Remember the days before email and mobile phones, those marvels of technology that would free humankind from the shackles of work and “save time?”
Many of us, thanks to those devices and subsequent technological wonders (Facebook, the BlackBerry, the iPhone, etc.) – are more hooked up in this century than ever before but are, in many ways, less able to make the kinds of connections that make our lives not just productive – but worth living.
In trying to “save time,” we have so ramped up our lives that time has become, for many of us, so scarce that it is now our most precious commodity. The concept of “free time” is even, for some of our colleagues, neighbors, and friends, an anachronism – a relic of the past to be viewed with wonder. (“Wow, people back then really spent their time relaxing?”)
For those of you trying to figure out how to be in two (or three) places at the same time, stop multi-tasking and pay attention. Studies are providing increasing evidence that multi-tasking is frying our brains. In a 2009 study conducted at Stanford University, multi-taskers were found to be less able to remember data, to focus on the task at hand, and to distinguish between the relevant and irrelevant information by which they were being bombarded, as well as to move from one task to another as successfully as those defined as “low multi-taskers" (those who are, unfortunately, often derided as the "slackers" in certain workplaces).
Wow. Less able to distinguish between relevant and irrelevant data? That alone should make you rip out your ear buds and turn your cell phones off.
Fortunately, there have also been research studies that have demonstrated that meditation can improve one’s focus and also strengthen those all important abilities to prioritize and better manage tasks at hand. Researchers conducting a 2007 study at the University of Pennsylvania demonstrated, with a fair degree of confidence, that even short bursts of meditation practice (20 to 30 minutes daily) significantly improved concentration levels, organizational skills, and attention to detail of even the most frenetic of multi-taskers.
Keeping these and other similar studies in mind, it is time, dear readers, to jump off “the hamster wheel” and start performing a circular motion of an entirely different sort – engaging in walking meditation practice at your nearby labyrinth.
If you are a Bay Area resident, you may, when you hear the word labyrinth, conjure images of those circles of spirituality, the well publicized labyrinths at San Francisco’s historic Grace Cathedral. This is due in large part to the work of Rev. Lauren Artress, a priest at Grace Cathedral who has published such popular books as Walking a Sacred Path: Rediscovering the Labyrinth as a Spiritual Tool and The Sacred Path Companion: A Guide to Walking the Labyrinth to Heal and Transform. Artress is also the founder and creative director of Veriditas, the Bay Area-based organization dedicated to healing our world by fostering the practice of labyrinth-based meditation.
Labyrinth-based meditation opportunities are now found in parks, prisons, schools, and hospitals, as well as in spiritual institutions. The impact of several of these programs is being investigated by researchers, and groups are springing up worldwide to support not just the work of the researchers and labyrinth providers, but those who are interested in learning to meditate.
And, thanks to the collaboration of Veriditas with the Faith, Hope and Love Foundation, and The Labyrinth Society, it is now easier than ever to find a labyrinth located conveniently near our homes, places of work, the locations where we’ll be traveling for business and pleasure, and even where we receive our medical care. Their free World-Wide Labyrinth Locator provides an easily searchable database of more than 3700 labyrinths scattered across more than 70 countries.
Within a 50-mile radius of San Francisco and Oakland, seekers of simple stress reduction or a much loftier spiritual enlightenment may choose from more than 100 labyrinths located in such communities as Alameda, Albany, Antioch, Napa, Belmont, Berkeley, Castro Valley, Danville, Fremont, Half Moon Bay, Orinda, Palo Alto, Petaluma, Pleasanton, Point Reyes, Point Richmond, San Anselmo, Santa Rosa, Saratoga, San Jose, Walnut Creek, Woodside, and Vacaville (among others).
Some of these labyrinths are simple; some are ornate works of art. Some are located on private property; many are located on the grounds of schools or religious and other spiritual institutions. One is even located in an East Bay park. Most have been thoughtfully designed to help world-weary men, women, and children to find a moment’s peace in our tech-charged world.
So, check out the Labyrinth Locator, and then turn off your device of choice, take a quiet stroll, and reclaim your focus.
Labyrinth and Other Meditation Resources
- World-wide Labyrinth Locator: http://labyrinthlocator.com/
- The Labyrinth Society: www.labyrinthsociety.org
- East West Bookstore: www.eastwest.com/search/apachesolr_search/Meditation
- New World Library: www.newworldlibrary.com/SearchResults/tabid/74/Default.aspx?Search=Meditation
- Veriditas: http://veriditas.org/
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