I am almost one week into my daily meditation experiment and it is going well. At some point during the day (usually the morning), I set my timer, settle into a seated position with feet flat on the floor, and then drop into the moment as best I can. I usually begin by taking three deep breaths.

It is amazing how once we shift our focus to our breath, we come into the moment almost immediately. The trick is to stay there for the duration. 

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, there are many ways to approach meditation. We can use music, color, mantras, visualization, object focus, crystals, and essential oils to keep our focus and clear our heads. The idea is to train our minds to stay on one thing like a phrase, a scent, a sound, or a visual and keep the river of thoughts at bay. The better we get at quieting the mind, the easier it becomes to reduce stress, increase concentration, and open up to more truths and creative ideas.

Each time I have settled into my practice over the last week, my mind has migrated to the use of color. I remember a meditation practice I was implementing years ago in which I would visualize white light energy coming from above. I would pull the white light into my body through the top of my head, down through my face, neck, chest, down my arms and through my fingers, then through the stomach, abdomen, pelvis and out through the legs and toes. I would allow the light to spill out of my body and form a protective layer around myself.  

I would then ground my feet into the earth and pull up energy from as far down as I could imagine. Once the heaven and earth energy were flowing simultaneously, I would begin to bring in the colors.  Red first, then orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. The colors would come from deep within the earth, up through my feet and into all parts of my body. I would allow each color to take its time, stopping wherever there seemed to be a need. I would then allow the energy to settle in the appropriate location where it would rest, spinning in a healthy spiral. 

I have been using this technique in my daily meditation as it is very effective in allowing me to clear and balance my energy while keeping my mind away from incessant thinking. 

According to Jan Purser in her book, Meditation, Easy Techniques to Help You Relax and Focus,” each color has specific qualities which can affect our emotions and in turn help to balance our physical and mental health. For example, red is the color of power and action. It is a warming color and represents vitality, sexuality, and high energy. Red spurs us into action by increasing our motivation and aggression.” Blue, by contrast is “calming and encourages feelings of peace. It is the color of serenity and protection and promotes restful sleep.” Yellow brings happy joyful thoughts and magenta is “excellent for helping you step away from obsessive behavior.”

While meditating, we can allow colors that come to mind to swirl through the body in a way that is guided by our inner intuition. The idea is that these colors will bring the necessary qualities for balance and healing. 

Once we become more familiar with color energy, we can introduce them as we see fit. For example, if we are hoping to gain more insight and intuition, we can bring violet into the session. 

Another beautiful way to use color for meditation and healing is through art. In recent years, I have noticed coloring books for adults, which claim to reduce stress and promote mindfulness. More recently, I have thought of painting.  As I struggle through some of the mental and emotional challenges of the recent pandemic, I have been sensing the need to bring more color into my life.

Today, I ordered some acrylic painting supplies and checked out a few YouTube tutorials and I have to say, I’m excited. In addition to my daily meditation, I feel that mixing colors and putting them on a canvas will not necessarily result in a masterpiece, but it may just help me stay balanced, happy and healthy. 

Photo from Nambu Botanicals. Link to article with color and sound meditations: https://nambuherbs.com/blogs/news/heal-your-chakras-to-change-your-karma-color-sound-meditations