Relaxing into Meditation - A Key for Beginners

So you would like to meditate. It sounds great doesn’t it – sitting quietly, letting go and straight into meditation. In fact, most people trying meditation for the first time – or even the hundredth time - feel anything but peaceful – the mind starts racing away – picture a monkey swinging from branch to branch – never still. And this is what your mind does when you ‘try to meditate’. And it’s not at all what you expected. The flood gates open and you are swamped with thoughts and conce s – the shopping list, that phone call you’ve just realised that you’ve got to make. And in no time at all you may be telling yourself that you’re no good at meditation. I’m just hopeless – I’m obviously not the right type. So I won’t try that again. It’s difficult because your expectations didn’t take into account that meditation requires patience and practice, and, if you start at another point, you can leave those expectations behind. Relaxation is the Essential Ingredient of Meditatio So how about learning some relaxation techniques first? It makes sense, because your expectations would be more realistic. Lying quietly back in a chair you can learn to let go of tension, gently relaxing the muscle groups throughout your body. To make it even easier, it’s helpful to acquire a CD/MP3 where someone else’s voice guides you through this relaxation period. (You can even download a free relaxation recording here.) You’ll find your mind so much more receptive to following the commands of the voice on the recording and gradually you’ll feel yourself settling into a calmer, more relaxed state. If there is a feeling of pride that you have achieved a degree of relaxation just dwell on it calmly – and you certainly feel much better than you did when you were trying to ‘meditate’. Meditating with a Relaxed Patience So, now that you are relaxed, let’s go back to the meditation. Try again, but this time from a point of feeling quite calm. Take up a posture that is comfortable – that famous full lotus position might not be for you, so you can sit on a chair with a straight back, feet side by side on the floor, arms loose and hands resting naturally in your lap. You probably understand better now that patience is required – and you’re relaxed and comfortable – and you can now start by watching your breath. It’s a useful technique – watching the rising and falling of your chest or waist, noticing the air entering your body via the nose and then releasing the breath, watching the movement of your torso. Simply concentrating on the in and out of the breath. When you find your mind has wandered away to the shopping list (or whatever), start again without any feeling of annoyance – simply go back to the breath and stay with it. No expectations. And so it will continue. New Openings, Awareness, Perspectives & Sense of Purpose Just doing what you can – and there may even be moments of peace – periods when you’ll find you can consider a difficulty in life – something that you now see has the possibility of be resolved. So you’ll find that you can go back to meditation with a clearer view, a more realistic view of how it can help. By making sure you don’t overstretch yourself to begin with, it’ll feel a touch more enjoyable and less dutiful – just a peaceful bit of relaxation followed by some quiet moments of meditation. You can keep a gentle degree of alertness and patience, and slowly these qualities develop and become usable in other mundane activities you do. You may start to have a more balanced perspective on things. You may feel more in control and an inner strength to perhaps quit smoking or allow yourself the pleasure of refraining from over indulgence. Life starts to become lighter, less solid and confining, but all in time, and all with relaxing.