SO NOW WHAT...
There are two options available for those that wish to learn how to meditate. The first is to travel to Bhutan, join a Buddhist temple, dress in a red robe, and spend hours per day in meditation. The other is the self taught version. If you are looking to achieve total enlightenment, Nirvana, I strongly suggest the first. If you are looking for a calmer, more peaceful and compassionate lifestyle the second should suffice, providing you do it right.
Before you download a meditation app and try to walk though it alone may I suggest a few simple pointers. Please keep in mind that the following is not a quick fix to understanding today's struggles and suffering but a starting point. If you are putting a timeframe on it, "I'll meditate everyday for a month then if I don't see significant results I'm done", you are already done. Meditation is learned though consistent, long term practice and lot's and lot's of patience. If it took Buddha many days of total isolation and constant meditation to understand it you probably aren't going to get it in a month of 20 minute daily sessions. While the destination (if ever achieved) is glorious, meditation is more about the personal journey, so relax and enjoy the ride.
If no one ever told you, the first thing you need to do is find enough uninterrupted time that you can devote to your session. In the beginning, 15 - 20 minutes will do. Don't try and "squeeze it in" but plan for it. Schedule it the same as you would a meal or bedtime. Mark it on your calendar and stick to it.
Then you need to find a quiet place where you can concentrate undisturbed. No cell phone, no tv, no kids running back and forth but a safe, quiet area. It could be a closet for all it matters. The location is not as important as the environment which must be quiet. Sit in the car in the garage if that's the place but find that place.
You need to get comfortable. If the body is not relaxed, the mind will not calm. You can sit in any of the suggested seated poses, full lotus, half lotus or Burmese (Google them) or sit in a chair. Yes, you can sit in a chair provided your spine is not supported, it is erect/straight and your feet are touching the ground. You can also kneel, stand and even walk, although the latter is for more advanced meditators. Whichever position you choose, comfort is the rule.
Close your eyes, relax and just breathe. A point of concentration is needed to try and stay focused. You can use a candle, a tree, a spot on a wall but you may find it easiest to just focus on your breath. It is consistent and reliable as it will happen naturally over and over. It is always there no matter where you choose to meditate and is easier than carrying candles and a lighter around. Start by following your breath into your nostrils, down onto the lungs and back out again. Breathe naturally and connect with the pattern of in and out, over and over. Devote all your mental concentration to the simple pattern of your breath. Take each individual breath as it comes, letting it go when it ends and picking up as the next one begins. YOU WILL GET DISTRACTED AND LOSE YOUR CONCENTRATION. Patience. Just let go of the distraction and concentrate on the breath.
Unfortunately, you will probably spend more time in the beginning days, weeks or months more distracted than focused but that's ok. It happens to us all. Over time you will see more time spent in the moment than looking backward or ahead. Meditation is about learning, remember that word, learning, how to stay in the moment. Over time those moments become strung together and we start to achieve peace within ourselves which manifests itself into peacefulness in our outside self. It will happen. Just relax, breathe, concentrate and practice patience.
Next post...SO HOW DO I MEDITATE
