At the end of each practice I guide my class through settling into peace & stillness: the quiet that takes over one’s body & mind after moving through the asanas or poses…

This point is one of the most sacred moments during our practice.  We settle into quiet that is the higher awareness within and step into the realm of infinite possibilities.  During the stillness the energy cultivated and buried within manifests as enthusiasm and new ideas–the infinite possibilities that lie before us all.

Invariably after this period of meditation the conversations, connecting and collaboration begins and our lives are changed forever.

The seeming irony of it:

We always have access to this energy, enthusiasm and bottomless well of ideas and resources.  We simply must pull away the covers and tap into that which we already have.

Sounds freaky?

    Way out there?

        Not believable?

            If so, read on…

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin working with Tibetan monks have found that meditation not only trains the mind to perform differently but observed evidence through fMRI scans of “brain activation on a scale we have never seen before” as stated by Richard Davidson, neuroscientist at University of Wisconsin’s W.M. Keck Laboratory for Functional Brain Imaging and Behavior.

Not only did researchers see this enhanced brain activity but found evidence that continued meditation practice results in changes in the connections within our minds.  The Tibetan Monks literally re-wired their brains through practiced meditation.  This is contrary to what scientists originally believed: that the connections formed within our brains are only made during our childhood and become permanent into our adulthood.

So for those of you who have started a practice of physical activity followed by periods of quiet and are wondering if your efforts will manifest, know they will.  Take notice of your own changing patterns of thought as a result of your practice.  Embrace the infinite possibilities that I know you have already discovered lie within and before you and enjoy the adventure!

To read the full article on the affects of meditation on brain activity in the Washington Post, follow this link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A43006-2005Jan2.html