Whole Life Times: Sit! Stay! Meditate?

November 2005 | Feature

Sit! Stay! Meditate?

How to unleash your four-legged friend’s inner guru

by Susan DeGrane and Marla Donato

After trying just about every form of meditation from TM to Zen, James Jacobson decided to employ a “non-dogmatic” approach. Well, maybe that’s not the best way to describe it.
Let’s just say he concluded that he prefers the group synergy of meditating with others. And he’s found some real experts at sitting—although most of them probably find it challenging to strike the proper pose, since it’s tough to cross four legs at the same time. Yes, Jacobson’s perfect meditation partners are dogs. Who better to teach compassion?

“Dogs embody non-judgment and unconditional love—traits many people think of when they envision a spiritually attuned being,” he writes in his new book, How to Meditate With Your Dog (Maui Media).

Jacobson first got the idea of doggie meditation when he was looking for a way to comfort his Maltese, who had temporarily lost her eyesight. “People do things for dogs that they wouldn’t do for themselves. They’re more likely to meditate for their dogs’ [sake],” Jacobson says.
While some breeds may seem more suited to sitting, and dogs—just like people—have different temperaments, Jacobson claims that even a high-energy Jack Russell terrier can become as sedate as a slow-moving basset hound. “Any dog who has a good relationship with his owner will meditate,” he insists.

Jacobson advises taking it “bone by bone.” At the very least, he avers, a regular practice can help strengthen your bond with your canine companion. Jacobson is unquestionably bonded, having named his publishing company after his dog Maui, who is named after the island where they live. (Lest you get the idea that all Jacobson does is lounge around on Maui with Maui, Maui Media also recently published an audio book by Archbishop Desmond Tutu.)

“I’m not attracted to meditation with a lot of regimentation,” the author explained in a recent phone interview while holding Maui, who could be heard panting into the receiver. “The idea is to introduce people who are not already familiar with meditation, people who might think it’s a little New Age or woo-woo—to make it seem natural.”

Jacobson and co-author Kristine Chandler Madera offer around 200 pages of suggestions and reasons for non-dogmatic dog meditating. For instance, it can be a shortcut to “appreciate being rather than doing.” To help achieve the proper frame of mind, the book comes with a CD that provides music and guided instruction.

And if attempting to arrive at the “hound-lounge” state of consciousness never yields a blissful moment of synchronized breathing, there’s always “walking meditation.” That involves staying in the proper mindset while your dog goes about his or her natural process of letting go. While this may seem more a matter of spacing out to some of us, Jacobson insists it’s still a meditation, although he warns it “isn’t always smooth. The trick is that when the distraction is over, we move right back into our meditation.”

Regardless of how frequently you attempt oneness with your dog, Jacobson suggests there’s always something you can learn from your best four-legged friend.

Although Marla Donato and Susan DeGrane both have dogs, they spend most of their time meditating over magazine copy at our Chicago-based sister publication Conscious Choice.

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