Friday, March 16, 2012

Three Ideas to Enhance Your Meditations

I am not a purest when it comes to meditation. I believe that sometimes you have to switch things up a bit to find these moments of silence and presence you seek.
  1. Try smiling during your morning or evening meditations. Feel your energy shift immediately.
  2. Play soft music in the background. For those of us who are slightly (or very) ADD, this can help “occupy” the part of our mind that likes to run wild. It calms the beast, and allows the rest of us to calm down too.
  3. Some people use mantras – words that they repeat, either out loud or in their head, to help focus their minds. I find it useful to simply breathe in the word “let” pausing on the word “it” and exhaling the word “go.” I apply the “let it go” statement to those random thoughts that pop into my head while I am trying to settle. After a couple of minutes, my breathing is slower, my mind less active and those precious moments of peace find me.
Try shifting your tactics and expectations if you find that you are getting frustrated with yourself during meditations. If this time is drudgery, not only will it not give you the desired outcome, but your will power will wear thin and you will abandon the practice. 

I find that if I have a high expectation that I should feel something extraordinary with each meditation, I set myself up for failure. So instead, I focus on a moment here and there, when I feel peaceful and present. With practice, I can string these moments together. Only occasionally, will I experience something profound, but each session is worth the effort and the possibility!

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