Can meditation heighten my sensual awareness?

The present moment is sensual. Paying attention enhances all sensual experiences. When you meditate regularly, your ability to keep your attention focused begins to increase. And when you really focus on what you are experiencing-eating good food, making love, listening to music, smelling the roses-the pleasure is magnified.

Try it and see. Take a piece of your favorite ripe fruit or a spoonful of your favorite dessert. Pay attention to it. Examine it closely. Close your eyes and bring it up to your nose; notice how it smells. If you attention wanders, keep bringing it back to what you are doing. Take a bite and chew it slowly, noticing the amazing array of subtle and overt flavors and textures as it rolls around your tongue and mouth. Finally, swallow it and notice how it feels going down your throat.

One benefit of this approach is that it takes less stimulation to feel satisfied. I love eating chocolate, for example. When I was much younger, I might consume a pint of chocolate ice cream without really enjoying it very much. I'd often eat while reading or watching television, so I wasn't really paying attention to the food. Now, when I want to treat myself, I'll have only a spoonful of the richest, deepest, darkest, most chocolatey chocolate I can find. If I close my eyes and really pay attention to what I'm eating, then it's exquisitely enjoyable. After all, the first bite and the last bite are usually the best. And if you're only having one bite, then you really pay attention, so it's very, very good.

Find out more about this book: Dr. Dean Ornish's Program for Reversing Heart Disease: The Only System Scie...

Buy Book