Index
Introduction
Relaxation
A dive into the depths of man
1st The memory
2st Forgiveness
Note
Andrzej Budzinski
RELAXATION!
TO
UNDERSTAND ONESELF
Original title: Rilassamento. Per conoscere se stesso
Translated by: Martyn Fogg
San Bonifacio 2017
Introduction
When we begin to reflect, we discover that we have so many, I would say so very many, things to change - so many that we do not know where to start.
Well?
Too much confusion!
Calm down. Calm down!
One thing at a time!
Without hurrying!
With patience, you can achieve everything!
Today, unfortunately we lack patience. We all want everything immediately and, even better, for the day before yesterday. Do you know this saying?
Patience is the virtue of the strong!
Observing life today, we ourselves and what is happening around us, we realise, with sadness, that the strong are lacking, that is: THE PATIENT PEOPLE.
We want to become strong. Well? Thinking logically, we must become patient. Either we do things well or it is better not to do them at all.
OK? Do you agree?
Whoever does not, please shut this book, do not continue reading it - itâs for those who want to become strong.
Who of us does not want to become strong?
No-one!
Thatâs the correct answer!
Goodness â weâve taken the first step. I was thinking it would be worse Youâre convinced! However, we often use the word âpatienceâ in the wrong way, as a justification for our wrong behaviour. The mechanism is more or less like this:
we are wrong
to say to ourselves âpatienceâ,
but then to not do anything to change our behaviour
â we remain as we were before
and we make mistakes again,
saying to ourselves âpatienceâ
and so on, ad infinitum!
! In this case, patience does not come into it: this is not patience. Iâll repeat it again â itâs a justification!
When I talk about patience I am thinking of Patience with a capital P.
P
P
P
that is: a planned and constant work on ourselves which brings us to improvement. We can make mistakes, but we donât want to remain with our mistake, drowning, we commit ourselves to be braver. Braver every day, step by step.
There you are, now I would like to give you some practical suggestions on where to start. What habits to develop.
Relaxation
In my opinion, I say it from personal experience, this habit is fundamental,
I would say the habit of all habits,
The mother of all habits.
Because when people become whole inside and outside, they live in peace with themselves and with the whole universe, when they are capable of controlling themselves - their own emotions, thoughts and behaviour, and they understand themselves, well then, yes - everything becomes easier. The improvement becomes a natural thing, gradual and constant, without beating yourself up.
Why is it so important?
Because at the same time it helps me change inside and outside. I embrace my whole person, visible and invisible, my body, my soul and my spirit
1
2
1st. What must we know before starting?
1 An autonomous method, that is: every one of us can perform it on our own: itâs a series of exercises in concentration that focuses on various zones of the body, to obtain a state of relaxation both at the physical, and the psychological, level, to increase vital energy and control oneâs own behaviour.
2 Through exercises that we can consider âmentalâ, we can obtain real body changes, which are capable of influencing our psyche.
3 The mind and the body are not autonomous and independent, but they are strongly linked, in a relationship of reciprocal and constant influence, for this reason it is possible, through mental activity, to obtain changes in the organic functions and vice-versa.
4 To obtain psycho-physical benefits, that is: relaxation of the mind and body, the exercise must be repeated constantly, so that it does not become autogenous, that is: that it generates itself, without the concurrence of will, in an automatic and spontaneous way.
5 To shape your own personality according to desired traits.
6 Help to overcome negative psychological states: insecurity, fear and depression.
7 Help to regenerate physical and psychological energy.
8 Already after a few weeks of the training, we can notice the feeling of well-being, relaxation, calm and self-control that come on their own spontaneously, without any effort on our part.
To learn the fundamental things about the method, we need at least 6 weeks divided into 6 stages. The exercises must be carried out at the right moment and in an appropriate place, in a comfortable position. The most suitable position is supine.
2nd. What do we have to work at?
1 Feel the weight of your body - bringing on a gradual inertia and muscular skeletal relaxation.
2 Feel the heat of your body - which gradually brings on the smooth relaxation of the musculature and vasodilation.
3 Mastery of cardiac function (auto-regulation of cardiac frequency).
4 Mastery of lung function (regulation of your breathing).
5 Abolition of tension in the organs of the abdominal cavity, through action on the coeliac plexus (autonomous nervous system).
6 Mastery of the vasomotor regulation in your head (a feeling of freshness on your forehead).
3rd. Exercise plan in order
Phase 1 - Learn the correct posture to facilitate concentration and achieve the right order:
The state of relaxation of the skeletal muscle to feel the weight of your body,
The state of relaxation of the vascular system and the feeling of warmth,
Slowing down of the work rhythm of your body (heart beat and breathing).
2nd Phase - Feeling the sense of peace and internal tranquillity.
3rd Phase - It depends on the individual needs of each person: in a state of deep relaxation - giving suggestions on what we want to work on:
fear
self-image
relations with others
relations with God
forgiveness
self-esteem
the stages of your life
the various problems in your life
the past
Each one of us should know it for him/herself. You can work out every problem periodically, for a few days.
OK, ready?
Shall we start? I knew it - you canât wait.
Pay attention! Pay attention! If we want to change our life, the theory and knowledge is not enough, but we need practice. The theory is the start, practice is the route to�?? to be discovered. We must exercise relaxation:
1 every day constantly
2 it must become a habit
3 1-3 times a day
4 for 15-30 minutes
5 the most appropriate place and position (the best position is supine)
6 wear comfortable clothes, not constricting
The exercise is divided into 6 stages for 6 weeks.
We breathe in through our nose and breathe out through the mouth. The breathing must be slow, but naturally done through the diaphragm.
Stage I (1
st
week)The aim - to feel the weight of your body. Here is the first step to achieve, in a simple way, complete relaxation of the body.
We start with relaxing the skeletal musculature. In practice, we must imagine that our body is becoming ever heaver: you start with the formula âmy right arm is heavyâ, then you continue with the left arm, and so on, you gradually proceed, thus generalising the feeling of heaviness over your whole body, all its parts (my body becomes inert), my arms are heavy, ever heavier, very heavy.
Stage 2 (2
nd
week)The aim - to feel that our body becomes warm. Here is the second step to achieve, in a simple manner, complete relaxation of the body.
It is in fact possible to obtain a real peripheral vasodilation, corresponding to the relaxation of the musculature that covers the blood vessels. This condition is realised through the induction of heat which, as for the heaviness, becomes generalised from the arm to the whole body with the feeling of delicate and pleasant warmth.
In practice, we must imagine that our body is becoming warm, ever warmer: you start with the formula âmy right arm is warmâ, then you continue with the left arm, and so on, you gradually proceed, thus generalising the feeling of warmth over your whole body, in all its parts (âmy body becomes warm, my arms are warm, ever warmer, the warmth embraces my whole bodyâ).
Stage III (3
rd
week)The aim - to calm and control the rhythm of your breathing
With the formula âmy breathing is calm and regularâ your breathing becomes deeper and spontaneous, approaching that state which you have during your sleep.
Having reached this phase, we arrive at an ever greater state of calm and less interference from worrying thoughts.
We breathe in through our nose and breathe out through our mouth. The breathing must be slow, but naturally done through the diaphragm. Our breathing must become ever calmer.
Stage IV (4
th
week)The aim - exercise to calm your heart (âmy heart beats calmly and regularlyâ).
This exercise, regulating cardiac activity, allows for the consolidation of the state of relaxation; moreover, as cardiac functionality is very much influenced by psychological and emotional factors, it helps us to reach a deeper emotional relaxation. It helps people who, in stressful situations, feel a violent and sometimes irregular heart-beat.
Letâs move our attention to the heart, its beat, its rhythm and letâs repeat âmy heart is beating calmly and regularly - ever calmer and regular - Iâm relaxed, ever more relaxedâ.
Stage V (5
th
week)The aim - to feel internal warmth in the solar plexus
A nervous structure situated under the diaphragm, between the stomach and the vertebral column, which connects to numerous internal organs: stomach, intestine, liver, pancreas, kidneys and adrenal glands.
With the formula âmy solar plexus is pleasantly warmâ, that structure spreads over all the above-mentioned abdominal organs.
Stage VI (6
th
week)The aim - to feel a cool forehead
While for the body stretching and relaxation are encouraged by vasodilation (exercises of the weight and warmth of the body, see stages I and II), as regards the head, vasoconstriction - a pleasant calming feeling, that is: we feel a delicate coolness on our forehead.
This exercise foresees the repetition of the formula âmy forehead is pleasantly coolâ, which induces in us a feeling of well-being and relaxation also around your head.
In this phase of relaxation, we are by now in a âstate of blissâ, that is: a deep feeling of bodily and mental calm, which is the essence of relaxation.
The relaxation is complete and deep.
by now
We have become experts!
The ideal would be, the aim is: that this exercise should become a habit.
Benefits of the constant practice of relaxation:
stretching the body,
recovery of physical and psychological energy,
improvement in vital performance,
normalisation and self-regulation of the bodily functions,
emotional tranquillity,
greater introspection and self-awareness
control of your behaviour
reduction in the perception of pain.
A dive into the depths of man
Every one
3
4
1 the room of the soul (to be set up)
2 the room of the body (to be set up)
3 the room of the SPIRIT (set up and unchangeable)
Our actions correspond to each room.
We can say that the soul is found halfway between the spirit and the body, it is like a mediator between the spiritual and the material. It is the âfield of battleâ between good and evil. I do not want to touch on all the functions of the soul, but only on some which, in my opinion, can help us in our awareness of the positives and negatives that we find in ourselves.
Are you 20 years old?
40
60
80
100
120
all this time is our past, our history, our life - inside us there are the marks, the wounds and the scars, the successes and the joys of our history - we can say a âbookâ where there is written everything - in detail.
Do we want to know our history?
To put it in order?
Make peace with ourselves?
Now!
Right now, is the right moment!
1st The memory
As
5
Too many things!
Disorganised!
Covered in dust!
We certainly know a term: dust
6
dust off our memoryThere you are!
The second habit to develop!
EVERY DAY MAKE âAN EXAMINATION OF YOUR CONSCIENCEâ OR âSELF-ANALYSE THE DAYâ!
The development of this habit is fundamental to keeping our memory in order, without suspended or unresolved things. From today on, we must do it regularly, right during the evening relaxation, before going to sleep
How do you do it?
In a simple way!
During our relaxation remember everything we have experienced during the day. Put everything in order, the positive and the negative things. We are thankful for the positive things, for the negative things we ask for forgiveness, with the prospect of improving ourselves by doing a program of work. For example: this week we commit ourselves to working on our patience - in our tone of voice, or in listening - and so on. This regards the present. There still remains our past that is disordered and needs to be sorted out. We see that the things in our work plan become clear:
letâs keep the present in order,
letâs dust off the past.
I know a proverb:
TIME HEALS THE WOUNDS!
On the one hand yes: you need time, like everyone on earth, but on the other hand: you do not need to believe that time heals the wounds without your cooperation. Every wound must be worked out in a planned and systematic way. We must know what to do.
First step to heal the past!
My past is influenced by my present. The positive and negative things. With the positive things, we do not have problems, in fact they give us pleasure. The things that annoy us most are the negative things and, among the negative things, those that we have ignored, without sorting them out. It is not enough to forget the negative things which have made us suffer, if they are not sorted out, they make us still suffer today and, if we leave them like that, even tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. How do we know this? In stressful situations and during disputes, all our experience returns and takes away our strength.
What does this mean?
That inside of us are like hidden, suffocating illnesses, âunder controlâ - but active. A bit of âfireâ is enough and it returns to make us feel bad. To keep them under control, we need energy, so much energy - unsettled things of the past are like vampires that suck out energy. Try to imagine - if there are so many, they âeatâ all the energy we have to use to live. We lack energy and we are weak, psychologically and physically. I think we have understood why we must make this effort, to dust off and put our past in order.
To better understand what and why, I will tell you of an example. Sincerely, I do not remember where I read it, but that does not matter. Letâs try to read it looking at ourselves.
Pay attention!
There was a kingdom, very beautiful, but also very particular because full of bandits. They were everywhere. They gave a lot of trouble and created so much unease to the people. They robbed and behaved very badly! The people were complaining. So many times, the king tried to defeat them. But all his attempts were useless.
The thing became unsupportable. The king, with his advisers, was looking for a solution to sort out, once for all, the problem of the bandits. After a long meeting, they decided to request help from cavaliers specialised in these cases
A miracle!
Already after a week of the presence of the cavaliers, the banditsâ activities diminished so much. After a month, the people almost forgot their nasty tenants. Everybody was content, or rather, most content.