The Practices of Prayer + Meditation

Spoken Prayer / Meditation | Words or ritual that awaken our hearts to the presence of the holy.

Silent Prayer / Meditation | Still the mind and find rest for your soul.

Morning Prayer: Greeting the Directions

Facing East: (The Element of Fire)

Grandfather Sun, the Divine Light in me greets the Divine Light in you.

May I let my light shine today.

Facing South: (The Element of Water)

Sister Water, the Divine Rivers of blood and moisture which flow within me, greet the Divine Flow within you. 
May I enter into the flow of my life today.

Facing West: (The Element of Earth)

Grandmother Earth, my Sacred Embodiment in flesh and bone greets Sacred Earthiness in you.
May I be in tune with my dear body today.

Facing North: (The Element of Air)

Sister Air, the Divine Spaciousness within me greets the Divine Spaciousness in you. 
May I live from a place of spaciousness today.

May it be so.

© Linda Mulhall, Victoria BC July 2020 (Inspired by the teachings of Oriah Mountain Dreamer www.oriahmountaindreamer.com and Atum O’Kane www.atumokane.com)

Prayer of the Heart (Cynthia Bourgeault)

One of the richest veins of Christian spiritual wisdom flows through what’s known in the Eastern Orthodox tradition as “Prayer of the Heart.” In its simplest form it consists of the repeated invocation of the name of Jesus, tied to a physical concentration of your attention in the region of the heart.

Practicing Prayer of the Heart

1. First, bring your attention to the area of the heart through sensation (not visualization or emotional prompts). See if you can be present to its volume, its aliveness, its subtle movement within your chest. In the classic “Prayer of the Heart” tradition, the heart is not simply a metaphor for some disembodied “center” of your personhood. It is the physical anchor of the divine presence within you.

2. With your attention so anchored, on your in-breath silently “say” the words, “Lord Jesus Christ,” allowing the presence of this living master to fill your entire being.

3. On the out breath, silently “say” the words “Have mercy on me,” remembering that mercy does not mean “pity or a kind of juridical verdict, but is the lifeblood of divine love flowing within you and within the world. It is what compassion feels like when it moves as an energy.

Source: Wisdom Way of Knowing

Praying with a Tree (Guided Meditation)
with Linda Mulhall

Praying with a Tree – Introduction

“Earth is our original monastery.” – Christine Valters Paintner

The Earth and the Cosmos are the original revelation of the Divine; and they are the last, and most recent, source of revelation. Many mystics – along with us ordinary folk – experience the presence of the Divine when we are in nature. That’s because the Divine is present in nature. She reveals herself through leaf and branch; through hummingbird and eagle. Our sacred calling is to fall in love with the Earth; to develop intimacy with trees, and rocks; rivers and oceans; and all the Earth’s creatures. This meditation is one way to begin to deepen our relationship with the Earth; to fall in love again.

Praying with a Tree (Guided Meditation)

Praying with a Tree (Guided Meditation) – Instructions

What you may need: a journal to write in, a pinch of tobacco or cornmeal (if possible); possibly a blanket or portable chair to sit on. 

The following meditation is a suggestion. You may find that you end up just doing one aspect of the meditation. That’s fine. You may start on step 1 and stay there. That’s fine. Or get to step 2 and that’s all you need.  

You may find that you are not able to sit under the tree. Then find a place where you can sit and feel connected to the earth. Focus your eyes on a tree you can see. Ask for the tree’s help and guidance. Sit and go through the meditation, aware of the energies of the different directions.  Welcome that energy in.  

Please do not rush this process. Take time. Be present to yourself, the tree, the world around you.  Slow time down. I suggest you take a journal with you, so at certain points you can capture what notice. 

Whenever you are finished, please send out a prayer to thank the tree, and all the loving ancestors who accompany you.   

This meditation takes an hour.  

Click here to download and print the full instructions from Linda. Click here to see the full meditation.

© Linda Mulhall, Spiritual Guide, Victoria BC June 2020 www.spiritcall.ca 

Introduction to Christian Meditation