No Meditation Progress

[MM1988]

Ive been meditating daily for over a year now. I started off with a 20 minute timer, now I dont use a timer anymore and it varies between 10 and 30 minutes, on the weekends I usually do multiple session in a day. The probem is I cant even for sure say ive ever observed a thought. Sure I catch myself thinking and go back to the breath. Sometimes I can feel my brain "thinking" in the background while im focused on the breath, but thats as far as it got in terms of unusual mind state. It really feels no different than when Im focusing on work, a movie or a videogame, just very ordinary. I never had any insights either. I feel like if I would just sit there philosophizing I would make more progress in terms of insights but I know that thats not what meditation is about at all. I may be able to concentrate on my breath better or longer than at the beginning but honestly I cant even say that for sure. 

Lately I thought I made some progress when I felt something all over my body and started seeing weird things in my vision after focusing a long time. But upon further investigating this state the second time it happend I concluded that this is just my body getting sleepy, altough it is weird to still be focused on the breath while entering a pre-dream state im fairly sure thats all it was. I enjoy it for what it is and will continue to meditate but I feel myself slowly sliding back into my "its all bullshit" opinion I had of it before I discovered Leos videos.

[Nahm]

@MM1988 meditation is of course not a one size fits all, but I found what works best for me in getting enough sleep, then waking up and exercising, then meditating. That way I’m alert and can dissapear vs getting sleepy. I would suggest being careful not to undervalue that ‘pre-dream state’. Might be more there, if you’re not sleepy. 

[Ether]

Maybe you made some progress? You just didnt notice? Analyze it

[AleksM]

@MM1988

Sounds like, you are scratching the surface, remaining on the beta brainwave level. So, I recommend you check my playlist on brainwaves and start meditating using headphones with alfa/theta/delta brainwave entrainment.

[phoenix666]

I made a huge leap after a mindfulness/silence retreat. supercharged my motivation and awareness. also psychedelics gave me a huge kick in the ass those are the glimmering highlights, the motivation and the fuel. the actual power lies in patient, daily consistency. 

[pluto]

Ego likes to hold on to things, keep reminding yourself to completely let go and in that moment you feel you have let go, let go further and further and just completely melt yourself and surrender into the arms of the universe The stiller you are physically the easier this becomes.

You can also try visit a float-tank and meditate there as its much easier to let go when you cannot feel your body and you are basically floating.

[pluto]

8 hours ago, AleksM said:

@MM1988

Sounds like, you are scratching the surface, remaining on the beta brainwave level. So, I recommend you check my playlist on brainwaves and start meditating using headphones with alfa/theta/delta brainwave entrainment.

I'd like to checkout that playlist myself can you link me?

[Will Bigger]

step 1: retreat: group, solo, vipassana, whatever

step 2: psychedelics

step 3: fix your diet

[Privet]

1) You might be unaware of the progress, because slow change is difficult to notice. Enlightenment is not just insights, it is also a skill that is developed gradually.

2) You may try to read The Mind Illuminated (author Culadasa). It's very very detailed instruction for concentration practice for different skill levels, "just concentrating on the breath" is very uncertain technique, read even just first couple chapters of the book and you'll understand why.

3) Enlightenment is an accident, but when you meditate you become accident prone. It is like fishing, you may sit all day next to the lake and catch nothing, but it doesn't mean there is no fish in the lake. The more beginner you are the less likely insight will happen, the more you meditate the more prone you become.

Edited December 28, 2017 by Privet

[TriteNTrue]

@MM1988 I had a similar experience - when i started mediating, I did it for 3 months straight and then I suddenly stopped for about a month because I felt I was 'doing it wrong'. 

I picked it up again, after I started studying non-duality. Now something that's helping me these days is just having the intention to reeeeeeally be curious about what's going on in my mind, like a fun expedition to gain some insights.  I haven't observed all thought without judgement yet (where it just floats by like a cloud I'm observing) but I'm more aware of how  thoughts are like webs, sticky, interconnected, messy and I can detach from them during mediation. 

Intention.

[AleksM]

@pluto

Scroll down to the point where you Will see an embedded video. Below it are the links to the 3 playlists I used to meditate with.

[Torkys]

@MM1988

You might want to try the Do Nothing technique. In this method, you let your mind do it's own thing and you just observe it. I got many-many insights from this technique. 

Don't let your thoughts grab your attention, but if they succeed, no matter for how long, it's OK. Step back and be mindful of your thoughts / observe your breath. You will be angry when you are not doing the technique, but with experience, you will learn that all of this is a waste of energy. And that's OK too. The important thing is that you have a good understanding of the technique you are using.