What is Meditation?
Meditation is about training in awareness and getting a healthy sense of perspective. Turning off your thoughts or feelings are not the goal, but learning to observe these things without judgment is. With continuous practice and time you may start to better understand yourself
There is no such thing as a perfect meditation session. Sometimes your mind wanders, or you don't feel focused, and you might even forget to follow your breath but all of that is okay. That is part of the experience and journey of meditating. The most important thing is being able to practice it consistently. It is about the journey not the destination.
"Our entire existence is experienced through our minds, and our perspective on life can dramatically alter once we begin meditating."
In order to feel the benefits of meditation you have to regularly practice
First Time Meditating
The first time you do a meditation whether it be a guided meditation or not, it is okay for your mind to be restless, busy, and or easily distracted; even if your eyes are closed. Just because you want to meditate doesn't mean that the first time is going to be easy and full of calm interrupted feelings.
There are 3 basic things involved in meditation
- Closing your eyes
- Staying focused on your breath
- Letting your mind do its thing
You don't have to strive to achieve something in meditation. There is no such thing as good or bad meditation. There is only awareness and non-awareness
----> Awareness is the moment that you are aware that you're lost in thought. If you become aware try to return your focus to your breath. As you continue to practice meditation the periods between distractions and awareness will become longer and longer
Transcript
Training the mind is often quite different to how people imagined it to be. Maybe they have an idea it's about stopping thoughts or eliminating feelings. But the reality is a bit different. An easy way to think of it is to imagine yourself sitting on the side of a busy road. The passing cars representing thoughts and feelings. All you have to do is just sit there and watch the cars. Sounds easy, right? But what usually happens is that we feel a bit unsettled by the movement of the traffic. So we run out into the road and try to stop the cars. Or maybe even chase after a few. Forgetting that the idea was to just sit here. And of course, all of this running around only adds to the feeling of restlessness in the mind. So training the mind is about changing our relationship with the passing thoughts and feelings. Learning how to view them with a little more perspective. And when we do this, we naturally find a place of calm. Will we sometimes forget the idea of the exercise and become distracted? Of course we will. But as soon as we remember, here we are. Back on the side of the road again, just watching the traffic go by. Perfectly at ease in both body and mind.
Right Time, Right Place
- The first step is making time to commit to regularly meditation. Try a few times a week if possible, maybe start with once a week until you become more comfortable.
- Be clear with how much time you will carve out; try to start out with 5-15 minutes.
- Be intentional with where you are sitting (make sure your background environment is not too distracting)
You don't have to be in a silent library like environment in order to mediate, this can make you extra sensitive to every little distraction and sound. You are just meant to settle into the environment around you, try to allow them to come and go without resistance instead of trying to tune it out. It is okay to struggle with this and get frustrated and overwhelmed with all of the noises, so feel free to try out some earplugs, or noise canceling headphones.
Usually in order to form it as a habit, people mediate at the same time and place consistently so they don't forget. It's okay if you miss a day or even three, just take a deep breath and start with where you left off.
How to Sit
- You can meditate anywhere you want. It can be inside or outside. It can be on the floor, bed, couch. You don't have to be sitting criss crossed (unless you want to) And you can keep your arms loosely draped on your legs or knees
Duration
The most important thing is how frequently you meditate, not how long. How much time you are able to commit to all depends on your preferences, life circumstances, and the time you have available to give. It's recommended to start out with 10 minutes but if that sounds overwhelming that is totally okay, go ahead and try starting with a 3 minute guided meditation then. There is no harm in starting small and working yourself up.
- Feeling sleepy or even falling asleep is normal especially when just beginning your meditation journey. This happens because the mind confuses "doing nothing" with relaxation, but as you continue to practice your mind will soon learn the difference between a relaxed focus (what you’re trying to achieve) and total relaxation (a byproduct of meditation)
Tips to help you stay more alert and awake
- Meditate sitting upright
- Try to mediate in the morning when your mind is more awake
- Let some fresh air in
Post-Meditation
Meditation is a skill that helps us become more mindful and less distracted throughout the day, so it is important to try to carry this intention throughout the rest of the day. It's so easy to lose the calm and delicate space you have created during meditation, but try to be conscious of carrying this awareness with you
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