Welcome to Writingandmeditation.com. This is a new blog devoted to the exploration of the complementary practices of writing and meditation as it is relates to our psychological development and spiritual journey.

Writing helps us think. When we meditate we can’t help but think. And what we think about when we write and when we meditate, combined with our capacity for self-reflection about these thoughts—and what we honestly feel about these thoughts—is what I want to investigate here.

By meditation I mean a moment-to-moment awareness of what we are doing, of where we are, of who we are, combined with a sense of curiosity. It just as much a state of mind as it is a formal practice. By writing I am referring to anything that involves words—personal essays, journal entries, fiction, poetry, or vignettes. A spiritual life is a life lived with depth and meaning. And it is a life lived with heart.

Both writing and meditation help us find depth and meaning—and the wisdom of the heart—amidst all of our changes and challenges. Together they move us beyond our seemingly infinite capacity for self-deception and denial, which in the end cause us more suffering than they do to help us break free of it.

Writing and meditation offer us opportunities to grow into the person we long to be, and that longing is connected to a desire to live with meaning, depth, and love. I am a great believer in the capacity of writing and meditation to help us tap into our inner wellspring of this desire, even if that desire sometimes seems like a faint whisper.

Meditation plumbs our depths to get at our real identities, even if we don’t always like what we find. And it opens our hearts so we become more loving, even if we don’t like what we find—in ourselves or in others. Writing helps us get it all down so we can dig even deeper. And this is a good and wise path because the deeper we go the more we see our connection with everything and discover how best to use our own lives to create peace within and around us.

The posts I make on this blog will offer reflections on writing and meditation in the context of the spiritual journey. Sometimes the posts will include works in progress. Sometimes they will include writing exercises and prompts. Sometimes they will include writings from those who have participated in Memoir as Buddhist Practice workshops that I teach with Rikki Asher, a longtime student and practitioner of the Chan (Zen) meditation tradition. Many of these writings are extraordinary. This discovery is one of the reasons I wanted to start this blog. There are so many people writing such profound reflections about their lives that I want to share them here.

I will also be including quotes about writing, meditation, and the spiritual journey that I find in my reading, in conversations I have, and from workshops and retreats that I sometimes attend. They’ll all be gathered on the Quotes page of this blog, which can be accessed by clicking on “Quotes” on the toolbar at the top. I will also share with you other related resources, such as links to websites, books, magazines, retreat centers and programs, and other items I think you might find helpful and interesting. These can be found by clicking on “Resources” in the toolbar.

Each time I make a new entry on this blog, I will note it on my Facebook wall and Twitter page. So if you want to keep current on what’s happening on this blog, please become my Facebook friend or follow me on Twitter. I hope to also send out an enewsletter from time to time. If you are interested in this, please sign up in the space on the right.

I invite you to reflect and comment on my posts, add your own experiences with writing and meditation, offer writing exercises you have done and found helpful, and suggest some readings or music that you believe others might find inspirational. And feel free to contact me about any relevant questions you may have.

To learn more about this blog, click on “This Blog” on the toolbar at the top.

Thank you for reading. I hope you find this blog a useful guide in your own writing, meditation practice, and spiritual journey.

Let’s keep in touch.