By TANIA STEERE
The former Archbishop of Canterbury has admitted
he is inspired by Buddhism and spends 40 minutes a day meditating. Lord Williams completes the intense early
morning ritual to help him clear his mind for prayer. The former Archbishop disclosed in an interview
with the New Statesman how he contemplated becoming a monk in his youth, as
well as joining the Orthodox church.
The article delves into the power of religious ritual and he explains he draws daily inspiration from meditation and reciting the ‘Jesus Prayer’. He repeatedly recites the words ‘Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner’ whilst controlling his breathing.
He said: ‘Over the years increasing exposure to and engagement with the Buddhist world in particular has made me aware of practices not unlike the ‘Jesus Prayer’ and introduced me to disciplines that further enforce the stillness and physical focus that the prayer entails.
‘Walking meditation, pacing very slowly and coordinating each step with an out-breath, is something I have found increasingly important as a preparation for a longer time of silence.
‘So: the regular ritual to begin the day when I’m in the house is a matter of an early rise and a brief walking meditation or sometimes a few slow prostrations, before squatting for 30 or 40 minutes (a low stool to support the thighs and reduce the weight on the lower legs) with the ‘Jesus Prayer’: repeating (usually silently) the words as I breathe out, leaving a moment between repetitions to notice the beating of the heart, which will slow down steadily over the period.’
Lord Williams explained that the routine helps
him focus and detach himself from ‘distracted, wandering images and thoughts’
and he pictures the human body as a ‘cave’ through which breath passes.
He added: ‘If you want to speak theologically about it, it’s a time when you are aware of your body as simply a place where life happens and where, therefore, God ‘happens’: a life lived in you.’
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