Thinking is Not Meditation
Meditation is the art of being still, and centering oneself to communicate with the sacred witness.
Many people confuse thinking with the act of meditation.
Yes, one gets quiet, and one does hear the thoughts of the mind, but that is not meditation.
The mind would really like to control you, and not you control it.
Meditation is letting go of ego, and relating to the ones soul and body with connection to the mind.
Sounds kind of confusing don't it? Well, we shall dig deep and try to give you an understanding of the differences of the two.
While it is true that the practice of meditation is focuses on the mind, body and soul, it is also true that these are connections that will help heal us, and make us whole.
Many people use meditation to reduce stress; that means they are not creating more stress by thinking about the stress, and how to solve problems.
They are simply attempting to relax their mind, and body.
Meditation when done in this quiet order will allow you to become healthier, and happier.
So, how does one rid their thoughts while mediating? Thoughts do not go away; they are with us at all times.
The Problem to be answered is how can I control the mind and not think? There lies the real problem and the center of conducting meditation.
Our thoughts control our life.
In other words what we think, how we think influences our every move throughout our lives.
In order to meditate learning to "let go" of our thoughts is important, and allowing silence will be our goal.
With that knowledge and hopefully understanding, we are now going to examine some ways of meditating.
Find a quiet spot can be in your bedroom, in your living room, on the porch, outside, at a park, but somewhere quiet.
I personally would suggest either the living room or bedroom, because you want to help your mind or thoughts become quieter.
You may sit, or lie down.
You may have soft music on, or even a candle.
These are tricks that help your thoughts become focused.
Sometimes you might want to purchase a guided meditation on CD to help you quiet your mind.
The very simplest form of meditation is as follows: breathe in, and then breathe out.
As you are breathing follow your breath all the way through the pipes of the lung and bronchi.
As you exhale follow the breath in reverse order.
All you are doing is focusing on your breath.
Then as you are focusing your mind will begin to wander.
Very calmly very easily say to yourself the word "thinking" and then go back to watching your breath.
Do not feel guilt, or get onto yourself for thinking just say the word, and then focus on your breath.
Another simple way to begin a meditation is to breathe in the hurt, pain, anger, sadness, or depression from yourself, from your friends, neighbors, enemies, the city, state, country, or world.
Breathe in that and focus on one aspect of the above for mentioned.
On the exhale breath you exhale love, peace and joy.
This type of meditation is called Tonglan, and was taught to me through the readings of Pema Chodron.
The healthy meditation is about bringing in an image of light down through your body.
As you are breathing you are mentally (yes, you are using your mind) visualizing a light entering the top of your head, and taking that light all down through your body to your toes.
This is the kind of meditation that allows you to focus on your overall health.
This is also an example of how to use your thoughts to your advantage of obtaining wealth, and not allowing your thoughts to wander away and bring about more stress.
With meditation comes the responsibility to know what your intention is in performing this relaxing act.
If your life feels like complete chaos and stress, then the most important aspect is to relax.
To relax during meditation is to take time out of your busy life, and meditate for at least 20 minutes.
When you become comfortable then you can do more, but right now 20 is enough.
If you are like many of the busy people you can do this is in segments.
After all if you need training in non-thinking I would suggest this method: Take the 20 minutes and chunk up the time.
Do 10 minutes in the morning just before you get up, and 10 minutes in the evening just before sleeping.
Yes, this will work.
If you fall off asleep you are human, and it's ok, you have completed rested and relaxed.
What do you do for lunch? Have you ever thought about taking 10 minutes of your lunchtime, and meditating? Following your breath is perfect for this.
There are many types of meditation to learn about, but these mentioned are easy, and understandable.
Your thoughts will become less important, and your mind body and soul will thank you.
Stress reduction is the real goal.
When your stress becomes less, then your body, mind and soul will begin to be healthier.
You will also have more energy, and you'll sleep better at night.
Meditation is definitely non-thinking.
Meditation is not solving problems.
The solving of problems will be a by-product of the meditation.
Many people confuse thinking with the act of meditation.
Yes, one gets quiet, and one does hear the thoughts of the mind, but that is not meditation.
The mind would really like to control you, and not you control it.
Meditation is letting go of ego, and relating to the ones soul and body with connection to the mind.
Sounds kind of confusing don't it? Well, we shall dig deep and try to give you an understanding of the differences of the two.
While it is true that the practice of meditation is focuses on the mind, body and soul, it is also true that these are connections that will help heal us, and make us whole.
Many people use meditation to reduce stress; that means they are not creating more stress by thinking about the stress, and how to solve problems.
They are simply attempting to relax their mind, and body.
Meditation when done in this quiet order will allow you to become healthier, and happier.
So, how does one rid their thoughts while mediating? Thoughts do not go away; they are with us at all times.
The Problem to be answered is how can I control the mind and not think? There lies the real problem and the center of conducting meditation.
Our thoughts control our life.
In other words what we think, how we think influences our every move throughout our lives.
In order to meditate learning to "let go" of our thoughts is important, and allowing silence will be our goal.
With that knowledge and hopefully understanding, we are now going to examine some ways of meditating.
Find a quiet spot can be in your bedroom, in your living room, on the porch, outside, at a park, but somewhere quiet.
I personally would suggest either the living room or bedroom, because you want to help your mind or thoughts become quieter.
You may sit, or lie down.
You may have soft music on, or even a candle.
These are tricks that help your thoughts become focused.
Sometimes you might want to purchase a guided meditation on CD to help you quiet your mind.
The very simplest form of meditation is as follows: breathe in, and then breathe out.
As you are breathing follow your breath all the way through the pipes of the lung and bronchi.
As you exhale follow the breath in reverse order.
All you are doing is focusing on your breath.
Then as you are focusing your mind will begin to wander.
Very calmly very easily say to yourself the word "thinking" and then go back to watching your breath.
Do not feel guilt, or get onto yourself for thinking just say the word, and then focus on your breath.
Another simple way to begin a meditation is to breathe in the hurt, pain, anger, sadness, or depression from yourself, from your friends, neighbors, enemies, the city, state, country, or world.
Breathe in that and focus on one aspect of the above for mentioned.
On the exhale breath you exhale love, peace and joy.
This type of meditation is called Tonglan, and was taught to me through the readings of Pema Chodron.
The healthy meditation is about bringing in an image of light down through your body.
As you are breathing you are mentally (yes, you are using your mind) visualizing a light entering the top of your head, and taking that light all down through your body to your toes.
This is the kind of meditation that allows you to focus on your overall health.
This is also an example of how to use your thoughts to your advantage of obtaining wealth, and not allowing your thoughts to wander away and bring about more stress.
With meditation comes the responsibility to know what your intention is in performing this relaxing act.
If your life feels like complete chaos and stress, then the most important aspect is to relax.
To relax during meditation is to take time out of your busy life, and meditate for at least 20 minutes.
When you become comfortable then you can do more, but right now 20 is enough.
If you are like many of the busy people you can do this is in segments.
After all if you need training in non-thinking I would suggest this method: Take the 20 minutes and chunk up the time.
Do 10 minutes in the morning just before you get up, and 10 minutes in the evening just before sleeping.
Yes, this will work.
If you fall off asleep you are human, and it's ok, you have completed rested and relaxed.
What do you do for lunch? Have you ever thought about taking 10 minutes of your lunchtime, and meditating? Following your breath is perfect for this.
There are many types of meditation to learn about, but these mentioned are easy, and understandable.
Your thoughts will become less important, and your mind body and soul will thank you.
Stress reduction is the real goal.
When your stress becomes less, then your body, mind and soul will begin to be healthier.
You will also have more energy, and you'll sleep better at night.
Meditation is definitely non-thinking.
Meditation is not solving problems.
The solving of problems will be a by-product of the meditation.
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