By now, you must have realized that meditation is more than just breathing deeply and being still. It’s easily one of the most mysterious practices that have been around for centuries. It’s been around for quite a while, so there are, unsurprisingly enough, many questions about the practice.
What is meditation?
The first question that needs to be asked, really, is what meditation is as a concept. While exercise is about getting the body in a better condition, mediation is about getting the mind in its optimum state. In a manner of speaking, meditation is indeed exercising the mind, the part of one’s self that experiences, perceives, thinks, and experiences—not the brain, which is the biological component of the mind.
What are the expected outcomes from meditation?
By consistently and successfully meditating, you stand to reap several benefits. Some of the outcomes experienced by people who have been meditating are improved emotional wellness, increased tolerance for pain, improved sleep cycles, greater attention to detail, reduced stress levels, and a decrease in the occurrence of depression. In other words, meditation does more than just relax the mind. More than bringing about a state of peacefulness, it also improves the way you think and makes you aware about what’s around you.
How do you start meditating?
With the benefits that you stand to gain, you’re surely convinced that you must start meditation as a regular habit. But before anything else, you must have an understanding of what it really is. First, it’s about bringing attention to the present. It entails letting go of the past because you can’t change it, as well as the future, because you can’t always think forward. It’s about being here and now. It entails observing what’s happening in the moment, and setting aside any judgment about what you see. You must disengage yourself from any negativity and simply be.
Meditation can in fact be done anywhere as long as you are physically comfortable and free from distraction. But before you start, you must have an intention in mind. From that point, you should be fully attentive. Another important initial step is to just relax by taking deep breaths, and put yourself in the present moment.
In my previous posts, I’ve already discussed the basics of meditation: taking full breaths by inhaling and exhaling deeply by holding and counting your breath progressively until you reach 10 seconds. It’s perfectly normal to lose track of the count sometimes—when this happens, all you have to do is restart counting.
How do you move forward?
Meditation isn’t meditation if you do it whenever you feel like it. You have to keep going, and get over the many hurdles, from being too busy or bored or simply forgetting to meditate. There are many reasons that may get in the way of regular meditation, but you must win over them and keep on meditating.
