Meditation Introduction

 

The purpose of this article is to give a basic introduction to meditation and offer some meditation techniques like the mindfulness of breathing and cultivation of positive emotion (Metta Bhavana). There are almost limitless resources on these subjects on the internet including guided instruction, meditation apps and so forth. My main purpose is to share my experience and conviction about how profound this practice is for transforming one’s mind and being a primary condition to support personal evolution.

 

Meditation is often misunderstood as it’s not always clear what its core purpose is. Most people know that it helps us become calmer, more relaxed, it can relieve stress and so forth. However, it’s much more than that, or at least can be with a deeper understanding of its purpose and what intention we bring to it. Meditation has become mainstream in recent years but most people still only have a vague idea about what it is.

 

I often hear people say that it’s making your mind go blank, that they can’t do it because they can’t stop thinking, that it’s relegated to the concerns of only the religious and spiritually minded, but this could not be further from the truth. Just as exercise is a necessity for improved physical health and strength, meditation is essential for increased mental and emotional health and strengthening the mind. It provides immediate benefits in all areas of life and the reason for this is that it works directly on the mind.

 

The primary purpose of meditation is to cultivate and deepen awareness or mindfulness, the effects of which are far reaching. Since one of our three focus elements is awareness, we can’t help but address the subject of meditation in detail and its primacy as a profound faculty of mind that will greatly support and accelerate our journey of change and growth.

 

It’s not an overstatement to say that meditation is one of the most positive things you can do with your mind. If you want to change your life, improve it, become happier, healthier, more focused, align your energies, become ‘tuned in’, achieve your goals, you can’t do it without at least some awareness, and meditation is a way of turbocharging it.

 

The simple activity of attempting to continually focus the mind on an object, whether it be a mental image, a positive emotion like compassion or loving kindness, or the breath, has profound and far reaching effects. It’s the gift that keeps on giving. There are no areas of your life that are not positively affected by this activity.

 

Meditation is radical, even revolutionary, because it’s flying in the face of a world that seems to encourage the opposite mental activity, which is distractedness. Meditation practice trains our mind, our whole being, to be in the present, with undivided curious interest.

 

Through improving this presence and strength of mind, we start to become more aware of everything in our experience, we realise that this is a much deeper and satisfying way to be. Not only that, but sitting in absorbed states of mind also brings far greater clarity and insightfulness to our mind and life, meaning we start to see through our own lies and delusion as well as that of the outside world which is what it is mostly invested in.

 

This is the reason why awareness, and meditation’s ability to powerfully strengthen it, is so valuable and important for personal growth. The following are some basic introductions to topics that will get you started on the journey of meditation.

 

I’m ready! What do I do now?

 

OK, so you want to start a meditation practice? That’s awesome. There are a few things that you can consider to start what will hopefully be a lifetime practice. Firstly, how often should you meditate? Great question. The more you meditate, the greater the benefits you will experience, but just like deciding to start exercising, if you haven’t worked on your fitness recently, you’re not going to want to workout an hour every day at the outset.

 

However, meditating regularly, preferably every day, will bring the benefits of this practice far more quickly. It’s way better to do 10 minutes a day than 40 mins once or twice a week. Meditation cultivates a continuity of deeper awareness, so the more often we connect in with that the better, so less time in between sitting practices is the way to go.

 

Start considering realistically what you can commit to in terms of a regular practice, where it might be able to slot into your routine and not be the first item on the chopping block if time and space get short.

 

Where do I meditate?

The great thing about meditation is that you can literally meditate anywhere. OK, maybe in a construction site, but on the train or bus to work, no problem. You could meditate in the park at lunch, waiting for an appointment, you can even meditate while walking!

 

These are all options for super busy people, but ideally we want to create a small space at home or somewhere we will be free of distractions such as loud noises, TV, music, interruptions and so on. It's helpful to the routine of sitting and becomes part of the mental preparation of calming and grounding ourselves as we get ready for our meditation practice.

 

When should I meditate?

The right time to meditate will be unique for everyone. Depending on work or other commitments, when our energy levels are best, what our sleep patterns are, a time when we can be uninterrupted for a period and so on. Generally speaking, it’s good to try to do it at the same time everyday, cultivating a trusted routine, and one that is unlikely to be missed except due to unusual circumstances.

 

You can meditate any time of the day, but adding it to your morning routine or whatever is the start of your day, can be very good for a number of reasons. Firstly, if you commit to a morning practice as regularly as possible, it means that there’s less likelihood that you will forget it or drop it due to the demands of the day, or shifting motivation levels. I know that if I don't stick to my routine of meditating in the morning, it often doesn’t happen.

 

Also, meditating in the morning means that our mind can be in a calmer and clearer state to face our day and all the challenges it may present. Not only that, but it puts us in a generally happier, more positive state of mind so we feel brighter and more engaged with our daily activities.

 

I’ve also meditated during my work lunch break for periods of time, and it would recharge my batteries and once again improve my mental state for the rest of the work day, which is typically a more difficult time as mental tiredness becomes a factor.

 

How do I sit for meditation?

Most people will have seen images of people meditating cross legged on cushions and on stools, or even flat on the floor in full lotus position, legs crossed with feet on top of the opposite knees (very difficult). Using a cushion or stool is a great way to meditate in the traditional posture, and there are specific reasons why this is good for meditation which I will go into in a later article.

 

You can buy these types of items online or at places where meditation classes are held. If you are of a practical nature, meditation stools are quite simple to build once you’ve done a bit of internet research on how they are constructed (I built mine).

 

Until such time as you invest in one of these sitting items, there is absolutely no reason why you can't sit in a normal sized chair, which you could use permanently. There are a few things to consider with setting up the best posture when using a regular chair. The chair should be of normal sitting height, as one would sit at a dining table or office desk. Ideally we want our feet to be able to touch the ground and our thighs be close to horizontal.

 

Meditation posture is also best when our hips are slightly tilted forward. If possible, you can put a couple of wood blocks under the rear legs of the chair to encourage a slight forward tilt to the seat. The blocks only need to be a couple of centremetres high, or one inch, and be exactly the same height. Avoid any type of chairs that have a seat that is lower at the rear that encourage a more laid back position.

 

Sitting in the chair is straight forward, place your feet flat on the floor, legs close together, you can put your hands palm down on your legs or cupped together in your lap. Your back should be in a comfortable but not slouched position. The whole torso should be rising straight up from the hips, in a comfortable but erect posture. You can rest your back lightly against the back of the chair without leaning right into it.

 

This means you should choose a chair that has a relatively vertical back, not one that would require you to lean back in a more relaxed posture to be supported by it. It can sometimes be helpful to put a cushion at the lower back in between oneself and the back of the chair to support that lumbar region.

 

With an alert but comfortable posture and your head in line with your body, you can then tilt it slightly down as if you were looking at a point on the floor about one and a half to two metres in front of you. At this point you are ready to meditate. During the practice if you feel uncomfortable, don’t be concerned about moving, whether it be to scratch an itch, flex or stretch muscles, move joints, tendons etc.

 

Sitting completely still is an unusual activity and you are likely to experience some initial discomfort even if sitting comfortably in a standard chair. As you gain mediation experience, you will learn to know the difference between genuine discomfort versus the mind's desire to move the body due to restlessness.

 

Other considerations

Meditation is about bringing the mind into a calm and grounded state to then practice concentrating and absorbing our attention on the object of our meditation. The preparatory beginning stage of meditation helps this process, but we need to realise that the way we use our mind, the activities that we engage in everyday of our life goes a long way to informing the habitual state of the mind we will be bringing to meditation.

 

We should also consider what we are doing immediately prior to meditation practice because this can have a significant effect. This may be less of a problem if we are meditating first thing in the morning, but watching the morning news while eating breakfast or flicking through our smart phone at the same time might not be the best thing to do just before sitting.

 

All this is input to the senses and stimulates our cognition and biases, beliefs, feelings, emotions and so forth. Do we really want all that input prior to attempting to bring the mind into a synergistic state?

 

Isn’t meditating in a group supposed to be helpful?

Meditating with others is definitely a great practice. There’s something about the shared effort and sense of being with like minded people in a practice context that is very rewarding. It’s also good to be able to talk to others, not only peers, but people with considerably more meditation experience than us, to talk about our experiences, difficulties, successes and so forth.

 

Finding a suitable group will be the main challenge depending on our own preferences, but there will probably be a lot of choices if you live in a reasonably sized city. Having said that, due to COVID, meditation groups found that sitting even with online groups is satisfying and works, so this may be an option too. It’s worth remembering though, that if you are going to cultivate a daily practice, most of your mediation will most likely be done solo.

 

What about meditation retreats?

Going on a meditation retreat is a fantastic way to deepen and grow our practice. Whether it be a weekend, a week or even longer, you will experience great benefits from periods of more intensive meditation practice. It’s also a great way to meet other meditators, make connections and really immerse in the life and practice around mediation. Once again, you’ll have to do your research if you aren’t already aligned with a group you mediate with.

 

What type of meditation should I do?

There are a plethora of different meditation practices one can do. Generally speaking, they are all variations on the core theme of concentrating the mind by focusing on a meditation object as a focal point. This can be the breath, an emotion, chanting poetic verses or mantras, visualising positive mental images and symbols and so on.

 

The meditation practices of Mindfulness of Breathing and Cultivation of Positive Emotion (Metta Bhavana) that I’ve detailed on this website are known to be Buddhist in origin, but not necessarily unique to it. I’m recommending them here because this is what I’ve learnt and have practiced for many years and know that they are very effective tools for personal transformation. You don't need to be a Buddhist to undertake these practices.

 

Also, the context of Buddhist meditation is to cultivate the conditions for not only mental calm and integration, but for insight or ‘clear seeing’ to arise, in other words, wisdom. Insightfulness allows us to see ourselves with ever more clarity and understanding and therefore the world at large. In no uncertain terms, this is the part of the path of personal evolution.

 

The practice of Mindfulness of Breathing and Cultivation of Positive Emotion (Metta Bhavana) are considered core practices and complement each other very well. Mindfulness of breathing focuses on heightening our overall awareness practice, whereas Metta Bhavana is a ‘warmer’ practice that works directly with transforming our emotions and understanding of them. Ideally these practices can be alternated daily and will go a long way to effecting profound personal change.

 

Once you’ve meditated a few times and had some experience with noting the different mental states you inhabit, you may like to study the article on The Meditative Hindrances to help progress your practice. These address aspects of the mind that obstruct our ability to obtain an absorbed state. At this point feel free to now read articles on the Mindfulness of Breathing and Cultivation of Positive Emotion (Metta Bhavana) practices. There is also an instruction on the practice of Walking Meditation. Enjoy!