Harunobu Suzuki, A girl Collecting Chrysanthemums by a Stream

The courage to witness

Ancient contemplative practices have long understood the nature of mind as something that pushes away pain and clings to pleasure. But if you’re like most people, you probably didn’t begin yoga or meditation intent on acquiring tools to help relieve your suffering. Instead you’ve been waiting for the moment when you could balance on your head or sit without fidgeting on your meditation cushion. Then one day in a yoga class, you realize that you don’t hear your usual internal dialogue bemoaning your inherently stiff hamstrings or comparing your abilities to everyone else’s. Instead, you are aware of your breathing, and you begin to notice the subtle feelings within your body as you practice. You’ve been tuning into what’s happening as it is, in fact, happening. You have been practicing mindfulness.

Stay Present
These three simple tips can be practiced under everyday circumstances so that when you find yourself faced with intense situations, like grief, the skills may have already taken root.

Yoga

Smoothing the breath

The breath and the mind travel in tandem. When the breath gets agitated, the mind cannot settle. By bringing attention into the breath, the mind is naturally soothed. For five minutes a day, sit quietly and simply pay attention to the path of the breath in and out of the nose as you soften the tongue and release the jaw. Allow thoughts to come and go, but continuously bring your focus back to the breath.

Dropping in

The body reflects our physical, emotional, and mental states. For instance, joy spontaneously lightens the step and softens the face, whereas depression can cause the shoulders and chest to collapse down. At random moments when you think of it through the course of each day, just check in with your physical state. Make note of your physical feelings and sensations and the quality of your breath. Then consider what thought or circumstance might be contributing to that experience.

Being kind

When others offer you kindness, responding congenially comes easily. But when others act unhappy, angry, or distant, being kind proves more difficult. The easy path? Responding with an equally charged emotion, or simply leaving the person alone to suffer. When unpleasant situations with others arise, experiment with making no assumptions about why they behave as they do. Simply offer kind support—without the desire that your act of compassion will change the situation or benefit you.

Although meditation can be done in almost any context, practitioners usually employ a quiet, tranquil space, a meditation cushion or bench, and some kind of timing device to time the meditation session.  Ideally, the more these accoutrements can be integrated the better.  Thus, it is conducive to a satisfying meditation practice to have a timer or clock that is tranquil and beautiful.  Using a kitchen timer or beeper watch is less than ideal.  And it was with these considerations in mind that we designed our digital Zen Alarm Clock and practice timer.  This unique “Zen Clock” features a long-resonating acoustic chime that brings the meditation session to a gradual close, preserving the environment of stillness while also acting as an effective time signal.

Bamboo Zen Clocks, progressive chime clock and timer

Now & Zen’s Meditation Timer Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

koi

“I wish I could show you

When you are lonely

Or in darkness,

The astonishing light

Of your own being.”

-Hafiz

Honey Japanese Maple Leaves Zen Alarm Clock, calming alarm clock

Now & Zen – The Zen Alarm Clock Shop

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

Pierre-Cécile Puvis de Chavannes: The Dream, 1883

Sleep Type: The Human Alarm Clock
You crash as soon as your head hits the pillow, but wake like clockwork at 2, 3, or 4 a.m.

What’s Going On?
“We all wake up briefly — two to three dozen times a night — without awareness or memory,” says Paul Glovinsky, Ph.D., coauthor of “The Insomnia Answer.”  If you’re all too aware of your awakenings, a number of things may be going on.  Simple conditioning, a la Pavlov’s dogs, could be to blame.  Your body can be “on the lookout for that awakening, especially if there’s a clock in the bedroom,” Glovinksy says.  Also consider stress: You may fall asleep out of pure exhaustion, but as soon as your sleep needs are slightly quenched, anxieties wake you up again.  For some people, says Rubin Naiman, Ph.D., director of Sleep Programs at Miraval Resort, the body’s inner clock, or circadian rhythms, may be malfunctioning

What to Do
Whatever’s behind your awakenings, hiding your neon time reminder is step one.  This would be the perfect time to get the Zen Alarm Clock in the Digital style (so you could close the lid) or the original style without the light.   If you can’t see the clock, you won’t panic as you calculate how many hours remain until daybreak — and how little you’ve slept. “Put it on the floor or close the cover to the Zen Clock,” says Joyce Walsleben, R.N., Ph.D., associate professor of medicine at New York University. “When the alarm chimes, you can get up, but otherwise, you’re in bed to sleep.” For many people, this simple shift alone reconditions their brain.

Boulder, Colorado—an innovative company has taken one of life’s most unpleasant experiences (being startled awake by your alarm clock early Monday morning), and transformed it into something to actually look forward to. “The Zen Alarm Clock,” uses soothing acoustic chimes that awaken users gently and gradually, making waking up a real pleasure.

What makes this gentle awakening experience so exquisite is the sound of the natural acoustic chime, which has been tuned to produce the same tones as the tuning forks used by musical therapists. According to the product’s inventor, Steve McIntosh, “once you experience this way of being gradually awakened with beautiful acoustic tones, no other alarm clock will ever do.”

adapted from Body + Soul, May 2008 by Sarah Schmelling

Alarm Clocks for a Progressive Awakening, Zen Clocks in Digital Styles

Now & Zen – The Most Gentle Alarm Clocks with Chimes

Visit Our Shop

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

yoga practice in bamboo

As Robert Svoboda attempts to summarize the three major paths of the Vedic knowledge, he writes:

Because every embodied individual is composed of a body, a mind and a spirit, the ancient Rishis of India who developed the Science of Life organized their wisdom into three bodies of knowledge:  Ayurveda, which deals mainly with the physical body; Yoga, which deals mainly with spirit; and Tantra, which is mainly concerned with the mind.

The philosophy of all three is identical; their manifestations differ because of their differing emphases.  Ayurveda is most concerned woth the physical basis of life, concentrating on its harmony of mind and spirit.  Yoga controls body and mind to enable them to harmonize with spirit, and Tantra seeks to use the mind to balance the demands of body and spirit.

Use our unique “Zen Clock” which functions as a Yoga Timer.  It features a long-resonating acoustic chime that brings your meditation or yoga session to a gradual close, preserving the environment of stillness while also acting as an effective time signal. Our Yoga Timer & Clock can be programmed to chime at the end of the meditation or yoga session or periodically throughout the session as a kind of sonic yantra. The beauty and functionality of the Zen Clock/Timer makes it a meditation tool that can actually help you “make time” for meditation in your life. Bring yourself back to balance.

adapted from wikipedia.org

Meditation & Yoga Timers and Clocks

Now & Zen’s Yoga Timer Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

Meditation Tools by Now & Zen

As a result of cultural evolution, we’re becoming more discerning about the real nature of quality.  Quality thinking is concerned with the welfare of the greatest relevant whole — our whole selves, our whole environment, and our whole society.  Now & Zen products embody quality of thought through their use as tools that improve your life, in the esoteric principles they embody, and in their originality. Stillness of being is also an integral part of a natural lifestyle. The practices of prayer, meditation, and yoga all contribute to a stillness of being.  Now & Zen products serve as accoutrements to these practices; and they also help create a sense of stillness through the beauty of their designs.

Now & Zen’s company mission statement is as follows:

Now & Zen, Inc. seeks to manifest on the levels of matter, mind, and spirit.
These levels translate in the business world as fact, meaning, and value.
Now & Zen’s mission is divided accordingly:

Fact: Make money selling quality products.

Meaning: Create a national brand that stands
for quality of thought, and stillness of being.

Value: Provide products that remind people they live in
the presence of the sacred, however they may define it.

Now & Zen Headquarter Store - Boulder, CO

Boulder, Colorado

Please visit our website ( www.now-zen.com ) which gives further information on our products and mission. For a catalog of current Now & Zen products, please call us at: (800) 779-6383 or (303) 530-9028, or send us an e-mail.

Now & Zen – The Zen Alarm Clock Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Tsukyoka Yoshitoshi 1888 - Lift Depression with Meditation, Use Your Chime Meditation Timer

A recent study found that age-old meditative techniques and more modern cognitive therapy can help alleviate symptoms. Anil Coumar, a psychotherapist and director of the mental health clinic at the University of Washington, Seattle, offers these do-it-yourself mood-lifting meditations:

Get moving. For many people, meditation is a remote, Eastern technique that involves sitting with your legs crossed on a cushion. But almost any activity can be mindful and healing, says Coumar. “Through a practice of mindfulness, we can see how our thoughts are not facts—they come and go.” To slow down your thinking and realize that you can release negative thoughts as quickly as they come, try this eating meditation: Hold a raisin in your hand and intentionally look at it as if you’ve never seen one before. Roll it between your fingers and notice each crease. Pay attention to your thoughts about it—maybe you’ll think, This is ugly or I’ve never noticed the true color of a raisin before. Then put it in your mouth and observe how your saliva flows as you chew.

Uncover your unconscious. Imagine you’re walking down the street and see a good friend walking in the opposite direction. You nod and smile, but your pal just looks ahead and keeps going. How do you respond? “Someone might say, ‘Oh, she probably didn’t see me.’ Another might think, ‘What did I do wrong now?’ Depending on how you interpret that event, you’re going to feel good or bad,” says Coumar. This kind of cognitive exercise can teach us how we unconsciously have these thoughts. The point? To make the normally unconscious thoughts that fuel depression conscious so you can acknowledge them—and then more easily let them go.

It’s exquisite sounds summon your consciousness out of your meditative state with a series of subtle gongs. Once you experience the Zen Timepiece’s progressive tones, you’ll never want to meditate any other way.  It serves as the perfect meditation timer and alarm clock . Available in 5 wood styles, including bamboo.

Gong Meditation Timer with Singing Bowl

adapted from Natural Solutions Magazine by Ziba Kashef, 8/2009

Now & Zen’s Chime Timer & Alarm Clock Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Your body has a message for you...yoshitoshi taiso

Your body has a message for you. Are you listening?

Our bodies are innately wise and have much to teach us about restoring and preserving our health…if we are willing to listen. A symptom is more than an isolated event. It is a messenger from our body giving us a “heads up” that an underlying problem exists and needs attention. If we learn to pay attention and understand the message provided by these “teaching assistants” sent by our bodies, symptoms become opportunities for implementing changes.

Mind-Body Connection
Your body and mind are interconnected, and each impacts the other. When you hurt your foot, your body shares this information with your mind, and you feel pain. When you’re worried about something, there is a physical response in your body. When you’re excited and happy, your body has a different physiological response.

Some people get sweaty palms when they’re nervous. Some get a sharp pain in their shoulders and neck when they feel they carry “the weight of the world.” Some people get headaches when they haven’t eaten properly. Some breathe shallowly and quickly when they’re anxious about something. These are all examples of your body providing you with information that allows you to take appropriate action.

If your observer is alert and you notice the physical phenomena present in your body, you obtain valuable information that you can use to impact your health and wellness. A pain that you’re feeling may be the result of an external incident such as banging your shoulder or cutting your foot; however, if there was not such an event, a physical ailment or change in your body’s status could be caused by some internal condition. If you pay attention to your body and address early signs suggesting that something may be wrong, you may be able to prevent larger problems from developing. Addressing these larger, more serious problems may be more painful and costly, and may require more invasive interventions.

Our Zen Clock’s long-resonating Tibetan bell-like chime makes meditating a beautiful experience – its progressive chimes begin your day with grace. When the clock’s alarm is triggered, the acoustic chime bar is struck just once … 3-1/2 minutes later it strikes again … chime strikes become more frequent over 10 minutes … eventually striking every 5 seconds until shut off.

adapted from Natural Solutions Magazine by Marc Levin, 8/2011

Zen Meditation Timers and Alarm Clocks with Chimes

Now & Zen – The Zen Meditation Timer Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

teahouse

There was a monk who was a sincere and ascetic practitioner. He was scholarly and had great understanding. He lived in a monastery with eight hundred monks. The Buddha’s teachings went straight to his heart, engendering compassion, kindness, and humility. He never cared to sit on a high throne or be a leader of any kind. He always sat in the last row and took a small portion of what was left to eat. But one day, a patron came to the monastery with buckets of yogurt to offer the monks. The patron began serving yogurt to the monks in the first row, filling their large bowls. This monk enjoyed yogurt very much and grew concerned as he thought to himself, “He’s giving them so much yogurt, when he reaches my row, there may not be any left for me.” When the patron reached the last row, the monk could see that there was still plenty of yogurt in the bucket. The patron went to put a serving into the monk’s bowl, but this monk immediately turned his bowl upside down. The surprised patron asked, “What’s wrong?” The monk replied, “This greedy monk already had his yogurt when you were serving the front row. He doesn’t deserve any more.”

adapted from Natural Solutions Magazine by Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche, 3/2012

Zen Chime Alarm Clocks and Timers

Now & Zen’s Chime Timer and Alarm Clock Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Meditation Timers and Chime Alarm Clocks

An accomplished meditator is capable of overcoming every obstacle in life. Developing this level of confidence requires an approach that goes beyond simply resting in a state of repose. It is not sufficient to learn a few techniques and practice meditation just to relax and quiet your mind. To sit calmly in your room, still your thoughts, and drift into a state of torpidity is not meditation. A cow may sit still and breathe quietly when its stomach is full, but can we call this meditation?Meditation is not just for relaxation; its primary purpose is to develop the capacity to respond skillfully and gracefully to life’s difficulties as well as its joys

Followers of the spiritual path must proceed in this way. Only then will we have the opportunity to experience the real essence and value of our human life. It is our chance to be reawakened, our precious opportunity to enjoy boundless energy and employ consummate skill for our own well-being and for the well-being of others.

The nature of the mind is unobstructed. Moment by moment, one thought is born, while another one dies. This energy is unceasing, and it springs from primordial wisdom. This energy is the essence of what we are. This essence manifests, but not in any solid or substantial way. We cannot imagine it or express it. It transcends imagination and expression.

adapted from Natural Solutions Magazine by Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche, 3/2012

Although meditation can be done in almost any context, practitioners usually employ a quiet, tranquil space, a meditation cushion or bench, and some kind of timing device to time the meditation session.  Ideally, the more these accoutrements can be integrated the better.  Thus, it is conducive to a satisfying meditation practice to have a timer or clock that is tranquil and beautiful.  Using a kitchen timer or beeper watch is less than ideal.  And it was with these considerations in mind that we designed our digital Zen Alarm Clock and practice timer.  This unique “Zen Clock” features a long-resonating acoustic chime that brings the meditation session to a gradual close, preserving the environment of stillness while also acting as an effective time signal.

Singing Bowl Meditation Timers and Alarm Clocks

Now & Zen’s Singing Bowl Timer Store

Meditation Timer Shop In Boulder, Colorado

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383

Japanese Ukiyoe Crane - Meditation Helps Us with More than Just Stress

Meditation is not just for relaxation; its primary purpose is to develop the capacity to respond skillfully and gracefully to life’s difficulties as well as its joys. We have to reflect deeply on the uncertainty and brevity of our lifespan. Contemplate the fact that all the things in which we place our trust are contingent and constantly changing. We have to use our spiritual practice to look within and discover the heart of our being.

adapted from Natural Solutions Magazine by Shyalpa Tenzin Rinpoche, 3/2012

Meditation Timers and Soothing Chime Alarm Clocks

Now & Zen – The Zen Chime Alarm Clock Store

1638 Pearl Street

Boulder, CO  80302

(800) 779-6383