“I’m bad at meditating” is a misunderstanding of meditation. The only bad meditation is the one you don’t do. Or…
“I can’t meditate” is a way of saying “I have a hard time being with the silence of my own being.” Of course you do.
There’s a lot of stimulation out there so the culture is almost colluding with distracting us from the wisdom of silence and our own bodies.
We assume we have to feel some version of inner peace each time we meditate.
In my experience, it’s often the opposite. It’s when I notice how fast and constant my mind moves. That’s the entire point. To notice. To become more aware.
We need it now more than ever. We need people who have the maturity of self awareness and the capacity to not instinctively react to external situations.
Meditation and contemplation can do that for us. It has changed my life and one of the ways I get myself in my chair is knowing it impacts the quality of my work.
I can tell when I skip days. (So can the people around me. Word has it, I’m more controlling and reactive).
If you’re an #Enneagram heart type (2/3/4), it can be especially challenging for you, as all the juice is outside of you and coming inside can evoke some anxiety.
3s 7s and 8s (The Initiator types) often tell me they go nuts sitting silent when they first begin so I encourage them to start with a slow walk with no goal except to notice what’s around them.
6s often find it a blessed relief. 9s sometimes fall asleep.
If you need some help, check out my Enneagram based meditations on Amazon. I created them for clients who asked for recordings. (Many of my clients also like the Headspace, IInsight Timer or Centering Prayer app)
Regardless of you are, start here: wake up and Pause. Look out the window. Breathe. Take in what you see without judging it. Do this for a few moments.
If the externals distract you, close your eyes. Feel the sensations of your breath. Imagine your breath is breathing you. Begin with doing this for 2 minutes.
Notice what you feel like afterwards.
Then, take time to set an intention for the day. Repeat it throughout the day and it will bring you back to the silence of your morning.
I like to close my practice with a metta for friends, family, clients, our world and our planet.
Finally, I read aloud as whatever I’m reading lands differently when I read it out loud.
Welcome the wonder of this day,
The field of brightness it creates
Offering time for each thing
To arise and illuminate.
I place on the altar of dawn:
The quiet loyalty of breath,
The tent of thought where I shelter,
Wave of desire I am shore to
And all beauty drawn to the eye.
May my mind come alive today
To the invisible geography
That invites me to new frontiers,
To break the dead shell of yesterdays,
To risk being disturbed and changed.
May I have the courage today
To live the life that I would love,
To postpone my dream no longer
But do at last what I came here for
And waste my heart on fear no more.