Try meditating?

    Several of you have asked me to write something about how to meditate. As a disclaimer, I do not hold myself out as an expert on the topic, but I have dabbled with meditation for many years, as well as having a long-time interest in the philosophy of Buddhism which has a lot to say on the subject of meditation. So, I hope you find this a little bit interesting or useful.

     Most of us alternate between the waking part of the day and the sleeping part of the day with little thought that it is possible to insert another mental state into the mix called meditation. Meditation has a long history stretching back almost as far as the beginning of recorded time. People have used it to derive deeper insights about themselves and the world they live in, to find greater tranquility and equanimity in life, and to combat anxiety, PTSD or depression. Many good studies show that meditation does assist with countering PTSD, anxiety, depression and that it strengthens the immune system. Interestingly, and maybe of some comfort, there is no agreed upon definition of what meditation even is!

     Blaise Pascal wrote, “All men’s miseries derive from not being able to sit quietly in a room alone”. That might be a bit of an overstatement, but there is lot of truth to the concept that the mental tools used to meditate can help all of us deal with the challenges of daily life, of which there are plenty presently.

     A major aspect of meditation incorporates the concept of “letting go” which is foundational to Buddhism. Buddhism describes our “attachments” to things, ideas, feelings, memories as potentially harmful to our progress through life. I have found the concept pretty useful. For example, if something is bugging me, I try to figure out what I am attached to about the “thing” and then figure out how to let it go. The “letting go” concept is key for the meditator. First of all, the meditator has to “let go” of usual daytime consciousness. This is easier said than done. If you are totally new to meditation, I would suggest that you consider the following suggestions:

1.  Find a quiet time and place to meditate free of distractions from other people, pets or noise as much as possible. Sometimes a bedroom is good for this. Do it at a time that you are not fatigued.
2.  Meditate in a seated position. If you try meditating while lying down, the end result is usually sleep, which is not a bad thing, but it is not meditation. You can sit in a chair, or you can sit with your legs crossed on a rug with your back against the wall of your bed. If you have the energy for it, you can sit without leaning against anything -- I find this quite difficult. Sitting upon a folded blanket or pillow with your butt higher than your knees helps keep your spine straight. Iyengar says on this, “The art of sitting correctly and silently is essential to achieve physical and mental harmony while practicing meditation.” Iyengar comments on the position of the head as follows: “If the head is down, the sadhaka (meditator) is brooding on the past, the mind is dull. If it moves up, he is wandering in the future. When the head is held level, he is in the present, and this is a pure state of mind.” B.K.S. Iyengar was born and raised in India and became a master yoga and meditation practitioner. He has written several books from which I have borrowed quotations for this piece, unless otherwise attributed.
3.  Meditation is all a matter of trial and error. There is not a “right way” to meditate. You need to find what works for you. I sit against my bed, with earplugs in and a black blindfold on to block out as much sound and light as possible. Some people can meditate very well with eyes open.
4.  Breathing is a central facet of meditation. It sounds silly because we are always breathing. However, intentionally slowing down the breath tends to calm the body and the mind. If you are attentive to your own heart rate, you may have noticed that you can quicken your heart rate on inhalation and slow your heart rate on exhalation. This phenomenon has to do with the function of the sympathetic and parasympathetic autonomic nervous system. Meditation tends to engage the parasympathetic system which slows down the heart rate and relaxes the body. (This is the exact opposite of the sympathetic system which entrains the fight or flight reaction.) Another tip about breathing is to experiment with feeling your breath at your nose, in your throat or in your abdomen. One suggestion is to count to two on the inhalation and count to four on the exhalation. The art of breathing is described as Pranayama, and whole texts are devoted to just this aspect of meditation.
5.  “Letting go” of your thoughts is one of the hardest and most persistent challenges of meditating. The goal here is to find “the space between the thoughts”. As Iyengar says, “An untrained mind flies aimlessly in all directions.”

  One method for letting go of your thoughts is employing a mantra, or a saying that is repeated over and over. A mantra can be any word or phrase. This helps accomplish the task of emptying your mind of extraneous thoughts. I have used the technique of counting my breaths on exhalation from 1 to 100 and then starting over. If I lose count, I just start anywhere because it doesn’t matter! I find this very helpful in blowing the thoughts out of my mind. Iyengar said on this topic, “In meditation chanting of mantras is sometimes given to the beginner to steady his wandering mind and to keep him away from worldly desires. At first, the mantra has to be recited aloud, then it is said mentally; lastly comes silence.  

6. Meditate for a period of time that works for you. If you are just starting out, you might try 5 or 10 minutes. I set my phone timer for 20 minutes and see what happens. I usually spend the first 5-10 minutes or so thinking about all sorts of stuff as I work with the counting and breathing, but the last 10 to 15 minutes I usually end up somewhere else interesting. The intrusion of random thoughts is a very common annoying experience with meditation and we all struggle with it. It is hard to describe what the “it” of meditation is, but it is definitively not usual consciousness. Sometimes “it” can morph into sleep, but that is hard to do sitting up. The “it” is also not just the absence of thoughts as this next quote attempts to illuminate, “One should be careful to differentiate between the emptiness and tranquility of the senses on one hand, and the illumination and serenity of the spirit on the other”. He goes on to say, “Keep the body alert, with razor-sharp awareness. Keep the brain passive, sensitive and silent, like the thin end of a leaf, which shakes even in a gentle breeze.”

7. And like all things worthwhile, meditation takes practice. If you like it, it becomes its own reward. I always feel mentally lighter and calmer after meditating.

Here are a few quotes that embody some of aspects of meditation:

      Dhyana (the deep meditative state) is the full integration of the contemplator, the act of contemplation and the object contemplated becoming one.”

     “Dhyana is the integration of the body, mind, intelligence, will, consciousness, ego and the self”

     “The body is the external layer of the mind, mind of the intelligence, intelligence of the will, will of consciousness, consciousness of the ‘I’ or ego and the ‘I’ of the pure self” 

     “The sadhaka’s (meditator’s) stilled mind and intelligence burn like a lamp in a windless place with simplicity, innocence and illumination” 

      “In meditation there is no seeking or searching, as the soul and goal have become one…”

      “In meditation we open the gap in the curtain of time. It is in savasana (still state at the end of meditation), by becoming nobody, literally nothing and nobody, that we become small enough to pass through the infinitesimally small crack in the curtain”

     “A practitioner who can put aside his every identity can access places where no plump ego could squeeze through”

     In summary, meditation is an ancient practice that still benefits people today. Meditation is good practice for life. Richard Shankman, an author of a useful little book about meditation said, “Meditation is not something mysterious and mystical – it is accessible and practical!”

 Here are some additional tips for meditation:

•  Accepting what “happens” or “doesn’t happen” during meditation is a metaphor for mindfulness in life.
• It is very difficult to meditate during anxiety or pain. Try it when you are feeling pretty well.
• Hitting a wall, feeling bored or disinterested with meditation? Common!
• Take striving out as much as possible. Buddhists often call this “grasping” which doesn’t work well with meditation.
• Accept that struggling with meditation is part of the process.
• Let go of the judgement and expectations of your own meditation – just see what happens.
• Welcome the doubt.
• “Don’t believe everything you think…”
• Compassion for yourself helps guide the way…

As always, your questions and comments are very welcome—

 Cheers!

  Resources:

1. Light on Life, B.K.S. Iyengar, 2005, Rodale Press
2. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Sogyal Rinpoche, 2002, Harper
3. The Art and Skill of Buddhist Meditation, Richard Shankman, 2015, Raincoast Books
4. Light on Pranayama: The Yogic Art of Breathing, B.K.S. Iyengar, 1981, George Allen
5. The Way of Zen, Alan Watts, 1957, Pantheon Books