Meditation Methods

Sometimes we use the term ‘meditation’ when we really mean ‘a meditative method.’ For example, we might say, “I’m off to meditate for a bit.” It’s not possible to ‘do meditation’ because meditation is a state, not an activity. It’s a state in which we are not doing anything but simply being.

The many different techniques provide an assortment of ways to create the right inner milieu, one that is conducive to just being. There are hundreds of different methods because we are all so different. What suits you might not suit me; or, what suits you now, after three months of your practicing it, it may no longer be appropriate. It’s helpful to have lots of options from which to choose.

Meditation is a guest, and a shy one at that. We cannot demand that we experience meditation. She only arrives at the doorstep of those willing to wait, and to enter a space where she feels welcome; a place of receptivity, of spaciousness, and of relaxed awareness.

Joining a group or going it alone
Meditating in the company of like (no)-minded people, and talking to other meditators can help keep you motivated. But remain able and willing to meditate alone. Then you don’t risk becoming dependent on others. You enjoy it when an opportunity to meditate in a group comes up, but you are a free agent, and able to create and stay committed to your own routine.

Look at it this way: You want to lose weight. You can join an exercise class at gym or a group of fellow weight watchers at a weekly meeting. That support is helpful, but for the rest of your day or week it’s up to you to watch your food intake. If you want results you have to meet the challenges of each moment’s temptations alone!

One of the purposes of this website is to support you as a self-sufficient meditator. So, do use the Meditation Du Jour, and other resources provided.

The Three Alchemical Qualities
Any activity can become a meditation if you add three ingredients:

• Relaxation
• Awareness
• A non-judgemental attitude

So, for example, you like to go walking every morning. To change that from just a physical exercise into a meditative experience, you walk in a relaxed way, though you are simultaneously alert. That means, you are present to the moment – to the sound of the birds chirping, the traffic… to the smell of the sea or of freshly baked bread from a nearby shop… to the sensation of your feet on the path or your arms moving by your side… to the heat of your body, perhaps, or the coolness of a breeze –rather than being absorbed in your own thoughts about, for instance, what you are going to do after your walk.

You are not judging how you are walking, not trying to outmatch how quickly you went or how far you got yesterday; not comparing yourself with your partner or a passing jogger. You are not wishing it were hot, instead of raining, or raining instead of hot. You’re not inwardly cursing the blaring of horns, or the smell of a garbage bin. On the contrary, you remain simply aware of all these features of your experience without any criticism, but rather with acceptance that this is what is, in this particular moment. Remember, even positive observations are judgements. And, of course the ego is part of any judging and comparing we might be doing.

From ‘ought to’ to ‘want to’
Meditation is a state of non-doing. However, to set aside a time for your practice does take a conscious intention and a commitment. So in this respect, it is true that, at least initially, becoming a practitioner is a discipline.

To continue the analogy we used earlier, of losing weight: you commit to working out at your gym regularly. At first that does need a little discipline. You have to find a time in the day that fits in with your schedule, choose the classes/sessions you want, and then attend them. Yet slowly you find that you’ve gone from being someone who feels they should work out for health reasons, to someone who positively enjoys gym, whose body is beginning to feel better; who misses those days on which she doesn’t make it to the gym. The great feedback from your bodymind transforms what was a discipline, an ‘I-ought-to,’ into an activity that you look forward to, an ‘I-want-to.’

In The Role of the Mind we’ve looked at how the mind can both get in the way of your meditating and actually help.

Remember that, like a child, the mind loves being the center of attention. When you meditate you voluntarily move away from the mind’s terrain. So, let the mind know you are in charge and reassure it that you will return to it later.

The Pleasure Principle
If you meditate solely to get something – such as peace, or compassion, or to boost your immune system functioning – you are bound to be disappointed. The very expectation of getting something will sabotage your practice.

It’s a paradox: Though we meditate for a reason, we have to put aside any desire for a result. Instead, learn to enjoy meditating simply for its own sake. You shower to clean yourself; that’s the aim. But isn’t the pleasure of having piping hot water in winter or deliciously cool water in summer raining over your body – the fragrance of the soap, the sensation of its slipperiness on your skin – just as important in motivating you to shower regularly?

And, part of the pleasure package in meditation is not taking things seriously. Be total in what you do and stay playful too. As the Taoists say: Easy is right!