No matter how you fill your day, the stress of a busy schedule or a lot going on in your life can weigh on you. We spend hours of the day making sure chores gets done, errands are run, and food is on the table, but one thing we often forget to do is take a minute for ourselves. Hopefully, these articles remind you to make some “me time” with a pedicure, sugar scrub, or quick workout, but if not, here I am, outwardly telling you! Start here. One of the easiest ways to destress and unwind before, during, or after a long day is through meditation.
The success of meditation is proved through its tradition. Meditation began in India around 5,000 to 3,500 BCE and now, we have apps on our smart phones that help us meditate. Food and water have evolved with us since the beginning of time, and so has meditation. It is essential. Meditation is a form of art that is difficult for us to reach. Meditation Farm uses this metaphor: “Meditation is simply a word that comes closest to describing the art of meditation, but it isn’t the same. If the ocean is the actual practice of meditation, then the word meditation is simply the shore. Everyone who has ever spoken about meditation has only spoken about the shore. The actual ocean still remains a mystery.” In short, if you can’t get the hang of it the first time, just try again next time (or read Eat, Pray, Love). This really is an art where you need practice, but there are no rules.
Meditation is difficult! We have hundreds of things going through are head at any given time and telling ourselves to sit still and think about nothing makes it even more difficult. To really meditate, it is important to not think of yourself as doing an activity and instead, as allowing something to happen to you. Let your mind leave your body. “We mistake the shore for the ocean and cling to it, blocking the very thing we are trying to see”.
There are a few ways to make meditation easier, whether you are a beginner or a seasoned meditator. First, it doesn’t matter where you meditate, but find yourself in that space each time. Only using one spot to meditate helps relax your mind and prevents extra distractions. This place will soon remind you of your meditation and will make it easier for you to try to find your ocean.
Download all the apps onto your phone, listen to all of the YouTube videos. It is going to take a while to find the voice and guide that soothes you the most. This guide will get you beyond the initial “control your breathing” part of the meditation and will help remove your mind from your body. Be open to this idea. Let yourself find the highest level of relaxation.
Work your way us to a 30- to 60-minute meditation, but don’t start there. Find a comfortable position sitting on the floor, in a chair, or lying in bed (but falling asleep isn’t our goal here). It is going to be impossible to reach our goal if you are doing a lot of readjusting. You don’t have to be in front of a candle or a memorial or in a religious setting sitting in lotus position. Do what makes you feel comfortable and what gets you to our overall goal of self-awareness. Meditate for 5-10 minutes and maybe a little longer next time. Eventually, you will not be anchored by time and the time period you were meditating for will not define your meditation success.
I started this article talking about giving yourself a bit of “me time” because that is exactly what meditation is. This is not a selfish act, but instead a self-centered one, in the most positive way. Meditation is 100% directed toward personal wellbeing, happiness, and transformation. You can find yourself through meditation. The goal is of meditation is self-realization and enlightenment. How your son is going to get through this new virtual learning is not what you should be focusing on. Be soothed by your breathing and focus on yourself. This is an hour out of your day, you can put other worries to the side for just one hour a day. You deserve at least that.
Meditating increases peace of mind, self-awareness, intelligence, clarity confidence and so much more. This is nothing more than a personal journey. I can’t write a “how-to” for meditating. That would defeat the whole point of meditating. You can’t find yourself if I am telling you what to do right?
