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Go Back   Spiritual Forums > Spirituality & Beliefs > Meditation

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  #1  
Old 07-09-2019, 03:06 AM
Mercedes Mercedes is offline
Newbie ;)
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 8
 
How do I deepen my meditation practice?

Hi, I would be grateful for any comments
As you can see, I’m a newbie
Having got to a point through trial and error of finding a comfortable seat and method to hopefully develop a regular meditation practice, I wonder where I go from here.
I’m enjoying the peace of a 20 min daily meditation using insight timer chimes to start and end my practice
I’m using awareness of breathing and practicing not becoming attached to thoughts but being aware of sounds around and zoning in and out of this awareness of sounds and thoughts
Maybe it’s a bit too soon (a week) to say I’m experiencing great ongoing benefits apart from enjoying it
I don’t like music, mantras or guided meditations, find them too distracting
It’s just where to go from here really. The difficulty I have is not wanting to fully embrace anyone else’s belief system but also wanting aome kind of guidance!
Can anyone offer any advice please? Thank you
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  #2  
Old 07-09-2019, 04:37 AM
iamthat iamthat is offline
Master
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Golden Bay, New Zealand
Posts: 3,580
 
Hi Mercedes

I am pleased you are enjoying your meditation.

A week is not a long time. Take it gently and get established in your practice. You will probably find sooner or later that there are days when you may not want to sit down for 20 minutes, or you may think you don't have the time. It is easy to do 20 minutes when you are enjoying it. When you aren't in the mood, then sitting down for 20 minutes can be a challenge. So get established in your practice.

Then what can you do? One possibility is to do two 20 minute daily meditations, one in the morning and one in the evening. Or you can extend the 20 minutes to 30 minutes.

Then what do you do? It really comes down to why you want to meditate. Do you want to feel more relaxed? Do you want to know yourself better? Do you want inner peace and calm? Do you want spiritual enlightenment? Twenty minutes of breathing and not being attached to thoughts is great, but the more we want to get out of meditation then the more we have to put in.

I can appreciate that you may not want to embrace someone else's belief system, but if you want to go more deeply into meditation then you may have to choose a deeper meditation system which may initially involve taking on certain beliefs (e.g. that there are such things as chakras). So are you drawn to any particular tradition? Western? Eastern? Buddhist? One of the Yogic paths?

The alternative is to find a meditation group which meets locally, but then again you may find that they have particular beliefs or they use music or mantras etc.

It is hard to give specific advice without further information.

Peace
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  #3  
Old 07-09-2019, 12:29 PM
Mercedes Mercedes is offline
Newbie ;)
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 8
 
Thank you, iamthat, what you say makes complete sense.
I have ‘flirted’ with meditation off and on for a few years but never managed to build a regular practice but think I do have the self discipline and motivation at this point in my life to build that.
I did join 2 local groups for a time, 1 a kadampa Buddhist one and 1 pranic healing but ultimately they weren’t for me; I wasn’t fully accepting of the belief systems although I did meet some lovely well intentioned people.
I did notice some visual images that came with a big Kadampa retreat group meditation once, which I put down to the energy raised.
I suppose that makes me slightly apprehensive of the chakra type meditations as I don’t want to invite in entities on the lower planes - I guess I’ve scared myself a little in the past with things metaphysical and have asked for and I think, received protection. I think I have retained my sanity, on the whole anyway
I do enjoy yoga although don’t have a regular class and teacher right now. It is important to me that I feel comfortable with the teacher. I like yoga for the exercise alone but do enjoy the spiritual side too and the real life teachers grate on me after a while if our belief systems dont align, although to be fair I couldn’t tell you exactly what my belief system is, I just don’t feel comfortable if things don’t feel right. I work within the western medicine arena and don’t always have a lot of patience with some alternative medicine viewpoints although am not entirely a logical positivist!
Maybe I will, as you say, try to increase time at meditation practice.
Even a few minutes feels as though it’s an achievement right now and I am pleased to have built to 20 mins from 15 in the last week
I have been inspired by Giovanni Dientsmann of late, I feel more comfortable and trusting of those who have walked the walk, so to speak, which is why I am interested in others experience and guidance
I think maybe you are an experienced meditator yourself?
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  #4  
Old 07-09-2019, 07:40 PM
iamthat iamthat is offline
Master
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Golden Bay, New Zealand
Posts: 3,580
 
I know what you mean about yoga classes and yoga teachers. They may have value, but nowadays I just do my own practice at home.

Well, I began meditating over 40 years ago and meditation has been the most important thing in my life ever since. I was involved in a group which taught a particular system of meditation and we were thrown in at the deep end. So within six months of first sitting down to meditate I was doing 4 hours a day with a 6 hour meditate every weekend and occasional longer meditates (up to eight days). Nowadays my usual practice is one hour but I am comfortable doing longer.

So I suppose I am experienced but I would not call myself an expert. I am still a learner. But sitting for long periods of meditation and seeing what comes up in the mind means that we learn a great deal about ourselves. And I have gone through a wide range of experiences in meditation, varying from extreme boredom (with the mind screaming in frustration at having to sit and be still) to overwhelming states of bliss. It is all in there.

I hadn't come across Giovanni Dientsmann but I have just had a look at his book on Amazon and it seems quite comprehensive without pushing any particular method or belief system. I like the following:

How should I choose a meditation technique?
There is no single style of meditation that is superior to all others. Different approaches work for different people - it is simply a matter of experimenting with different techniques and seeing which works best for you. This will also depend on your goals for the practice so it helps to gain clarity around what you seek from meditation. Bear in mind that as your needs and goals change in life, you may find that you benefit from different techniques at different times.


This is very true. So I suggest you stay with what feels right for you, perhaps increasing the time you sit for. Over time you will probably come across other practices. If they appeal to you then try them out. And perhaps one day you will find a practice which resonates deeply and you think yes, this is my path.

Peace
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  #5  
Old 08-09-2019, 03:52 AM
janielee
Posts: n/a
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mercedes
Hi, I would be grateful for any comments
As you can see, I’m a newbie
Having got to a point through trial and error of finding a comfortable seat and method to hopefully develop a regular meditation practice, I wonder where I go from here.
I’m enjoying the peace of a 20 min daily meditation using insight timer chimes to start and end my practice
I’m using awareness of breathing and practicing not becoming attached to thoughts but being aware of sounds around and zoning in and out of this awareness of sounds and thoughts
Maybe it’s a bit too soon (a week) to say I’m experiencing great ongoing benefits apart from enjoying it
I don’t like music, mantras or guided meditations, find them too distracting
It’s just where to go from here really. The difficulty I have is not wanting to fully embrace anyone else’s belief system but also wanting aome kind of guidance!
Can anyone offer any advice please? Thank you

Good for you

Zen meditation.

Don’t expect anything, just sit. It’s tough but worth it.
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  #6  
Old 08-09-2019, 07:15 AM
Gem Gem is offline
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Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Australia
Posts: 22,073
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Radiate boundless love towards the entire world ~ Buddha
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  #7  
Old 08-09-2019, 07:26 AM
Gem Gem is offline
Master
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Australia
Posts: 22,073
  Gem's Avatar
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mercedes
Hi, I would be grateful for any comments
As you can see, I’m a newbie
Having got to a point through trial and error of finding a comfortable seat and method to hopefully develop a regular meditation practice, I wonder where I go from here.
I’m enjoying the peace of a 20 min daily meditation using insight timer chimes to start and end my practice
I’m using awareness of breathing and practicing not becoming attached to thoughts but being aware of sounds around and zoning in and out of this awareness of sounds and thoughts
Maybe it’s a bit too soon (a week) to say I’m experiencing great ongoing benefits apart from enjoying it
I don’t like music, mantras or guided meditations, find them too distracting
It’s just where to go from here really. The difficulty I have is not wanting to fully embrace anyone else’s belief system but also wanting aome kind of guidance!
Can anyone offer any advice please? Thank you




You're on the right track and can just keep going as you already are. The feeling of breathing is real so there's no belief system about it, and I'm a big fan of keepin it real, but there is reason why meditation is the way it is, and not about mantras, music and so forth for you.



There are also ways of refining breath awareness practice, as you say, and it is not too soon to make refinements. It's a good idea to start off with refined technique rather than a crude one, and I reckon that would make an interesting taking point.
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Radiate boundless love towards the entire world ~ Buddha
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  #8  
Old 08-09-2019, 09:00 PM
Mercedes Mercedes is offline
Newbie ;)
Join Date: Sep 2019
Posts: 8
 
Thank you again, iamthat, janielee and gem.

I had a read up on zen/zazen - feels like my kind of thing right now, more about the mind/body as a whole rather than ‘head led’? and I also appreciate there may be other techniques for other times. What refined breathing technique would u recommend, gem, please?

I think the advice to be clear about goals is great. I want to improve my concentration and focus and and relax better, right now. I also want to keep the grey matter going for as long as possible!

Meditation was hard yesterday, it was later in the day and I think I nodded off sitting up a couple of times. Today was even worse, I had loops of music replaying in my mind and kept going off into thinking about things without even noticing! I was a bit sleep deprived though, so it’s useful to recognise how much that affects performance. I simply cannot imagine meditating for 4 or 6 hours a day, not something I’m aspiring to lol but the twice a day thing may be good! Definitely going to keep up the first thing in the morning time if Incan, so much easier and clearer then.

I’ve also been noticing how my mind/brain has a tendency to throw up random words - not sure what that’s about but I never even ‘heard’ them before.

Anyway, thank you again, I think, as you all say, I just need to get on with it for a while now :)
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  #9  
Old 09-09-2019, 02:07 AM
iamthat iamthat is offline
Master
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Golden Bay, New Zealand
Posts: 3,580
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mercedes
Meditation was hard yesterday, it was later in the day and I think I nodded off sitting up a couple of times. Today was even worse, I had loops of music replaying in my mind and kept going off into thinking about things without even noticing! I was a bit sleep deprived though, so it’s useful to recognise how much that affects performance. I simply cannot imagine meditating for 4 or 6 hours a day, not something I’m aspiring to lol but the twice a day thing may be good! Definitely going to keep up the first thing in the morning time if Incan, so much easier and clearer then.

I’ve also been noticing how my mind/brain has a tendency to throw up random words - not sure what that’s about but I never even ‘heard’ them before.

Welcome to the mind! It is only when we try to be still that we discover how much nonsense the mind comes up with. But the fact that we can observe the mind shows us that we are not our thoughts.

Peace
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  #10  
Old 11-09-2019, 09:26 PM
Truth307 Truth307 is offline
Knower
Join Date: Aug 2019
Posts: 102
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mercedes
Hi, I would be grateful for any comments
As you can see, I’m a newbie
Having got to a point through trial and error of finding a comfortable seat and method to hopefully develop a regular meditation practice, I wonder where I go from here.
I’m enjoying the peace of a 20 min daily meditation using insight timer chimes to start and end my practice
I’m using awareness of breathing and practicing not becoming attached to thoughts but being aware of sounds around and zoning in and out of this awareness of sounds and thoughts
Maybe it’s a bit too soon (a week) to say I’m experiencing great ongoing benefits apart from enjoying it
I don’t like music, mantras or guided meditations, find them too distracting
It’s just where to go from here really. The difficulty I have is not wanting to fully embrace anyone else’s belief system but also wanting aome kind of guidance!
Can anyone offer any advice please? Thank you

Sit how you feel comfortable or lay down, Relax your body, be silent and listen to the ringing sound you hear.

That’s called the Anhaad Naad (Primal Sound).

Listen to it, close your eyes and let go. Let the meditation (Samadhi) take you.

Anything you learn in this meditation that you feel is Truth, apply it to your daily life.

To enhance yourself and vibrate at a higher frequency of Truth, be a good person. Do good to yourself and others, Harbour no enmity, jealousy, envy or fear of or for others.

Recognize that Truth is everything, all image you see around you in waking life is an illusion, just false images. All that exists is True a Unconditional Love.

When you meditate, you silence the mind so you can just Feel within your being, and we begin to realise the Truth about the world around us and about ourselves.
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