keep telling myself) things getting easier over time, that you can get used to the difficult circumstances. As if we should be able to simply sail through it, as society keeps telling us (but that is a slightly different discussion perhaps).
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Apparently, the common term for this in English is chronic sorrow. And yes, it can hit you on the most unexpected moments - sounds indeed familiar… and I quite like the description in the last sentence.
This is what the AI assistant tells me:
A commonly used English translation for “levend verlies” is chronic sorrow; sometimes people also say living loss to keep the link with the Dutch term.
Translation options
Chronic sorrow: this is the established term in anglophone literature for ongoing grief linked to long-term illness, disability or other enduring losses, and it is also explicitly mentioned as the English equivalent of “levend verlies”.Living loss: this is a more literal rendering and is also cited as an English name for the same phenomenon, highlighting that the loss is present while the person or situation is still “alive” and ongoing.
What “levend verlies” means
“Levend verlies” refers to a chronic form of grief that arises when expectations, identity, or a future image have to be let go, for example around disability, chronic illness, addiction or psychiatric problems in oneself or a loved one.Unlike grief after a death, the situation and the confrontations with limitations continue, so the grief can return repeatedly or even intensify over time, instead of steadily decreasing.
According to Manu Keirse
Manu Keirse introduced the Dutch term “levend verlies” around 2017 to describe lifelong grief that never fully ends, but moves with someone through life and can flare up again at expected and unexpected moments.In his view, this is not a disorder but a normal reaction to a loss without a clear endpoint: there is no “processing and being done”, but rather “surviving and carrying” the loss like a shadow that is usually behind you, but can suddenly stand right in front of you again.
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Hi @SmellyBin and thank you from the bottom of my heart for telling me about the Griefmas meditation. It was really more a talk than a meditation, but I totally loved it. I've never done online talks or meditations in a group, so it was very special. They have tons of great topics, so I will definitely attend again.
Levend Verlies looks like it's right up my alley for many issues, not just losing my ability to walk. Thank you for this very helpful and interesting information. I will definitely look into it.
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If the Universe is willing and the spoons are with me, I'll be joining this free session Enter Into Sacred Space On Christmas at the end of the afternoon today. Padma Gordon has a nice voice and does very soothing guided meditations.
You are invited to join Padma for a meditation on Christmas Eve morning. Let us come together in sacred space to drop into the silent, holy beauty of this time of year. We are in the window of Winter Solstice, Chanukah and Christmas--it is a time of celebration and also a tender time for many of us who have lost people we love or are feeling alone. We will meditate and drop into the true spirit of the holidays with our amazing meditation sangha. If you are feeling alone or overwhelmed with the busyness of cooking, gifting, gatherings and more, this meditation will soothe your soul and nourish you so you can truly be nourished by sacred communion with the ones you love. All are welcome.
@StarryEyed - and everyone else of course :)
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Forgot to mention that it is a 30 min session at 5 UK time, 6 EU time.
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Good morning, @SmellyBin and a Merry Christmas Eve to you. I would love to join you. See you there, if the stars are aligned. 🤞🏼 Thank you so much for posting this. 🙏🏼
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That sounds wonderful, @StarryEyed Make sure to wear a flower in your hair and I'll do the same 🤭
Anyone else gonna join us?
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But it's without video, right? The other meeting was.
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I had no audio either last time. None of us had audio or video - only the host did. She spoke and we communicated via a chat alongside the video of the host.
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Yeah, I was only kidding. If we ever do Sangha Live together it is through Zoom and optional to be visually present (and wave - kidding again).
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Ah, ok. Since it was my only time, I thought maybe there were different formats. I'm soooooo looking forward to this. Again, thank you.
Here's one of my favourite Christmas songs, especially for Christmas Eve nights, sung by one of my favourite Canadians, Michael Bublé. Imagine a world where everyone would be even partially as joyful about the birth of all babies?
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Imagine a guided meditation by Michael Bublé, that would be quite the thing.
With the Sangha Live sessions you sometimes see people and their pets which I quite like, or even the teacher with a cat somewhere out there.
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