How to Meditate?

In Hinduism and Buddhism, meditation is a core tenet of spiritual practice. Meditation sharpens mental attention and comprehension, increasing self−awareness and a sense of inner peace. Though it's been around for a long time, researchers now fully understand the advantages of meditation.

You may learn to regulate your feelings, sharpen your focus, reduce stress, and grow closer to those you care about by making meditation a regular part of your life. You can learn to be calm and at ease no matter what's happening around you; doing so takes work. If you've tried meditation and found that it isn't helping you, but there are other methods, you could give them a go before giving it up altogether.

The Meaning of Meditation

To meditate, how does one begin? Mindfulness meditation teaches us to focus on the ins and outs of breathing and become aware of mental wandering. Training one's attention and mindfulness in this way requires a constant return to the breath

Focusing on the breath, we train ourselves to return to and stay in the "here" and "now", to anchor ourselves in the present moment on purpose, without judgment. Mindfulness is based on a seemingly straightforward concept − the cultivation of patience. Famous meditation instructor Sharon Salzberg shares that her initial meditation practice revealed how easily the mind becomes distracted. "I figured, 'Okay, how long until my thoughts start to wander?'" And to my utter astonishment, it only took one breath, and I was gone," Salzberg adds.

The Benefits of Practising Meditation

Although meditation isn't a panacea, it can help you get some much−needed perspective. Sometimes, that's all we need to start making wiser decisions in our daily lives. A little patience, some self−kindness, and a quiet sitting spot are the most valuable accessories for your meditation practice.

The positive effects of meditation are extensive and long−lasting. And there's no need for any special equipment or pricey memberships.

Learn to Meditate

Practising meditation can be a little challenging than most people realize. Here's what you need to do −

• Read the instructions

• Find a quiet place where you won't be interrupted, and set a timer

• Give it a try

Here we have highlighted five basic steps that you can apply to practise the art of meditation −

Find a Quite Place and Take a Seat

Get comfortable someplace quiet and peaceful. Limit your time commitment. If you're starting, pick a short period, perhaps five to ten minutes.

Pay Attention to Your Physical Self

Your feet can be flat on the floor, your knees can be bent, or you can sit casually cross−legged. Make sure you're secure and at a place where you can remain for some time.

Take a Deep Breath

Focus on the feeling of your breath coming in and leaving your body. Recognize the signs of mental wandering. No matter how hard you try to focus on your breathing, your mind will eventually stray. When you realize that your mind has wandered, bring it back to the rhythm of breathing in a few seconds, a minute, or five minutes.

Don't Let Your Thoughts Wander

When you find yourself caught in thinking, try not to criticize or dwell on the specifics of those ideas. Return.

End on a Kind Note

At the appropriate time, look up and away from the floor (if your eyes are closed, open them). Hear what's going on around you for a second. Take note of how your body is feeling at this very moment. Be aware of your internal experiences.

So, the process is simple. You try to concentrate and focus, your thoughts might stray, pull them back, and do it as sweetly as you can (as many times as you need to).

Ideal Amount of Time to Meditate

There is nothing more to meditation than what we've laid forth here. Yes, it's that easy. And that's hard. It's practical and well worth the cost. The most important thing is to make sitting a daily habit, even for five minutes. According to Sharon Salzberg, a meditation instructor, the instant you sit down to meditate is the most crucial part of your practice.

When you take care of yourself, you tell yourself that you can make a difference and are worth caring for. You're not simply a theoretical believer in values like compassion and mindfulness; you're acting on them.

Practicing Mindfulness Regularly

An astounding 95% of our actions are performed automatically. We can live in this chaotic world because brain networks underpin all our routines by distilling the millions of sensory inputs we get every second into digestible shortcuts. Our brain's default signals sometimes lead us to revert to habitual actions before we can recall our intended course of action.

Mindfulness is the antithesis of these automatic behaviors. It's not autopilot but executive control, allowing one to behave consciously and make deliberate choices. However, experience helps immensely in this regard. The more we use our conscious brain, the more robust it becomes. When we consciously try something new, we trigger neuroplasticity and put to work the many neurons in our grey matter that have not yet been trained for the "autopilot" brain.

Behavior Design

Even though our conscious mind always makes the best decisions, our subconscious mind often leads us to choose the easy way out. How, therefore, can we set off an internal alarm to remind us to be present at the very moment when it's most crucial that we do so?

The concept of "behavior design" is useful here. It's a method for putting your rational mind in charge. Firstly, we can slow down the autopilot brain by placing hurdles in its path; secondly, we can clear the way for the conscious brain to take charge by eliminating the impediments it would typically encounter.

Conclusion

While we've covered the fundamentals of breath meditation, many other mindfulness practices employ focal points other than the breath to anchor our attention, such as external objects like a sound in the room or something broader, like noticing whatever comes into your awareness during an aimless wandering practice. However, there is one thing that all these methods have in common− the realization that our brains control most of our actions.