METAPHYSICAL EXERCISE, THE JEDI CODE (with body scan)

Take a moment to observe your breathing, without control, noticing the natural flow of air in and out of your body.

Let your back be as straight as is comfortable for you, without effort.

Notice your posture, and feel the points of contact, where your body meets the surface.

Maybe your sitting bones, your hands, your feet.

Feel the presence within yourself, the person within your clothes, within your skin, within your body.

Right down into the bones, see if you can locate the buzzing, vibrating, “feeling” presence within.

–

Today we will meditate on the Jedi Code. This is a set of five maxims which encapsulate the Jedi philosophy.

We’ll take them one line at a time, consider each, and then end with a meditation on the whole code.

Please be aware that a bell will chime in the background to mark the mid-point of our meditation.

But first, we’ll start with a relaxation exercise, to bring us into a state of calmness and relaxation.

–

So, with your eyes gently closed and in a comfortable position, let your next in-breath be a little deeper than normal.

Hold the breath for a moment, and then let the out-breath be even longer.

Extend your breath, breathing in slowly, holding slightly when your lungs are full, and then exhaling in a controlled way.

Continue this controlled, lengthened breathing for the next 3 or 4 breaths.

Breathing into all parts of the chest and stomach, expanding your body, extending your breaths.

—

And with the next out-breath, let your breathing return to its normal, automatic state.

Take a moment to observe this natural flow of breath, which goes on whether you notice it or not.

Recognize that in this breath, is your life. Your being. Your existence.

–

Now, turning your attention within, let’s notice and release any pockets of tension in your body.

With the next out-breath, consciously release any tension you’re aware of, and relax more fully into your posture.

And again, on the out-breath, relax down into the body. Let go of any obvious tension.

Be comfortable. Be calm. Be free. Let go.

–

And with the next in-breath, consider your body more closely, starting at the top of your head with the brow.

Let your brow smooth and relax. Be at peace.

Moving down to the eyes, let them become soft and loose, as though they’re floating in pools of cool water.

Perhaps you can allow yourself a slight smile, which extends to your lips, your jaw, now loose.

Let your tongue be free, gently touching the roof of your mouth.

Letting go.

–

Moving your attention down through your neck, your shoulders, releasing tension with each out-breath.

–

Moving on down the arms, the elbows, into your hands, letting them be soft and comfortable.

Be soft, free, loose. Let go.

And back down your torso, your hips, into your sitting muscles, finding yourself softer and freer with every out-breath.

–

And down through the legs, the knees, the shins, and into the feet. Letting each to be free and loose, still.

And on through the soles of your feet.

–

And now, bringing your attention to your whole body, from the top of your head to the soles of your feet for a few moments.

See if you can hold your whole body in mind as you breathe, and sit, relaxed and silent.

The whole space you occupy breathing, relaxing, as one.

–

Again, see if you can feel the inner presence, the buzzing, vibrating sensation in your hands, your feet, your chest.

Rest in this moment of realization – that’s you. That’s what you truly are.

In every moment.

—

—

Now we’ll move on to our consideration of the Jedi Code.

The code has various form, but the one I will be using today is as follows:

Emotion, yet Peace.

Ignorance, yet Knowledge.

Passion, yet Serenity.

Chaos, yet Harmony.

Death, yet the Force.

—

Remaining calm, still and at peace, let’s consider the first line of the code.

“Emotion, yet peace”.

We all experience emotion every day.

Think of a time recently where you’ve felt a very strong emotion.

This can be a positive emotion like happiness, but most of then the emotions which come to mind are negative, such as anger, grief, or sadness.

Consider the situation which created the emotion. Perhaps it was another person, or perhaps it was an internal experience.

Sit with the emotion for a while, breathing. See if you can feel the emotion resonate in any part of your body as you breathe.

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Emotion is an important part of the human experience. Humans are emotional beings.

Without emotion, we could not feel. Compassion, humility, love – these are all part of the rich emotional texture of our lives.

But too much emotion can bring us away from our center – from the peace available to us all.

So take a deep in-breath, and on the next out-breath, allow this emotional experience out. With each exhalation, let it go.

[breath TWICE]

And on an in-breath, imagine breathing in peace. Calmness, stillness, serenity, occupying the space where your emotion was strongest.

[breath TWICE]

And continue breathing out emotion, and breathing in peace.

—

Focusing again on your breath, and relaxing into your posture as we move on to line two: “Ignorance, yet Knowledge.”

We are all ignorant of some things.

Think of a time recently where you’ve realized you didn’t know enough.

This can be a positive experience where you had an opportunity to learn, or a negative experience where you’ve made a mistake or felt foolish.

Consider the knowledge you felt you needed, and lacked.

Consider also your response to that feeling – whether you took this as an opportunity, or whether you felt it was more like a crisis.

Sit with the realization of this ignorance for a while, breathing. See what you feel inside when you consider this experience of ignorance as you breathe.

–

Ignorance is another fundamental truth of the human experience. We simply cannot know everything.

Without ignorance, we cannot learn. Growth, understanding, realization – these come about, in part, through ignorance.

Ignorance is a ladder we can recognize, and choose to climb. To knowledge, to understanding, and wisdom.

Take a deep in-breath, and on the next out-breath, allow this experience of ignorance out. With each exhalation, let it go.

[breath TWICE]

And on an in-breath, imagine breathing in knowledge. This doesn’t have to be any specific knowledge – just an idea of knowing.

Knowing what to do, knowing how to proceed. Intelligence, realization, wisdom, replacing the ignorance you became aware of.

[breath TWICE]

Continue breathing out ignorance, and breathing in knowledge.

—

If you become distracted at any point, simply notice the distraction, and return your attention to the sound of my voice.

Moving on to line three: “Passion, yet Serenity.”

Everyone has passions.

Think of an issue you feel particularly passionate about. Something which is close to your heart.

Perhaps it’s a person, a relationship, or a social cause. An environmental, political, or religious ideal.

Focus on the object of your passion, the cause of the strong feelings that are stirred within you.

Sit with the passion for a while, breathing. See if you can feel the passion within your heart as you breathe.

–

Passion is an essential ingredient of our lives. It motivates and guides us.

Without passion, we could not make decisions. Inspiration, determination, and dedication are all aspects of passion.

But passion can stop us from experiencing the deep well of calm which we are all free to draw from.

After taking a deep in-breath, slowly breathe this passion out. With each exhalation, let it go.

[breath TWICE]

And on an in-breath, imagine breathing in serenity. Patience, tranquility, peace, flooding into your heart.

[breath TWICE]

Carry on breathing out passion, and breathing in serenity.

—

Maintaining your attention on my voice as we consider line four: “Chaos, yet Harmony.”

Chaos frequently surrounds us. Life is busy, complex, and can be very unpredictable.

Consider a recent event which caught you by surprise.

This may have been a positive, serendipitous event, or a difficult, accidental problem which you had to deal with unexpectedly.

Rather than wishing you had had the knowledge to avoid the chaos, let your mind rest on how it felt to be out of control of the situation.

Sit and breathe with this experience of chaos for a while, breathing. Realize the world is big, chaotic and complex.

–

The world is chaotic. We can never know enough to predict anything with absolute certainty.

However, this chaos keeps things interesting. Wonder, creation, luck – these are aspects of the chaotic nature of reality.

Chaos can leave us feeling ungrounded like the rug has been pulled from under us. It can make us insecure.

We can forget that we are all part of one, harmonious system. That everything is exactly as it must be, in every moment.

Let’s take a deep breath, and on a slow out-breath, allow this feeling of chaos go. With every breath out, let it leave.

[breath TWICE]

On the next in-breath, imagine breathing in harmony. Unity, togetherness, oneness with all that is, filling your awareness.

[breath TWICE]

Continue breathing out chaos, and inhaling harmony.

—

Remaining focused, calm, and still as we move onto line five, the final line of the code: “Death, yet the Force.”

Death is one of the few things we can predict with certainty about life. Whatever our beliefs, we know that humans are mortal.

Death can affect our lives in other ways – the death of loved ones, pets, even acquaintances can shake our experience.

Think of a time recently where you’ve experienced death.

This might have been a close, personal encounter of loss or grief, or perhaps something more distant – a death on the news, or of someone you admire.

Realize that death exists. That it’s part of life. That it’s OK to accept death because it’s real.

Sit with this understanding of death for a while, breathing. Remember that you’re safe, here in this moment.

–

Death is a feature of life. Appreciation of the time we have, and the time we have with those around us, provides some of the most profound experiences a human can have.

But focusing too narrowly on death ignores a fundamental aspect of the universe we live in.

Nothing is ever lost. Those who die remain with us, in our memories, in the chemicals that compose their bodies. In photographs, words, teachings. Experiences. Times past.

In the spirits or souls which make someone, someone. And which make us, us. Though our bodies pass on, our identities remain.

That persistence, that which remains is one way of understanding the Force – the fundamental fabric and pattern of our reality.

So take another deep in-breath, and on the next out-breath, allow this understanding of mortality out. With each exhalation, let it go.

[breath TWICE]

And on an in-breath, imagine breathing in creation, existence, the Force that moves the planets, the stars, and the galaxy.

Recognize you are one and the same as the universe you are part of – an eternal grain of sand on the beach of reality.

[breath TWICE]

And continue breathing out death, and breathing in the Force.

—

I’m sure by now you’ll have noticed a pattern to the code.

Something we might not be comfortable with, then something we prefer.

Emotion, yet Peace.

Ignorance, yet Knowledge.

Passion, yet Serenity.

Chaos, yet Harmony.

Death, yet the Force.

So you see the pattern: something we find difficult, yet something we prefer.

We can choose to accept emotion, ignorance, passion, chaos and even death as important parts of life, of our experience.

Of what it means to be us. To be real.

But we can also choose to return to our center, and find peace, knowledge, serenity, harmony and the Force.

To be Jedi.

As Jedi, we choose to live a life consistent with these preferred values.

Peace, knowledge, serenity, harmony and the Force.

When we meditate, we recognize and practice our connection to these inner qualities of stillness, reflection, and calm.

We allow ourselves to become one with what is, rather than fighting our natural tendencies.

We all get overwhelmed from time to time. But we can always come home to these core values:

Peace, knowledge, serenity, harmony and the Force.

—

For the final part of our meditation today, I’ll allow you to consider each line of the code on your own.

Allow whatever thoughts or ideas come up to come, and then to go. Let them rise and fall, like waves in an endless ocean.

If you realize you’ve become distracted into other thoughts, just allow your attention to return to the code, or to your breathing.

To the endless, silent presence at the core of your being.

—

Emotion, yet Peace.

—

Ignorance, yet Knowledge.

—

Passion, yet Serenity.

—

Chaos, yet Harmony.

—

Death, yet the Force.

—

Thank you. Have a beautiful day, and may the Force be with you, always.