What memories does it bring for you? Brushing your teeth, washing your face, hands, and feet, combing your hair, wearing your night clothes. Smelling clean of soap. Kissing your parents good night and breathing into their face to show that you had cleaned your teeth. Maybe pushing your brother or sister, behind your parents back on your way to bed. Then joining your hands in the prayer pose, eyes closed. Saying your prayers, either kneeling or sitting cross legged.
Were you one of the naughty ones, shouting your prayers and asking God to forgive your siblings for their mischief. Were you shouting so that your parents would hear you? Then trying to get your pet into bed without your mother seeing you. Again a fight as maybe there was a dog and a cat and you all wanted them to sleep with you. I remember one of my sons would have both the dogs sleeping with him, when he was little and not so little. I could never spot them as they would come after I had tucked the boys in.
Of course, sometimes they would fight on either side of his legs, and I would then take them off the bed. These were dachshunds. Our cat slept with the other son and she was very dignified. Well, the ritual of going to bed is a beautiful one everywhere. We have the saying from the Bible, Ephesians 4.26:
“Be angry, and do not sin: do not let the sun go down on your wrath.”
It is such a powerful saying and as a child I came across it in a book called ‘Little Women’. It has been etched in my mind and this is what we are trying to do. We wish to be neutral and detached. And we come back to our thoughts. That mass of wormy thoughts which stay in us, burrowing in our mind. We wish to negate them but many of us do not know how.
That is the reason when we were children we were asked to pray or chant. It quietens us and the whole process is built for us to go to sleep and wake up rested. We put our prana to bed and it is rejuvenated when we open our eyes to a new morning. It is a simple act, say your prayers, follow the routine and enjoy your rest.
Aim Hrim Klim