Meditation techniques.
Following on from my last post where I talked about some basics you need to do, ideally, before starting a meditation, I'll chat to you now about different ways to meditate.
The very first time I meditated it was using a candle technique I had been shown. I lit a candle, making sure nothing was near to it (in case i fell asleep!) then I made myself comfortable sitting a few feet from it. I kept my eyes open to start with and gazed right at the candle flame, watching it flicker, taking in everything about the flame. After a few minutes I closed my eyes and after some seconds I could see the image of the candle flame in colors around where my third eye is (between the eyebrows). The colors kept changing and I just stayed focussed on this flame as long as it was there. Then I gently opened my eyes.
I recommend this if you have never meditated before, or if you find it difficult to quieten your mind, as it really helps to focus the mind and to keep it still.
I was taught a mantra meditation a few years later by a Yogi. He gave me a mantra (you can use Om for this) and the idea is to get comfortable and close your eyes and then simply repeat this sound over and over again, either out loud or to
yourself. Because you are focussing on one thing, and the sound itself can be quite hypnotic, it again should help you achieve a still mind and a 'meditative state'.
My favorite type of meditation, perhaps because I am a creative and very visual person is guided visualisations. I started by listening to cd's (well, tapes back then!) and then did my own. I found that by using a visualisation such as the ones on this blog, I would get into a deeply relaxed state effortlessly. (This is ideal for then achieving the kind of meditation where your mind is completely still). This would then lead to a feeling of weightlessness in which I was no longer aware of my body. This in turn would lead to my mind becoming blank as if I was in a state of bliss. Time disappears and you feel like you are floating in nothingness...
Another meditation technique is that used in Tibetan meditation where you half close your eyes and simply focus on your breath, in and out slowly through the nose. Fix your gaze on a spot on in front of you and don't let your eyes wander if possible. Feel the breath as it travels in through your nostrils and into your lungs, and then out again. I think I would have found this hard if I hadn't done the other meditation techniques I have mentioned, first. That's because it's all too easy for thoughts to keep coming in!
However having done the other methods for many, many years, I found I went into a VERY deep meditative state with this meditation technique.
I will show you through my videos how to do some of the techniques I have mentioned here, and will add them to this blog over the coming weeks and months, so keep in touch!
How To Meditate - Part 1
I thought it might be useful if I shared some of the basics about how I meditate, right from the beginning.
There are various meditation techniques which I will also talk about on my blog, but let's start with some practical tips that will be relevant for all techniques.
1. Take the phone off the hook/turn off your mobile and if you live in a shared household, tell people you don't want to be disturbed! The last thing you want is a subconscious worry that the phone might ring or someone might barge into your room!
2. Make yourself comfortable. Now, most people might say that you should be sitting in order to meditate, however I have always found that lying down is good too for me. The important thing is that your spine is straight, not hunched over. Try to be warm, maybe put a throw around you if the room is cool. Your temperature can fall when you are still for a while, so bear that in mind. You don't want to come round after the meditation and feel cold. If you need cushions to be comfy, go right ahead! Sometimes I lie on a sleeping bag (or 2!) and put cushions under my head and a blanket over me. If I'm sitting up I put a cushion in my lower back and sometimes under my feet. It feels comforting!
3. Let your hands rest gently in your lap. Let your body relax. Then close your eyes.
4. Take a few deep breaths. I recommend you 'ground' yourself now, before you start a meditation. One way to do this is to imagine that there are roots going down from your feet (like tree roots) into the ground. Let them extend right down, and then it can be lovely to imagine they enter a beautiful crystal that is buried deep in the earth. Picture the crystal's energy coming up the roots into your feet and your body. If you don't ground yourself you could become too 'floaty' and light headed and open yourself to undesirable energies.
5. You are now ready to begin any type of meditation!
6. When you come out of any meditation, breathe yourself back 'into your body' and feel your feet strongly on the ground. Gently wriggle your fingers and toes. Stretch. Breathe deeply some more and picture yourself back in your room. It can be good to imagine a bubble of light all around you too. Then, when you are ready, gently open your eyes.
I will talk about some different ways to meditate in my next posts!
There are various meditation techniques which I will also talk about on my blog, but let's start with some practical tips that will be relevant for all techniques.
1. Take the phone off the hook/turn off your mobile and if you live in a shared household, tell people you don't want to be disturbed! The last thing you want is a subconscious worry that the phone might ring or someone might barge into your room!
2. Make yourself comfortable. Now, most people might say that you should be sitting in order to meditate, however I have always found that lying down is good too for me. The important thing is that your spine is straight, not hunched over. Try to be warm, maybe put a throw around you if the room is cool. Your temperature can fall when you are still for a while, so bear that in mind. You don't want to come round after the meditation and feel cold. If you need cushions to be comfy, go right ahead! Sometimes I lie on a sleeping bag (or 2!) and put cushions under my head and a blanket over me. If I'm sitting up I put a cushion in my lower back and sometimes under my feet. It feels comforting!
3. Let your hands rest gently in your lap. Let your body relax. Then close your eyes.
4. Take a few deep breaths. I recommend you 'ground' yourself now, before you start a meditation. One way to do this is to imagine that there are roots going down from your feet (like tree roots) into the ground. Let them extend right down, and then it can be lovely to imagine they enter a beautiful crystal that is buried deep in the earth. Picture the crystal's energy coming up the roots into your feet and your body. If you don't ground yourself you could become too 'floaty' and light headed and open yourself to undesirable energies.
5. You are now ready to begin any type of meditation!
6. When you come out of any meditation, breathe yourself back 'into your body' and feel your feet strongly on the ground. Gently wriggle your fingers and toes. Stretch. Breathe deeply some more and picture yourself back in your room. It can be good to imagine a bubble of light all around you too. Then, when you are ready, gently open your eyes.
I will talk about some different ways to meditate in my next posts!
Why Do Meditation?
What are the benefits of meditation? I'll answer this from a personal point of view, rather than a 'scientific' view. In my experience, meditating helps me to become calm, centered in the now & deeply relaxed. I can feel any stress and tension slipping away while I am in a meditative state. I feel free, blissful and happy. Nothing bothers me. I feel weightless. Time disappears.
Afterwards, everything seems to flow better in my life. You know how some days you might say to yourself 'I'm having one of those days!' Nothing goes right, problem after problem seems to get in your way. Well, on days when I start with a meditation (even for just 5 minutes) my day is the opposite of that. Synchronicity comes in, I seem to attract positive events and the day goes more smoothly than when I haven't meditated.
I think it's because I'm changing my own energy when I meditate so I am attracting things on a different vibration - a more gentle, positive vibration.
I think that if your day starts with kids screaming, the alarm clock going off, noisy neighbours, and then rush, rush, rush, it's hard to get your energy and your day going 'on track'. Do you know what I mean?
If you can suggest to yourself before you fall asleep at night that you want to wake up (15 minutes earlier than normal) at, say, 7am, you can do a 15 minute meditation and watch a calmer day unfold before you...
I hope that the information and videos on this blog may help you to have days that 'go with the flow' while you enjoy deep inner peace for much of the time.
Afterwards, everything seems to flow better in my life. You know how some days you might say to yourself 'I'm having one of those days!' Nothing goes right, problem after problem seems to get in your way. Well, on days when I start with a meditation (even for just 5 minutes) my day is the opposite of that. Synchronicity comes in, I seem to attract positive events and the day goes more smoothly than when I haven't meditated.
I think it's because I'm changing my own energy when I meditate so I am attracting things on a different vibration - a more gentle, positive vibration.
I think that if your day starts with kids screaming, the alarm clock going off, noisy neighbours, and then rush, rush, rush, it's hard to get your energy and your day going 'on track'. Do you know what I mean?
If you can suggest to yourself before you fall asleep at night that you want to wake up (15 minutes earlier than normal) at, say, 7am, you can do a 15 minute meditation and watch a calmer day unfold before you...
I hope that the information and videos on this blog may help you to have days that 'go with the flow' while you enjoy deep inner peace for much of the time.
Welcome To The Guided Meditations
Hello! I'm Jo and this guided meditations site is just for you. I hope to guide you to deep states of relaxation, peace, calm and bliss through my guided meditations, and my picks of my favorite meditations.
I have been meditating daily for nearly 30 years and will be sharing with you my experiences and thoughts about the different ways to meditate.
I have been meditating daily for nearly 30 years and will be sharing with you my experiences and thoughts about the different ways to meditate.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)