How To Make The Meditative State Last?

[ZenDog]

So ive been doing meditation everyday for 4 months now. First 2 months I did 20 min a day and the last 2 months ive been doing 60-120 min of strong determination sitting a day.

After every session I feel really good and present but it only lasts about 10 min and im back stuck in my head.

Is this normal? Does lasting effects increase with practise?

 

[Guest]

I have wondered this myself. Though, even though I go back in my head, I notice I am getting slightly closer to the meditative state over time. 

Edited March 28, 2016 by FocusOnTruth

[Guest]

@ZenDog I've found with my meditations that as I put more and more time in I won't notice much for a while and then I come to a core shift that is then either permanent or long-lasting.

An analogy would be putting water in the freezer, it gets colder and colder for a while but it stays a liquid then it reaches a critical temperature and all of a sudden it turns into ice.

I couldn't crack 2 hour sds for a long time, I had to break and then come back and repeat. Then one day I shifted from an attitude of determination to an attitude of surrender and I was able to last much longer all of a sudden. I was doing strong surrender sitting.

With meditation your base mindfulness will slowly increase over time but you wont get radical shifts in perspective until you reach a kind of mindfulness critical level -- this is all just theory and not really true but you will understand what I mean if you keep practicing intensely. 

[SkyPanther]

9 minutes ago, Galahad said:

@ZenDog I've found with my meditations that as I put more and more time in I won't notice much for a while and then I come to a core shift that is then either permanent or long-lasting.

An analogy would be putting water in the freezer, it gets colder and colder for a while but it stays a liquid then it reaches a critical temperature and all of a sudden it turns into ice.

I couldn't crack 2 hour sds for a long time, I had to break and then come back and repeat. Then one day I shifted from an attitude of determination to an attitude of surrender and I was able to last much longer all of a sudden. I was doing strong surrender sitting.

With meditation your base mindfulness will slowly increase over time but you wont get radical shifts in perspective until you reach a kind of mindfulness critical level -- this is all just theory and not really true but you will understand what I mean if you keep practicing intensely. 

This; also walking meditation helps a lot, you can get into the same mind state as sitting meditation when you do walking.

[ZenMonkey]

@ZenDog You identify with the one who goes in and out of presence! Something goes in and out, but who sees that?

Also "im back stuck in my head" is just a thought. By believing it you believe it into existence.

[Naviy]

@ZenDog

On 28.03.2016 at 5:37 AM, ZenDog said:

So ive been doing meditation everyday for 4 months now. First 2 months I did 20 min a day and the last 2 months ive been doing 60-120 min of strong determination sitting a day.

After every session I feel really good and present but it only lasts about 10 min and im back stuck in my head.

Is this normal? Does lasting effects increase with practise?

 

First, forget about "feeling good". You do not have to feel good before, during or after meditation. Feeling good, feeling bad and feeling anything are all objects. Do not pursue any particular objects, but accept them all, or, at least, be conscious of them.

How not to get stuck in your head? Learn more about Mindfulness. You can start by watching Leo's videos on this topic. Do "constant mindfulness practice" - become present each time you remember during the day. You will get lost and become present for hundreds of times during a day. But with time, things will start to change. Also, Eckhart Tolle, for example, suggests to become aware of your breathing as often as you can. This is Mindfulness practice too.

Edited March 30, 2016 by Naviy

[Toby]

Why bother with meditative states? If something comes and goes it should be treated like everything else: don't resist it, don't cling onto it. As Ramana said: "Let what comes come, let what goes go. Find out what remains".

[Azrael]

On 28.3.2016 at 4:37 AM, ZenDog said:

Is this normal? Does lasting effects increase with practise?

Yes, it's perfectly normal. And yes it will change the way you perceive the world with time. For example right now, after one year of daily meditation, I have times in which I'm so mindful I can hear my thoughts and have a very clear notion that I am not talking right now. This was very scary at first.

Also increased relaxation and concentration throughout the day. Better performance in general. However, this takes some time and seems to cycle. I can really recommend to write a journal at least once per week, so you can track your progress. I've also done that now for a year and just recently noticed that all the problems I had that motivated me to start meditation are long, long gone by now and it's become now more of my own intention to go and seek for what is out there.

I never started with this intention. I wanted to solve some very normal life issues and I did on the way. I often notice that one forgets these things after a while and is always worrying about the next great thing in mind. That's why a journal can be useful in my opinion.

Also, I'm currently experimenting with applying formal meditation methods throughout the day. I currently use the Zen "count from 1 to 10 on the out-breath"-technique and it seems to put me into a flow state if I do this for 5 minutes. I get completely out of my mind and just watch how my unconscious seems to handle everything I do.

I cooked the other day with that method and it was quite fun. Anyways, great question dude!

[Markus]

"Challenge sequences" http://shinzenyoung.blogspot.com.ee/2012/08/working-smart.html

[cetus]

@Arik Here is something I did a couple of weeks ago (talking about cooking). I had to peal about 8 pounds of potatoes. A boring task that I wasn't looking forward to doing. After I pealed the first 2 potatoes, I thought this would be a great time to incorporate a meditative state. The next thing I knew, I went from "I am pealing these potatoes" to "potatoes are being pealed". I became a silent observer witnessing the pealing of potatoes. Very cool!

[Azrael]

5 hours ago, cetus56 said:

I became a silent observer witnessing the pealing of potatoes. Very cool!

Nice, I did the same thing with cleaning today. Induced a meditative state and it felt like I got one with all my movements. I definitely was in a rhythmic kind of relaxed and concentrated state. Also, it happened in like no time. Was really great! 

[cetus]

@Arik    Just came back from sitting in the woods for about an hour. Just silent observing. The word "trees" lost all association. Trees basically became  expressions of energy emanating from the Earth. Than a bird started a very high pitch song. It sounded a lot like Morris code. Not sure what kind of bird that was? But the high pitch sound was right in my ears. Than from hearing the bird song in my ears, it went to experiencing the sound in my head. The sound was no longer in my ears or outside.  Than Everything was happening on a screen in the back of my head.  

[Psychonaut]

I think if you continue to meditate every day after a while it will stick. I usually feel the effects for at least half a day. 

[ZenDog]

On 30.3.2016 at 8:24 AM, Naviy said:

@ZenDog

First, forget about "feeling good". You do not have to feel good before, during or after meditation. Feeling good, feeling bad and feeling anything are all objects. Do not pursue any particular objects, but accept them all, or, at least, be conscious of them.

How not to get stuck in your head? Learn more about Mindfulness. You can start by watching Leo's videos on this topic. Do "constant mindfulness practice" - become present each time you remember during the day. You will get lost and become present for hundreds of times during a day. But with time, things will start to change. Also, Eckhart Tolle, for example, suggests to become aware of your breathing as often as you can. This is Mindfulness practice too.

I do mindfullness meditation for the most part when i to SDS.

Yeah I try remind myself everyday. Actually tought of writing on my hand or wrist "ATTENTION, HERE AND NOW." to remind me all the time. Actually considered getting some reminder tattoo on my wrist lol

[ZenDog]

@Arik Meditation progress is so hard to put into words, how do you journal it?

[cetus]

@ZenDog You could wear a bracelet of beads. Like mala beads, I think they are called. Worn on the left wrist. Just a suggestion. 

[cetus]

38 minutes ago, ZenDog said:

I do mindfullness meditation for the most part when i to SDS.

Yeah I try remind myself everyday. Actually tought of writing on my hand or wrist "ATTENTION, HERE AND NOW." to remind me all the time. Actually considered getting some reminder tattoo on my wrist lol

I always meditate with prayer beads hanging over my hands that are in the Om position on my lap. All my meditations are now instilled into the beads. One glance at them and I'm in that place of silence.

[Henri]

@ZenDog Easiest way; first do some pranayamas!

[Leo Gura]

Which is why enlightenment is totally different than a meditative state. Meditative states never last.

[ZenDog]

10 hours ago, Leo Gura said:

Which is why enlightenment is totally different than a meditative state. Meditative states never last.

But why then bother with meditation?