Meditation
I remember being told by more than a few people "you should meditate, it will help". I would try it but found it ineffective. What I came to discover was that I had not learned how to meditate. I didn't understand what it meant to "focus on your breath". I had to learn what to do with the thoughts constantly bombarding my mind and distracting me from focusing on my breathing. When I think back to all those times that I sat and tried "focusing", I have to conclude that I did not understand what focus really was.
At one of the scariest moments in my life a kind nurse whispered something in my ear that sparked my education in meditation. "Download Headspace, it's an app." Thankfully I took her advice. Headspace has become a major part of my meditative practice. It provided a step-by-step guide to meditation and provided a framework from which to experiment. Meditation is simply focusing on only one thing at a time. You exclude everything else external (TV, cell phones, internet etc.) and internal (thoughts and emotions). To begin the practice of meditation we sit in a quiet and safe environment. Setting a timer for one minute, close your eyes and focus on your breathing, something we all do anyways. Pay attention to your inhalations and exhalations, feeling the rising and falling. If a thought arises and it surely will, do not engage with it or beat yourself up over it (this invites further thought). Allow the thought to pass by like a cloud in the sky. When your ability to quiet your mind improves, you can begin to experiment with the different practices under the meditation umbrella. Increasing the time you sit can allow you to relax into the practice. I have read of some people meditating for hours at a time. You could try focusing on mantras; mantras are words that are repeated either aloud or in our minds that are used to anchor our focus. Any word will do as long as it does not lead you to lose focus. You could also practice visualization like professional athletes, you imagine (not think about) anything you want. I was first exposed to this type of meditation at a dojo I used to train at. The sensei would have us close our eyes and imagine seeing a dime in the mind's eye. He had us imagine every part of the dime, as if we had one right in front of us. With visualization, we can imagine anything our imagination can come up with like objects, sceneries, individuals, or adventures. Visualization is how guided meditation works, guided meditation involves listening to someone, either in person or recorded, who guides you through what you are to imagine. There is also moving meditation, like Tai Chi. It involves becoming completely mindful of whatever activity you happen to be engaged in. Walking for example, you would need to be completely conscious of all your movements, the way your feet hit the ground, the bend in your knees, the orientation of your head, etc.
Meditation can be a varied and rewarding practice once the basics are learned. In my life I have found meditation to be a life saving practice. The ability to sit with a quiet mind helped me to observe and analyze my thoughts and feelings and not allow them to control me. Plus it helps me appreciate the good things in my life. I had been around people who meditated my whole life and all of them tried to teach me how to calm and quiet my mind. Thankfully I learned what focusing really means.
At one of the scariest moments in my life a kind nurse whispered something in my ear that sparked my education in meditation. "Download Headspace, it's an app." Thankfully I took her advice. Headspace has become a major part of my meditative practice. It provided a step-by-step guide to meditation and provided a framework from which to experiment. Meditation is simply focusing on only one thing at a time. You exclude everything else external (TV, cell phones, internet etc.) and internal (thoughts and emotions). To begin the practice of meditation we sit in a quiet and safe environment. Setting a timer for one minute, close your eyes and focus on your breathing, something we all do anyways. Pay attention to your inhalations and exhalations, feeling the rising and falling. If a thought arises and it surely will, do not engage with it or beat yourself up over it (this invites further thought). Allow the thought to pass by like a cloud in the sky. When your ability to quiet your mind improves, you can begin to experiment with the different practices under the meditation umbrella. Increasing the time you sit can allow you to relax into the practice. I have read of some people meditating for hours at a time. You could try focusing on mantras; mantras are words that are repeated either aloud or in our minds that are used to anchor our focus. Any word will do as long as it does not lead you to lose focus. You could also practice visualization like professional athletes, you imagine (not think about) anything you want. I was first exposed to this type of meditation at a dojo I used to train at. The sensei would have us close our eyes and imagine seeing a dime in the mind's eye. He had us imagine every part of the dime, as if we had one right in front of us. With visualization, we can imagine anything our imagination can come up with like objects, sceneries, individuals, or adventures. Visualization is how guided meditation works, guided meditation involves listening to someone, either in person or recorded, who guides you through what you are to imagine. There is also moving meditation, like Tai Chi. It involves becoming completely mindful of whatever activity you happen to be engaged in. Walking for example, you would need to be completely conscious of all your movements, the way your feet hit the ground, the bend in your knees, the orientation of your head, etc.
Meditation can be a varied and rewarding practice once the basics are learned. In my life I have found meditation to be a life saving practice. The ability to sit with a quiet mind helped me to observe and analyze my thoughts and feelings and not allow them to control me. Plus it helps me appreciate the good things in my life. I had been around people who meditated my whole life and all of them tried to teach me how to calm and quiet my mind. Thankfully I learned what focusing really means.
Comments
Post a Comment