Spirituality Archives - Madhu Bazaz Wangu
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Spirituality

Thursday, February 12, 2026

Posted on February 11, 2026
in #Awareness, Attention and Awareness, Awareness, Journaling
2 Comments

Notes on Faculties of Attention and Awareness Attention We are born with limited conscious power. But there is a way we can expand and strengthen it. Fortunately we are already practicing the two of these breathing exercises (which will eventually train us for meditation) and journaling.  The job of attention is to focus on one object at a time outside of the general field of consciousness. It is energized by our conscious power. For instance, as you breathe, you pay attention to the sensations of air going in and out of the nostrils; as you journal, you pay attention to the words you are writing; and finally when you read you step into a literary dream the book creates.     Awareness Like attention, awareness also gets its energy from conscious power. As you pay attention to...

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Tuesday, February 10, 2026

Posted on February 9, 2026
in Imagination, Meditation, Meditation & Journaling at Ashby Ponds, Spirituality, Well Being
4 Comments

The word “meditation” is often confused with “mindfulness.” Meditation is the discipline of sitting still in a particular posture in silence and solitude with focus on the breath. Mindfulness is the complete attention on the task at hand, and the state of total awareness of what is going on in our mind and around us. Attention and awareness results from the daily practice of meditation. Mindfulness Meditation is also the name of a meditation and is one of the meditations we practice such as Body Scan, Loving Kindness, Guided meditations and so on.   You have practiced focusing attention on your breath. In doing so, you watch your own mind in the present moment. You witness yourself. This is similar to looking at your own reflection in a life-size mirror. The way you become aware of your...

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Thursday, February 5, 2026

Posted on February 5, 2026
in Journaling, Meditation & Journaling at Ashby Ponds, Originality, Spirituality
4 Comments

Personal Power/Spiritual Spot My earliest attempts at writing freely on the pages of a notebook were during the time of extreme trauma. That led me deeper into journaling. Within the span of eighteen months, my youngest brother was killed in an automobile accident, soon after that my grieving mother passed away and my father followed her, his soulmate, within a few months.  This all happened during the months which were supposed to be celebratory for the family, especially for my husband and me. But we were in mourning when I gave birth to our second child. Her presence and my daily pouring out of emotions in words kept me sane and brought me back to my senses from the doldrums.  Journaling was the source of emotional relief and healing. Tending to our beautiful...

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Thursday, January 29, 2026

Posted on January 28, 2026
in Journaling, Meditation & Journaling at Ashby Ponds, Spirituality, Well Being
4 Comments

Self-doubt is one of the major emotions we all go through. There are days when you feel overwhelmed and sluggish without any tangible reason. What can you do? You allow the heavy dark clouds of emotions and thinking to shower on the pages of your notebook, a rainstorm of words. You trust that by the end of two to three pages it will shed light on things you were only partly aware of. And it will present possible solutions to your malaise and listlessness. I started doing serious journaling in my early fifties that encouraged me to change my profession from teaching art history and world religions to become a freelance writer. It felt the right thing to do, I wished I had started journaling sooner. Not only was I able...

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Thursday, January 22, 2026

Posted on January 22, 2026
in Journaling, Meditation & Journaling at Ashby Ponds, Spirituality
6 Comments

The eminent social psychologist, James Pennebaker in his book, Opening Up by Writing Down, writes that not fully expressing negative emotions, suffering in silence and keeping secrets—swallowing them or pushing them down—affects your heart, mind and body for the rest of your life. By hiding your fears, anger, and hurt from the world, you hide it from yourself. In order to replace the mask of social “goodness” and “niceness” with authenticity you must first recognize the anger, the hurt or the fear buried deep inside you. The recognition must be followed by acceptance of your negative emotions. Some of us may require therapy or hypnosis to cleanse the system but most of us can do this by, as the title of the book suggests, “opening up and writing down.” If you like, write...

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Tuesday, December 13, 2026

Posted on January 13, 2026
in Meditation & Journaling at Ashby Ponds, Originality, Spirituality
5 Comments

Spiritual and Creative Journey, 2026 Going within is not easy to do. It is harder than going around the world. When we are new to meditation and sitting in silence and solitude, for the first time we notice the narratives that circle our mind. Until then we are not aware of this quiet blabber which keeps our mind consistently occupied. In order to feel the clarity, peace and joy that meditation promises we must purge the mind of the narrative made of petty thoughts about past and future. They muffle the present moment. Here-Now is the only moment alive with which we build our future.  Benefits of Meditation and JournalingAt first when someone talks about the present moment its reality is hard to grasp. You think, I’m living in the present moment; how else would I...

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Thursday, January 1, 2026

Posted on December 31, 2025
in Awareness, Flourishing, Spirituality, Well Being
2 Comments

From Our Family to Yours, "Happy New Year to All!" Happy New Year All! Each year the last ten days of December and the first day of January are celebrated with family gatherings, sharing special foods and giving gifts. It is also a time of gratitude, generosity, self-evaluation, self-reflection and resolutions. These are darkest, coldest, and bleakest days around winter solstice and of hope for healthier and happier time. Happiness and hope are symbolized by lighting our homes and gardens with candles, lamps and electric lights. Numerous families, businesses and government agencies create dazzling landscapes with rainbow-colored illuminations on buildings, in gardens and wooded areas.  The outer lights stir the inner light of consciousness and awaken us to the spiritual illumination within. They inspire us to be humbly thankful to our joys and blessings as...

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Tuesday, December 30, 2025

Posted on December 30, 2025
in Creativity, Journaling, Meditation, Spirituality
4 Comments

Nothing spiritually wonderous happened to me until my early fifties. Living with love of my life and our two beautiful and bright daughters, and a decade of teaching behind me I still felt something significant missing in my life. But I did not know what it was. The more I read and wrote, the more yearning I felt for the unknown. What was I searching for that felt absolutely real, true, deeper?  I had discovered that at the core of major world religions is the lesson that to live a life of awareness, joy and contentment is to live simply and fully. A whole life, a holy life. The lesson seemed simple but was difficult to cultivate. Eventually, with enlightened audacity I developed a regimen of five practices with which you...

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Tuesday, December 23, 2025

Posted on December 22, 2025
in Awareness, Daily Reflections 2025, Flourishing, Meditation & Journaling at Ashby Ponds, Spirituality
4 Comments

The spiritual space that we’ve created here together is as safe and secure as the Sacred Power Spot where you sit at home to practice. The practice creates a presence that grounds us for a day in a meaningful way. After meditation and journaling an energy stirs that comes alive as we practice and spreads through the rest of our day. Freely expressing our thoughts and feelings is like prying open an oyster and discovering a pearl within. When you journal do you feel a pearl of kindness and wisdom in your heart-mind? Jot down anything that may be obstructing the pearl within. In Buddhism it is said that our intention is at the tip of our every action. Repeat to yourself your intention to practice meditation; the intention to...

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