The fundamental steps of meditation will be given here, but these are only basic ideas on the subject. Meditation is a transformation of consciousness. We are tuning in to a higher wave length. It is attunement. Concentration is the focus of consciousness, on an idea. Contemplation is the interrelation of thought. Meditation is the passive process of the mind. In meditation we use concentration to will ourselves to be sensitive only to impressions other than those of the objective faculties. We suppress the objective senses and force a passive state.
We will follow a very simple method of relaxing and the basics of starting to meditate. This is to teach you the mechanics of meditation, before you commence the mystical types. At the end of these simple procedures, I will comment on what you should do to continue learning more about meditation, and how to apply it to Mysticism.
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You can do the warming exercises sitting or lying down:
1. Sit in an armchair in which your head, back and extremities are comfortably supported and you are as relaxed as possible, or
2. Lie down with your head supported, your legs about eight inches apart, your toes pointed slightly outward and your arms resting comfortably at your sides without touching them.
Repeat each of the following phrases four (4) times.
I am calm.
I am at peace with myself.
My right arm is warm.
My left arm is warm.
Both of my arms are warm.
My right leg is warm
My left leg is warm.
Both of my legs are warm.
My arms and legs are warm.
Take a few minutes for enjoyment.
Then say to yourself, "When I open my eyes, I will feel refreshed and alert." (say this four times). Then open your eyes, breathe a few deep breaths as you stretch and flex your arms.
Practice these exercises for a few days before you start the Meditation procedure below, or until you are definitely successful in feeling heat or a tingling sensation in the extremities. This relaxing procedure is given, only to illustrate the method used, but you can vary it to include more body parts such as the abdomen and the lower back, the chest and upper back, etc. Instead of warming the various areas, you can use tingling instead. After you have used this procedure several times, you can pick a word of your own that will trigger the relaxing response, possibly a spiritual word like: harmony, peace, etc. this will save a lot of time when you want to relax, possibly before you want to meditate.
This is perhaps the most relaxing form of meditation. Following the gentle ins and outs of the breath creates a sense of peace and restfulness.
1. Find your posture and center yourself. Take several deep breaths. Either close your eyes or fix them on a spot on the floor about four feet in front of you. Your eyes may or may not be focused.
2. Take deep but not forced belly breaths. As you do, focus your attention on each part of the breath: the inhale, the turn (point at which you stop inhaling and start exhaling), the exhale, the pause between the exhale and inhale), the turn (the point at which you start to inhale, and so on. Pay careful attention to the pause. What are the sensations in your body as you pause between breaths?
3. As you exhale, say "one". Continue counting each exhale by saying two...three...four."then begin again with "one". If you lose count, simply start over with "one".
4. When you discover that your mind has slipped into thought, note this, then gently return to the counting of your breath.
5. If a particular sensation in your body catches your attention, focus on the sensation until it recedes. Then return your attention to the inhale and exhale and the counting of your breath.
6. If you wish, try the following variation. Begin by counting your breath for several minutes. Then stop the actual counting and put your attention on the sensations of breathing. Focus on your abdomen as it expands and contracts. Can you sense how the size of the empty space in your abdomen grows and shrinks as your breath goes in and out of your belly? At first, you may have more thoughts when you practice this way than you had when you were counting breaths. The counting kept your mind returning in a small circle of numbers which left less room for rising thoughts. Do not be disturbed by this. Simply note each thought and then return your awareness to the sensations of your breath. Every now and then, you may come across a thought that you find enticing and want to contemplate. Tell yourself you will consider this thought when the meditation period is over and let it go. Sensations other than breathing may call your attention from time to time: a strain in your shoulder, or the pins and needles of your legs falling asleep. When this happens, let your attention focus on these new sensations until they fade into the background. Then go back to your breath. The sounds of the outside world will cross and re-cross the boundaries of your awareness. Note their passing and return to your breath.
7. Things To Keep in Mind:
a. It is not necessary to feel as though you are relaxing while you meditate in order for you to actually become relaxed. You may feel as though you are thinking thousands of thoughts and are very restless. However when you open your eyes at the end of the meditation, you will realize you feel much more relaxed than you did before meditating.
b. As your mind quiets with meditation, old or hidden pain can arise from your subconscious. If you find that when you meditate you suddenly feel angry, depressed, or frightened, try to gently allow yourself to experience the feeling while resisting the temptation to make sense out of your feelings. If you feel the need, talk to a friend, counselor, or meditation teacher.
c. You may hear or read about ideal conditions for meditation; that you should meditate only in a quiet place, or meditate only two hours after you've eaten. Or meditate only in a position that you can hold comfortably for twenty minutes, and so on. Yes, these are ideal conditions, but life is seldom ideal. If the place isn't absolutely quiet or the only time you have to meditate is right after lunch, don't let these small obstacles keep you from meditating. If you find yourself being particularly bothered by noises or the rumbling of a full stomach, simply incorporate the annoying sensation in with the object of your meditation.
d. If you adopt a daily sitting practice, you may find that there are stretches of time during which you will not want ot meditate. Do not expect that your desire to meditate will grow constantly with your practice. If you feel discouraged, be gentle with yourself and try to work creatively on ways to make your practice more comfortable. Know that these periods of discouragement will go away by themselves in time. For helping to maintain a schedule, the value of finding a group with which you can meditate at least once a week cannot be overstated. The above simple meditation should be done once daily for one week. Then you will be ready to proceed further as stated below.
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