Monday, 27 October 2008

Meditation Open Events for New Students

Just a quick reminder that the free open events for the new meditation classes begin this week.  Each event is about one hour long and is an opportunity for you to find out more about the planned classes and for me to find out what you would like to get from the course.

This weeks events are as follows:

Tue 28th October – 6.30pm
Tue 28th October – 8.00pm
Thu 30th October – 11.00am
Fri 1st November – 11.00am


To book a place on one of the events contact me as soon as possible using the contact form on my website.

Author: Andy Lucas - Spring to Mind Hypnotherapy Brighton

Thursday, 23 October 2008

Useful Resources for Yoga Nidra

When you first discover yoga nidra you may decide you want to read more about it to understand the theory or to develop a home practice.  And you may find it helpful to use an audio CD guiding you through the steps towards the state of yoga nidra - conscious deep sleep.

Here are a few suggestions of useful yoga nidra resources:

  • Book: Yoga Nidra by Swami Satyannanda Saraswati published by Yoga Publications Trust, Munger, Bihar, India.  This book includes a good introduction to the theory as well as a series of transcripts of typical sessions.
  • Website:  http://www.swamij.com/yoga-nidra.htm
  • Audio CD:  Experience Yoga Nidra by Swami Jakananda Sarawati – you can find this CD on Amazon 
  • Audio CD:  Yoga Nidra - A Step by Step Guided Class by Andy Lucas - to be released in early November 2008
If there are any questions you have about yoga nidra please add a comment at the bottom of this blog.  If you would like to join a regular yoga nidra class you are invited to come to one of my meditation open evening and open days.  Please see my previous blog for dates and times or visit my Brighton meditation webpage.

Author:  Andy Lucas, Spring to Mind Brighton Hypnotherapy

Wednesday, 22 October 2008

Brighton Meditation Classes - New Courses

After several weeks of planning I am pleased to annouce the launch dates of my new meditation classes in Brighton. And, as promised, I am offering a variety of different courses to suit the many needs, requirements and levels of ability of people in Brighton.

Many people I meet are looking for ways of relaxing, calming down, switching off and/or stilling the mind.  Some people find themselves thinking too much or having excessive internal chatter whilst others want to learn ways of tackling feelings of stress and anxiety.  

Regular meditation is an excellent way of training the mind to develop healthier ways of thinking and feeling.

Meanwhile you may want to take your meditation deeper.  Maybe you want to explore your spirituality through a more evolved meditation practice or perhaps you feel its time to tap into your inner wisdom and develop your true potential. If you are ready to focus on a regular meditation routine, like the sound of what I'm offering or just feel it's the right time to start, you can meet me at one of the free events below.

Free Open Evenings and Open Days

It can be difficult to decide whether a course of classes is right for you, especially when there are so many meditation groups and classes in the city.  So, to make it easier for you to decide, I am running several free open evenings and open days.  

During these events I will be answering your questions and finding out what you want from meditation classes.  Then if you decide you would like to join my classes, I will match you with students of similar needs so that each group can develop at its own pace and in its own way.

Choice of Course Syllabus

Each course will consist of eight weekly classes.  I am currently planning five separate courses, each designed for different levels of ability and on one of the themes below.  (These may vary slightly after I have met with students and discovered what you want from the classes.)

  • Course Level (1) Meditation for beginners - with an emphasis on unwinding, relaxation and stilling the mind.
  • Courses Level (2) Option (1) Healing meditation - introducing and developing a range of healing meditative practices from a variety of traditions.
  • Course Level (2) Option (2) Meditation for personal growth - developing your own regular meditation practice to advance your consciousness and wellbeing.
  • Course Level (2) Option (3) Yoga Nidra - learning techniques to reach the state of yoga nidra, conscious sleep.
  • Course Level (3) Option (1) - The theory and practice of meditation - how to develop your own regular home practice for personal and spiritual development using ancient and modern teachings.
  • Course Level (3) Option (2) - Developing your energy system - theories and practices of energy and meditation. 
Open Days and Open Evenings - Dates and Times
  • Tuesday 28th October – 6.30pm
  • Tuesday 28th October – 8.00pm
  • Thursday 30th October – 11.00am
  • Friday 1st November – 11.00am
  • Tuesday 4th November – 6.30pm
  • Tuesday 4th November – 8.00pm
  • Thursday 6th November – 11.00am
Prices
  • Level (1) - £60 for eight weeks
  • Level (2) - £70 for eight weeks
  • Level (3) - £80 for eight weeks

When you are ready to book a place on one of the above events or if you would like to ask me some questions, please contact me at my Meditation Brighton website where you will find e-mail and telephone contact information.

Author: Andy Lucas, Spring to Mind Meditation Brighton

Yoga Nidra Brighton - Follow Up

Two days ago (Monday 20th October) I gave a presentation on Yoga Nidra to the the Magical Mondays group in Kemptown, Brighton.  It was great to have an opportunity to explain some of the theory and principles of Yoga Nidra as well as giving a guided practice.

Here are a couple of the questions that came up and my answers to them:

1)  Is Yoga Nidra meditation? 
Well, yes and no.  It is not really meditation in the normal sense of the word.  Meditation normally involves reaching a state of consiousness equivalent to the stage between waking consiousness and dream sleep.  During a Yoga Nidra practice you may pass through this state, however your goal is to reach the deepest state of dreamless sleep whilst remaining conscious. This may seem like a contradiction.  You might even ask "how can you be in deep sleep and yet be conscious?"  This is the beautiful paradox of Yoga Nidra and its power for personal change.

As you practise Yoga Nidra you discover for yourself the unique experience of being in conscious deep dreamless sleep.  You may experience this the very first time you practise Yoga Nidra or it may take repeated practice for you to achieve the state of conscious sleep.

2)  Should you use a CD to practise Yoga Nidra?
It can be very helpful when you are new to Yoga Nidra to use a CD or to attend a guided class to help you learn how to reach the Yoga Nidra state.  In my next blog I will suggest some CDs for you to try.  Eventually you will develop the ability to enter the state without any CD or guidance, and then you will be able to practise in any place at any time.

REMEMBER: Yoga Nidra is not the techniques, it is the state you reach - the state of conscious dreamless  sleep

Author: Andy Lucas - Spring to Mind Hypnotherapy Brighton

Friday, 17 October 2008

Yoga Nidra in Brighton

As mentioned in my previous blog, I am working on the launch of some new exciting meditation classes here in Brighton.  Watch this space for more news very soon.

Meanwhile I am making a number of guest appearances at local events in Brighton where groups will be getting a flavour of the approach I adopt to meditation and the sort of ideas I can share with you.

The next event I am attending is a group in Brighton called Magical Mondays.  This is a weekly spiritual development group hosted by the lovely and talented Karl Lester.  Karl invites a wide range of speakers to present to his group and encourages exploration of spirituality through a variety of traditions, ancient and modern. 

My talk is during the evening of Monday 20th October.  I will be teaching the beautiful practice of Yoga Nidra by describing its:
  • history; 
  • theory; 
  • structure 
and by guiding the group through a 40 minute session of Yoga Nidra.

To find out more information about the group you can visit Karl's website .

Posted by: Andy Lucas - Spring to Mind Hypnotherapy Brighton