Mindful meditation is a very easy way to raise your consciousness
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| Mindfulness meditation in the park |
Mindful meditation is relatively new field. It is in the mould of the new type of meditation that does not require serious concentration and effort. I actually like to think of mindful meditation as a process of heightened awareness. What do I mean by that?
Consider you are at a cocktail party and you are listening to a conversation. Suddenly your awareness is heightened as you hear your name in another conversation. Your attention shifts and is no firmly on the other conversation, while keeping some attention on the original conversation. At the same time you are becoming aware of the smells of lovely food being brought into the room. This is a clumsy way of describing an ever increasing level of awareness.
So what is mindful meditation then?
Mindful meditation is also known as insight because the intention is to gain insight as to the true nature of reality. While concentration involves the practitioner focusing their attention on a single object, in mindfulness meditation practice, every aspect of experience is welcomed and appreciated.
With mindful meditation, we take on the role of an impartial observer of everything that passes before our attention. Our intention is not to be focused, but rather to be mindful, that is, to be fully aware and awake of what is going on in the present moment. Often the breath is still used as an anchor to the present moment in mindfulness meditation, but apart from that, no attempt is made to direct the attention. Whatever thoughts, so called distractions, sounds, images, ideas, or feelings arise, nothing is excluded. Everything is welcomed. We simply pay attention to whatever is there. We do not judge or evaluate. Whatever happens, whatever occurs is okay – we just sit quietly and observe.
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| A good sensory environment to practice meditation |
The key here is to allow and not to judge. If you are familiar with The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle you will understand that is essentially means to focus your attention on the NOW. If you don't know his work, let me explain. The idea is to not allow your mind to wonder to the past (things you regret, are satified with, proud of, etc.) or the future (things you worry about, look forward to, anticipate, etc.). Just allow whatever is coming to you via your senses at this moment to come into your attention and awareness. Enjoy that which you are becoming aware of and if your mind wonders to the past or future, gently bring your attention back to the present moment.
Are there definative steps?
There doesn't have to be, but if you need some structure you might follow these guidelins for your mindful meditation:
- Create a Favorable Environment: Find a comfortable position where you know you will not be disturbed by phones, animals, people and other intrusive events. One can still meditate admits those elements, but it is easier without it specifically initially
- Be regular: Your mind (and increasely it is believed your consciousness) is made from neurological connections. Like practicing a golf swing, the neurological connections required to allow you to heighten your awareness needs practice. So do it frequently. It doesn't have to be long (10-15 min.) but try at least once a day.
- Posture: When we sit down the first thing we need to do is to really inhabit our body—really have a sense of our body. Often we sort of prop ourselves up and pretend we’re practicing, but we can’t even feel our body; we can’t even feel where it is. Instead, we need to be right here. So when you begin a meditation session, you can spend some initial time settling into your posture. You can feel that your spine is being pulled up from the top of your head so your posture is elongated, and then settle. The basic principle is to keep an upright, erect posture. You are in a solid situation: your shoulders are level, your hips are level, your spine is stacked up. You can visualize putting your bones in the right order and letting your flesh hang off that structure. We use this posture in order to remain relaxed and awake. The practice we’re doing is very precise: you should be very much awake even though you are calm. If you find yourself getting dull or hazy or falling asleep, you should check your posture.
- Gaze: If you choose to keep your eyes open, your gaze should be downward focusing a couple of inches in front of your nose. Your eyes are open but not staring; your gaze is soft. We are trying to reduce sensory input as much as we can.
- Breath: Breathing is at the heart of any meditation. It is the bridge between your conscious and sub-conscious. It is the only activity which you can do consciously and not consciously. So, as you start the practice, you will get a sense of your body and a sense of where you are, and then you begin to notice the breathing. Notice how you breathe in and breathe out. The whole feeling of the breath is very important. The breath should not be forced, obviously; you are breathing naturally. The breath is going in and out, in and out. With each breath you become relaxed.
- Thoughts: It is inevitable that you will have thoughts. Remember mindfulness meditation is about raising our awareness of our surroundings, both internal and external. So when you become aware of a thought, notice it without judging it or wishing it away. Remember what you resist will persist. In my mind I often notice a thought as if a leaf on a river, while I am stationary on the bank. As the though drifts away, so my attention on it does with it. Also, as you become aware of your senses, your mind might have tendency to interpret it and add thoughts to it. Notice the thoughts, but keep your attention on the senses, rather than the mind activity - the thought will float down the river.
Enjoy your mindful meditation. Here are some mindfulness exercises to assist you further.
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