For quite some time, Cameron Diaz had known instinctively that meditation had something to offer her. But, after trying out several techniques and seeing none of them bring any lasting, positive effect, Diaz was ready to give up.
The fault had to lie with her; she reasoned.
Perhaps she was… well, just incapable of meditating.
Finding the right technique
“I knew there was something there for me, in meditation, but every time I would try to do it, I was like, ’I just cannot meditate!’” Diaz told Bob Roth in her interview with the David Lynch Foundation.
It was her close friend Jessica Seinfeld, the wife of the famous stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld, who advised Cameron Diaz to have one more go at it.
“I learned TM, the Transcendental Meditation technique. And it was exactly what I needed! The thing that blew me away the most about it was that it was the easiest thing I’ve ever done – not the easiest meditation, but the easiest thing I have ever learned. And I learn a lot of things, you know; that’s my job!” the renowned actress smiles.
WATCH VIDEO: Cameron Diaz talks about her meditation practice:
The starting point for excellent relationships
What really won Diaz over, however, was the combination of simplicity and effectiveness.
“Transcendental Meditation is so simple to learn; it’s so simple to practice,” she says. “Yet the amount of restoration that comes to you — the benefit across your life—well, it has changed everything.”
Diaz backs her claims up by telling a wonderful anecdote about the past Thanksgiving holiday.
CLOSE BONDS ON AND OFF THE SET: Cameron Diaz formed an excellent working relationship with Kate Upton and co-star Leslie Mann when shooting their movie, The Other Woman (2014). Photo: kateuptondaily.orgShe had invited her boyfriend’s family over to meet her family, and Hollywood A-lister or not, these kinds of situations can always be a bit testing for everyone.
But this time it was different, Diaz says.
“Let me tell you: TM can benefit relationships! I got my family and my boyfriend’s family all to learn the technique. And it was the most dynamic holiday for everybody, in the best way!
Because every one of us had, suddenly, this new tool for dealing with this sort of moment that could be a little stressful. Instead, we all sat and meditated every morning. It was beautiful! It really bonded everyone. It was a really special time!”
Meditation helps you know your lines!
But it’s not only within her circle of friends and family that Cameron Diaz has seen TM have a positive impact. It has proven to be a booster on the set as well.
“We had been filming in Boston to Los Angeles – 90 degrees, in the valley, at the Los Angeles Zoo parking lot, under a tent, in a car, under lights, windows up, and no air conditioning… ” Diaz recalls a scorching moment in her stellar acting career.
“I had a monologue to do, and I just couldn’t remember my lines. I had said them a million times, and I just could not access them at that moment… They were completely gone! I could see all those poor, grip guys, sweating, holding heavy equipment – looking at me like, ‘I hate you… Get your lines right so we can get out of here!’”
Whereas other people would have had no option but to dig their heels into the melting tarmac and slug through it, maybe taking a few hellish hours, Diaz had a new found secret weapon.
LIKED BY THE CRITICS AND BY THE VIEWERS: Cameron Diaz has received four Golden Globe Award nominations for her performances in Being John Malkovich (1999), Vanilla Sky (2001), Gangs of New York (2002), and There’s Something About Mary (1998) for which she also won the New York Film Critics Best Lead Actress Award. Diaz was named the highest-paid actress over 40 in Hollywood.“I said, ‘wait; I just need 25 minutes.’ I ran back to my trailer. I rebooted. I did my 20-minute meditation…
I came back, and I nailed it! Done! Thank you very much, you know!” she laughs in recalling the turnaround.
Locate and recharge the inner batteries
Diaz says that one thing she finds most empowering about the TM technique is how it allows us to reach into the deepest regions of our self.
“The thing that I love about TM is that you don’t have to convince somebody to believe in something. You don’t have to get them to understand a different faith or spirituality,” Diaz explains.
“TM is helping you to tap into something that’s already inside of you… that’s you. That’s something that was super-empowering for me once I grasped that.
It’s not just something you go outside of yourself to get and then bring it back to you.
It’s actually the deepest part of you… To have that tool now, and to go inside and recharge my battery, well, it’s so awesome! I feel so empowered.
And then to show the people that you love that they have that ability, too — it’s very gratifying!”
Put the pieces back together
To pinpoint just how the 20-minutes of Transcendental Meditation makes her feel, Diaz explained on the OWNShow:
“You know when you break a glass and all the shards go spraying everywhere? But if you recorded you could play it backward and all of those pieces suddenly come all back to whole again and the glass is full of water again.
That’s the same thing that happens to your mind with meditation. You are frazzled by 5:30 in the afternoon. All the pieces are shattered everywhere, they’re fragmented. You can’t think, you can’t hold anything. You meditate for 20 minutes and the next thing you know, everything becomes whole again.
That’s why I love it so much!”
Diaz started practicing Transcendental Meditation five years ago, and today she says: “changed my life completely.”
“It allowed space, grounded me,” she said. “It’s something you have to do consistently to really reap the benefits of it. When I’m doing TM consistently, at least one meditation a day — I try to get two in — everything’s easier. Before I meditate, I’m like a broken glass. As soon as I meditate, it’s whole again. All the pieces come back in, and I can see clearly, think clearly, and be grounded and energized.”
WATCH VIDEO: Cameron Diaz explains why she loves Transcendental Meditation:
Sources:
The David Lynch Foundation channel on YouTube
Cameron Diaz: This is Why Meditation is So Powerful OWNSHOW, Oprah Online
Cameron Diaz on Why She Waited Until She Was 42 to Get Married: ‘I Just Hadn’t Met My Husband’ People movies
