Conscious Liberation Through Addiction

31 May 2013 - 'World No Tobacco Day'

As an ex-smoker myself I understand this addiction , so I would like to share some valuable insight to all who struggle with this....

USA Pop Artist: Tom Wesselman - Smoker #17

We are all aware of the damaging effects of tobacco, but I will not focus on the negative aspects, as this will not get to the heart of the matter.  The truth is...the source of this habit  lies in the 'Mind'.  Smoking is a symptom, not the cause.  There are two aspects to smoking:

1) Stress and Anxiety

2) The Unconscious Habit 

1) Stress and Anxiety:  Stress brings tension, and increased desire to smoke. Tension is relieved through the mouth, so the need to work the mouth through puffing, brings a sense of release and relief.  One easily reaches for a cigarette when stressed.  Nicotine brings calm and relaxation, but it is temporary, and the urge resurfaces shortly again.  

Learn Mindful Meditation:  It's great for addiction!  It is not an instant cure as it requires patience and practice, but the long term results are cumulative. Meditation brings you into the present.  You learn to observe situations as a witness and not get emotionally wound up. This brings calm and clarity in situations.  It centers you, creates inner peace, a sense of well-being, self-esteem and happiness, making it less appealing to reach for a cigarette.  It also brings great transformation in all areas of your life too.

2) The Unconscious Habit:  Smoking has become so unconscious.  One just lights up without thinking.  It's so automatic!  You can't break a  habit by fighting it, what you resist persists.  Feeling guilty doesn't help either, this type of mind makes you smoke more, and can in fact cause more harm than smoking itself.  

Become a Conscious Smoker:   I learned this through reading Osho, a great mystic and professor of philosophy.   And this worked for me, along with meditation!  My friend, Barry, also reminded me often to be conscious in the act.  

Osho on stopping smoking: 

"Forget about stopping smoking. Rather, you are going to make it a meditation. When you are taking the packet of cigarettes out of your pocket, move slowly. Enjoy it, there is no hurry. Be conscious, alert, aware; take it out slowly, with full awareness. “Then take the cigarette out of the packet with full awareness, slowly, not in the old hurried way, unconscious way, mechanical way. Then start tapping the cigarette on your packet, but very alertly. Listen to the sound, just as Zen people do when the kettle  starts singing and the tea starts boiling… and the aroma. Then smell the cigarette and the beauty of it… Then put it in your mouth, with full awareness, light it with full awareness. Enjoy every act, every small act, and divide it into as many small acts as possible, so you can become more and more aware. Then have the first puff… Fill your lungs deeply. Then release the smoke, relax, another puff, and go very slowly. If you can do it, you will be surprised; soon you will see the whole stupidity of it. Not because others have said that it is stupid, not because others have said that it is bad. You will see it. And the seeing will not just be intellectual. It will be from your total being."

Meditating regularly helped me to quit smoking, and alcohol.   I improved my being, my relationships, and lifestyle habits. Time in Mother Nature helps.  Reconnect with your inner being and the environment.

Remember...patience...don't be hard on yourself!  As mind improves, happiness increases, and you begin living life more consciously, choosing wisely.

Do a blood analysis to check for vitamin and mineral deficiencies and address the problems.  Cravings are a result of deficiency, solving the problem removes craving making the process of quitting easier.

Meditating, eating healthy and addressing deficiency, exercising and practicing breathwork techniques, can make all the difference to your success!

You can do it! 

Love and Light

xxx

Meditation can help you quit smoking 1 min video