Meditation to Conquer Pain
In the Yoga Sutras, the first collection about the teachings of yoga, it is said (to paraphrase):
Pain is universal — suffering is avoidable.
Life brings everyone pain in some form or the other, from the physical to the emotional to the spiritual.
You could even say that pain is an absolute necessity for healing and transformation for without pain many people would not make the effort to change one’s physical, psychological, or spiritual approach to life.
And without such a change, the inevitable result of pain is indeed suffering.
There are many approaches to managing pain (drugs, surgery, acupuncture) yet perhaps we should see pain as something that is better transformed and transcended rather than simply managed if we wish to end the suffering that accompanies it.
And that brings us to yoga, particularly Kundalini Yoga, as a method to transform and transcend our relationship to pain.
There are many techniques for working with pain through yoga – mantra, breath awareness, and lifestyle choices – but I would like to share a meditation that is also physiologically effective through the production of endorphins, the natural pain-relieving hormones produced by the body, that activate our natural opiate receptors and causes an analgesic effect to relieve pain and reduce the stress that accompanies the pain.
Here is the meditation to produce your own endorphins and to balance the central nervous system so it can better deal with pain.
Meditation to Conquer Pain
- Sitting comfortably, extend both arms out like a “T-Shape” from the shoulders and parallel to the ground.
- Turn the left palm down and the right palm up and fingers together.
- Now with the index and middle fingers remain touching each other, pull them apart from the ring and little fingers (which also remain touching each other) so you are making a split like a “V” between them. (Known to Trekkies as the Spock mudra, Live Long and Prosper! ☺)
- Hold steady and inhale through the mouth and exhale through the nose.
- Keep the arms straight so you feel the armpits stretching.
Begin for 3 minutes (or longer if you are able).
For full effect, increase the time up to 11 minutes. Use your breath to move through the discomfort.
While this meditation may reduce your experience of chronic pain, it may be acutely painful at first. The discomfort creates the release of the endorphins which are the body’s natural pain relievers.
Yoga may complement your other treatments, however it is not a substitute or replacement for medically prescribed pain management.
Expand Upon This!
Interested in other yogic approaches to pain management, as well other conditions such as sleep disorders, anxiety, depression, and addiction? Our online Kundalini Yoga Therapy for Self-Healing course begins in early October!
Begins October 6th
Online Live & Recorded for Later Viewing
