Meditation Series III - Method

[Gem]

The first thread in this series was on a Place to meditate. Here. http://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=92837

I was going to do a second thread on posture before this one, but David F already opened a good thread on posture here. http://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=93209

This thread is about method, but it isn't an instruction thread, because I maintain that meditation isn't methodical, though practice methods can be used and have been proven to enhance quality of life.

It's not an easy subject to speak about something that isn't mechanised, so this is immediately spontaneous as I type, and feel the pressure on my fingertips, the floor on my feet, the slight of breath, tensions in the muscles and 'what it's like' to be here typing as I am. This experience can only be known in the immediacy of occurrence, so attention to it draws the focus away from aspects of time, and centres it on what is happening now.

I think of organising life, for example, having appointments in a diary and tasks on lists, so that I need not constantly re-think things and re-imagine the future and remember what to do. It takes some planning. I actually have a large wall calendar with all the days of the year on one poster, so at a glance I can see what each day entails, like exams, deadlines, appointments, holidays etc and so on. This organisation frees up unnecessary clutter and gives me a sense that I have it all together, which puts the mind at ease and significantly reduces the number of things which would otherwise lead to chaos and distraction.

There are 'other things' such as this one can do to reduce mental activity which might affect people's meditation time, so I suggest that meditation extends beyond methods time practice time, and can be markedly improved by addressing the practicalities of one's daily life.

[Gem]

I guess people equate a 'method' with 'how to meditate' and might expect instruction, or stuff like, 'whatever works for you' or other things like how long to meditate for etc., but I think we've heard it before, so I'm talking about the whole methodology.

My first inspiration was having some organisation of life in general (see OP) and today I thought, 'what are the obstacles to maintaining a practice?'. It's hard to say because I don't speak for everyone, but what immediately springs to mind is, not enough time. Suddenly, time is no longer an illusion, because there does need to be a time for practice.

I liken a practice to other things, like joining a gym or quitting an addiction. We look at the cycles that people go through when they make a life change like this.

1) Pre-contemplation: a time when it may enter the mind, like, 'meditation would be nice' but it isn't actually contemplated in real terms.

2) Contemplation: One starts to think how it will benefit and help and make life better in real terms of 'mental clarity' 'improved focus' 'more energy' 'better relationships' etc etc. It is taken to be a serious possibility.

3) Plan: A decision to practice meditation is taken and the details of 'where, when and how' are determined.

4) Action: actually carrying out the plan and practicing meditation.

There is one last step, and this step is why it is not linear, but a bit of a cycle.

5) Relapse: This is where practice drops off and becomes erratic, or you don't meditate anymore, but still want to, but just don't get around to it.

This really gets to the point that it's not so easy to say 'I will practice meditation' and it's done. There are obstacles like 'I'm so busy already', 'my family will think I've lost the plot', 'I don't have privacy', 'it's to noisy' and what have you. And a person might be at any of the five stages of the cycle for any number of reasons.

I'm basically at the relapse stage with the 'I'm so busy' reason - but if I really be honest - I am not too busy - I have plenty of time which I waste on this dumb forum for example, so there a deeper reason I haven't seen - and hence I'm re-entering the contemplation phase.

[Gem]

So, I'm assuming that the practicalities I speak of aren't compelling, but I see people say things such as I will start meditation, or I will do yoga, join the gym, walk or jog - but in this case meditate - and starting to do these is pretty easy, but they constitute a change in life, and are not easy to maintain in the long term.

What is the difference between a person who continues meditating as a part of their life style, and the person who practices for a little while and then drops off? What obstacles prevent it from being integrated into the life routine and what supports are needed to maintain it?

When I meditated with the Buddhists the teacher told me that you need to be really determined and make sure you practice every day for an entire year - after a year it will become become a natural part of your daily life. I did practice religiously for a year and more, but I still have relapse periods and periods where I practice quite a lot.

I usually find that pressures of life interfere with practice, like if there's exams coming up, the pressure to cram knowledge puts meditation as a lower priority, and I just don't do it.

This begs what I feel is an important self reflection - How important is meditation practice to me?

I think making the meditation one of the highest priorities is one key to maintaining practice over the long term.

One other thing that occurred to me is, if you drop off, don't be disheartened at all. It just a matter returning to the contemplation stage and inquiring perhaps, what made me stop? And then re-plan if any changes need be made, and start again.

[GreenGazer]

Cool thread Gem. Thanks for posting it. Nice practical approach. Discipline in this subject is so hard. Helpful little series.

[Gem]

Cheers Green - I understand people don't like it because it's just about daily life things, but there is no meditation apart from daily life.

If the daily life is somewhat disorganised then that will be a distraction. Just look around and see how much clutter is in your room. Do things have a place or are they out of place - The clutter in the space is not all that different to the clutter in the mind, and the ability to put thoughts in their place is an essential life skill. Clearing the mind is not in essence any different than putting thoughts away. Metaphorically, it's like having all your papers organised in a file somewhere rather than them blowing about the room. When you need a particular paper you can simple take it from the file, rather than having to dig through the piles. Those piles contain a lot of unnecessary junk, clutter, and in the process of filing you throw away the rubbish. As was so eloquently stated in the film The Peaceful Warrior, "take out the trash".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXAxBnQuHwI