MEDITATION

[johan]

I am curious how many people here on the forum use meditation and how you do it.With this I mean,do you use a special room or gemstones and so on?
And do you find an inner peace or other results with it?
Basically I want some advice.Looks I am much to restless to meditate,but really would like to find a way doing this.


So,please share your experiences everyone!.

[Draco]

Hi Johan,

It depends what you mean by meditation.

Most people see meditation as sitting cross legged and concentrating on the breath, thinking of nothing and going 'Ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmm'. lol.

Such practice though, is only one type of meditation, where it is about stillness and closing down the mind and body.

The kind of meditative pursuits I find the easiest are those in which my eyes are open and my mind is active. For example, I find drawing or painting an excellent form of meditation, most would not think of it as such, but it certainly is, because the mind is being directed solely upon one single pursuit, time flys by, and yet you don't even notice the passage of time, by time you have finished you are amazed at how much time has passed, which is how you know that you have slipped into a meditative state. Such pursuits slow down the brain waves just as much as sitting silently, with eyes closed and thinking of nothing, or more so for me.

When I was in my teens, I used to spend hours turning over Tarot cards, arranging them into different patterns, and simply contemplating them, going on all sorts of wonderful jourmeys within my minds eye. Again, time would fly by and I wouldn't even notice the passage of time, and this is how I know that my brain-waves had slowed and that it was a form of meditation.

I can do the same things with an astrological chart, I can just sit and simply loosely contemplate and go on a wonderful adventure.

So when it comes to meditation, I meditate with an active mind and open eyes, which I never used to realise was actually meditation until I read in a book just how many different types of meditation there are.

Basically I want some advice.Looks I am much to restless to meditate,but really would like to find a way doing this.

Anything artistic is a fantastic way of slipping into that meditative cocoon in your minds eye.

Music can also be meditative, instead of sitting in silence and thinking of nothing, as meditation is often put across as being, it is good just to sit back and listen to music and allow your self to get get carried along by the sounds and see where it takes you.

Draco :wink:

[Empath]

There are so many ways to meditate. Your only goal is to quiet the mind. That, in and of itself, is very beneficial. There are proven medical benefits. A little research on the net gan generate lots of useful information.

Many techniques involve breath, visualizations, mantras. Most meditations are close-eyed, but there are open-eyed techniques.

Using a visual tool, like Draco's Tarot cards, can be very helpful. If you do not have Tarot cards or are not interested in them, there are many other wonder images to meditate on. (I am sure Draco's Tarot meditations have helped him become the very insightful reader that he is)

For example, try googling images of mandalas, and find one that you immediately feel drawn to. Save the image file, open and enlarge it (or even save it as background PC wallpaper). Close all other programs. Sit with your spine straight but relaxed, feet flat on the floor. In your mind's eye, envision a glowing egg-shaped light that envelops you, and envision silvery roots emanating from your feet on through the center of the earth. In this position, focus on the center of the image -- gently gazing, not staring -- and breathe in throughnose and out through your mouth. Don't thinnk of anything -- let the image speak to you. Spend as much or as little time as you like. There is always benefits to meditation, even if it's only for a few minutes.

I find this to be a great way to meditate "on the fly". I use beautiful images from the Hubble telescope as my meditation PC wallpaper.

You can make your meditation practice a ritual and use incense, crystals, an altar -- it's really a practice that has no absolutes. Whatever works for you is ok.

[johan]

Empath and Draco,thanks for your replies.

I will look to find a way for myself to meditate.
But Draco,with open eyes for me will not work,I will be soon distracted.
But I think it is a good idea visualizing at first on an image and than closing my eyes :),think it will work for me

Do you meditate still nowadays and how often?

[Lapis]

johan,

You know when a little child is screaming and crying and demanding attention? What does the Mother or Father do? They give the screaming crying child a toy or food or something to comfort and/or distract it. Same with our minds when We want to 'meditate'! :wink:

This is why Empath suggested using a Mandala. Any mandala is the 'toy' or focal point We give our hyper minds to keep it busy while We go deeper or farther out through 'meditation'. Think of these mental images, these mandals etc. as mental alters! A small area for our minds to play with while We go do much larger things.

Like the others have already said, the main thing is to get past or around our demanding and always ON mind......to where all the other really interesting stuff is. Try a few different tricks or methods until you discover the one that works the best for you. The Energies are so potent now that it won't take nearly as much effort as it used to to get great results almost instantly. Just tell your chattering Monkey Mind to shut up for awhile because You're going to be doing the 'Driving' and it must be quiet and sit in the back seat!!! :) Don't worry about doing it (meditating) 'right'. Just keep trying to pacify the screaming, demanding little child (mind) with something so that You can access all that resides beyond it. This should be fun and not a lot of hard work. 8) Its easier and less complicated now than its ever been before.

[johan]

Thanks Lapis,

I red an excerpt of the book of Kriyananda(Walters),Meditation for beginners.
It was interesting,also with visualisation(the example here was walking out of a big,busy city where people doing their daily stuff,and than it became less busy until you reached nature and silence,well I think just like the soul being busy and than into peace).
So I will gonna try this for starters.

[mathur_dinesh]

I try to keep my mind on a divine form that appeals to me while I sit for meditation. I do not sit in any posture. I just take a comfortabel way to sit. I make no conscious effort. I let the mind and body take an easy and comfortable status. Meditation ought to reduce mental and physical activity and tension. If you consciously try to do it, it would only increase it!! So let the body and mind find rest for themselves.

[2rainbows]

The best meditation i've found to date is kundalini meditation, utilizing the idea of golden light flowing through your body.

[MichelleAnderson]

There are definitely a lot of different types of meditation. I think this is good though. Why? Because I have found over the years that one type may work for one person but it may not work for another person. I hope that you are able to find something that will work for you. Keep searching. I am sure you will find something.