Natural doorways

In Instinctive Meditation "Natural doorways" refers to the experiences and practices that help us transition from one internal state to another. Some doorways are shared by many people, many are quite specific.

In Lorin Roche's book, The Radiance Sutras, it's described like this:

Sutra 51

Wherever, whenever you feel carried away,
Rejoicing in every breath,
There, there is your meditation hall.

Cherish these times of absorption—
Rocking the baby in the silence of the night,
Pouring water into a crystal glass,
Tending the logs in a crackling fire,
Sharing a meal with a circle of friends.
Embrace these pleasures and know,
“This is my true body.”

Nowhere is more holy than this.
Right here is the sacred pilgrimage.
Live in alertness for such a moment, my Beloved,
As if it were your one meeting with the Creator.

Below I share three natural doorways. The first, Literal Doorways, is my own experience following the suggestion in a book. The next two are discoveries clients made during our sessions, shared with their permission. They're offered as examples to help you recognize your own doorways when they appear.

Literal Doorways

Literal doorways can become an opportunity to change our internal state. In Dr. Roche's book, Meditation Made Easy, he invites this:

Pay attention to your body, especially your belly and midline torso, when stepping across any boundary—any doorway, any entrance, any border between one space and another. You can call this a “body scan," this process of taking a quick survey of how you feel and what your senses report.

As you move through your day, you can use any threshold as a moment of awakening. Pause at any doorway, even an open door, and take a conscious breath, instead of blasting in. Notice the quality of feeling on the border (the threshold) and as you enter.

If there are people in the room, that brief pause will give them the feeling that you respect their space. The pause also lets you “catch up with yourself” as you enter.

Early in my journey with Instinctive Meditation I chose to do this, and a remarkable thing happened. For a week or two, I remembered pretty regularly to notice. It was easy and fun and it did make a small shift in my perspective. Then my conscious intention to do it tapered off. I was trying out other things.

Several weeks later, I was reaching for a door handle at the gym just as the person on the other side yanked it open. I wasn't startled and I easily stepped aside as they rushed through. I could feel that my body had an awareness even in the absence of me consciously trying to do the thing.

By putting in an initial gentle conscious effort, it was like my whole self took the opportunity to slow down quite naturally, rather than me exerting my conscious will.

Becoming more aware in small moments like stepping from one room into another and being more aware of what naturally brings us into a states of presence are different than applying a technique. I learned that I don't have to work so hard to make long-lasting change.

Drawing mind, drawing breath

Angie came to our remote sessions straight from work, usually without having eaten at all for the day, all the things she had to do and to manage blasting around in her head. She wanted to be free of it, but found that incredibly difficult. We began with a very short session, just a couple of minutes, without technique. Any position that’s comfortable, eyes open or closed as she wished, no need to hold still, no need to move . . . just noticing what came up. 

She shared her impulse to handle her racing mind in school by doodling, and in our next session we incorporated it into the session. The first time looked like:

At first she was drawing things that came to mind and as she became absorbed with the process and her agitation began to settle she decided to try drawing her breathing, a soothing rhythm that let her begin to notice her body again, the aches from not moving, the internal motion of the caffeine, the need to eat. That noticing encouraged her to find lunch, stretch, and move more often.

She needed no verbal guidance from me. My presence helped her to slow down and show up for herself, and our conversation afterward helped her process the experience. By our fifth session, she settled into a 20 minute session with light guidance from me and a lot of space with ease and confidence. 

Revel in silence

Pace came into our sessions experienced in meditation and embodiment. During our clarity call, she shared her desire to feel more connected to her body, her heart, and her soul. 

In our first session, we opened together with a chant she already uses in her meditation practice. We talked for the first ten minutes or so, and I guided her in a relaxation practice with the Radiance Sutras, one that helps to establish a felt sense of being at home in the body. 

As I drew the guidance to a close, she shared in the chat that she wanted to stay non-verbal for the rest of our session and asked me to read the practice again, and so we did that. It was clear she was in a good space. We spent the majority of the session together in silence for her to be with her experience with the words of the sutra. We closed the session non-verbally, without further conversation. She had found a doorway.