Please Help! - I Don't Know Meditate...

[PetarKa]

I've watched all of Leo's vids on meditation and now after meditating for almost 2 years I feel like I have no clue about how to meditate properly. Currently I use the following approach (more or less): I ask myself the following question: What is happening right now? / What is my direct experience? / What is this thing called the present moment?  But I don't know whether it's working or not. For all I know, I'm doing it right... Sometimes I get drowsy / bored and my eyes close and head falls down. Then I immediately shake myself up and remind myself to focus more and try as much as possible to be aware (whatever that means). So how does one meditate?

• Is it possible to apply the principle of practice (from the book Mastery by G. Leonard) to meditation? Do you practice meditation and as the weeks go by you get better and better at it or do you simply know how to meditate or not know ho to meditate? Is it skill that can be developed or do you simple understand one day how to do it?
• Do you progress linearly with meditation or is it like the Mastery curve i.e. plateaus and short up-bursts?
• Is it OK if I think at all during meditation?
• Isn't mindfulness meditation using thoughts in order to be more present (using notes, directing our attention)?
• Aren't guided meditations using thoughts (when the guide is speaking and using language i.e. thoughts)?
• What's the benefit / point of meditation?
• How does it work really?

A lot of questions I asked...

[Evilwave Heddy]

You're making the easiest thing in the world the hardest thing.

 

[Martin123]

@PetarKa What would you like for your meditation to bring into your life?

[Danielle]

You get better and then you get worse, and then you get better again, it's bunch of ups and downs, you do not progress linearly! Thinking is obviously fine, you can not stop your thoughts, just let them flow, don't get attached. 

Sort of yes, but the point of it is to see the thing as it is, not your thoughts about it.

Guided meditations are helpful for a specific thing- forgivness, love etc, there is nothing wrong with it.

Point of meditation is to be and accept what is. 

Just sit there and be! There is nothing else to do. Don't complicate it, like @Evilwave Heddy said, it's the easiest thing in the world

[Falk]

4 hours ago, PetarKa said:

I've watched all of Leo's vids on meditation and now after meditating for almost 2 years I feel like I have no clue about how to meditate properly. Currently I use the following approach (more or less): I ask myself the following question: What is happening right now? / What is my direct experience? / What is this thing called the present moment?  But I don't know whether it's working or not. For all I know, I'm doing it right... Sometimes I get drowsy / bored and my eyes close and head falls down. Then I immediately shake myself up and remind myself to focus more and try as much as possible to be aware (whatever that means). So how does one meditate?

• Is it possible to apply the principle of practice (from the book Mastery by G. Leonard) to meditation? Do you practice meditation and as the weeks go by you get better and better at it or do you simply know how to meditate or not know ho to meditate? Is it skill that can be developed or do you simple understand one day how to do it?
• Do you progress linearly with meditation or is it like the Mastery curve i.e. plateaus and short up-bursts?
• Is it OK if I think at all during meditation?
• Isn't mindfulness meditation using thoughts in order to be more present (using notes, directing our attention)?
• Aren't guided meditations using thoughts (when the guide is speaking and using language i.e. thoughts)?
• What's the benefit / point of meditation?
• How does it work really?

A lot of questions I asked...

2 years is nice, so congrats on the consinstency.  But what you describe (asking a lot of logical questions) sounds more like self-inquiry. Which is also or can also be important (althou i think inquiry is more benefitial for people who usually don´t overthink - it balances them out ..for people who overthink a lot , self inquiry can lead really on the wrong tracks where the inquirer feels he will get somewhere by just logical constructs alone and might possibly indulge in endless fruitless inquiry and getting stuck in his head. doing more body focused work like body scanns or SDS is better for "overhtinkers" at least that is my experience - having that tendency to getting stuck in my head ...what helps me most is connection with my body in any way (meditation is only one form , i also recommend doing sports or dancing or yoga) 

-principle of mastery is applicable to everything but don´t force it too much imo

-the curve-model from mastery is -after all- just a theory , a map to help you in the actual "field" , don´t stick to hard to it - that beeing said i would say it totally depends from person to person and from time to time ... some month you get little increases then suddenly a big epiphany and then 2 weeks where you feel like shit and can´t concentrate or even feel pain ... everyone has to get to know oneself ...that is part of the practice and an important and very valuable part i think!  

-no it is NOT ok!!  what if it is not ok? then you are a naughty brat and need to be punished  srsyl ... everyone thinks while meditating the purpose of the practice is to understand the internal mechanisms of yourself and how you can relax and drop the thoughts, and understand the nature of your thoughts better... eventually surrender and bliss out  

-yes as long as you "say" sentences in your head you are using thoughts (words are a common form of thoughts  ) mindfullness meditation is therefor often considered as a concentration practice more than a meditation

-guided medis are using thoughts yes and there is nothing wrong with that to calm you down, loose your mind and bring you to your senses ... for example you can use guided medi as an introduction for 15 or 20 minutes if you like and then when it stopped go on and meditate for yourself without "sound-input" 

-the point of meditation is to understand who you are , how your mind works and dissolve the notion you get in everyday life (where this notion is usefull of course ) that you are an object in the world seperated from the subjects you are interacting with. It will open you up and make your more creative and possibly in a sense more intelligent and reflected ... your quality of life will improove because the chances you make horrible life-decisions that only serve other people and not your own purpose and happyness will get more and more unlikely since you transcended a lot of the wrong paradigms that society gave you and instead you trust your own senses.

-how does it work? by monitoring yourself your consciousness can create new links and connections concerning the very fabric of your awareness ... it is like learning, learning how to it really feels like to be you.

Actually it is quite simple, but it can shure take time and sometimes one gets confused ...but thats ok ... that is life  

peace

 

 

[PetarKa]

@Martin123 Uptil now I've meditated mainly because Leo stressed it so much in his videos. But now I feel that I was doing it bcs someone else said and from that my results will be stifled and not as fruitful. That's why I believe I need to have stronger reasons. In short, I don't know why...

[Martin123]

@PetarKa well what would excite you in your life? And then move in that direction

[Delinkaaaa]

@PetarKa Hi PetarKa,

I think that you are stressing it so much. Just sit and watch what si going on.

Try not to focus so much! That was my bigges mistake. I mean - you need to be relaxed and cool, even though you are trying to train your mind a ninja movement.

The stuff is coming by the time. Try to think for your self, and not to get bogged in all thouse books and informations.

Love, Delinkaaaa

[ajasatya]

@PetarKa here you go.

[Shin]

 

Quote

Aren't guided meditations using thoughts (when the guide is speaking and using language i.e. thoughts)?

I don't know what you mean by that, but guided meditation should be used from time to time, not as a daily meditation practice, you should be able to face your boredom/solitude all by yourself.

 

How does it work really?

Meditation isn't complicated at all, there is no need for complex techniques.
Meditation is just about to feel your sense of "I am", of "spaciousness".
Ask yourself the question "What will be my next thought", the gap between the question and the next thought is what being present means (you don't need to use this as a technique, it's just an exemple).

That does not mean you can't be present while you think or speak, or do any other activity, that's the point of practising meditation/mindfulness,  to being able to be present while doing anything at any time (if needed).

It means just being able to be present, and not to be overwhelmed by your thoughts.
That doesn't mean you shouldn't have thoughts, you'll always have thoughts.

When you become more aware/conscious/present/still (See question below), it doesn't really matters if you have (overwhelming) thoughts or not, because you don't confuse yourself with them, they are just flying things inside your awareness.

To give you an analogy, at some point you will be able to see your thoughts just like you see a car passing by.
You can watch it and be totally drown by it (nothing else exist except the car), you could watch it passing by being totally present (you feel everything else, your body, other sounds, your own thoughts etc...), or you could choose to focus on something else entirely and not even realizing the car is there at all (except a distant sound).

 

 

What's the benefit / point of meditation?

Why is that important ?
Because it's the only way to properly do anything, way more efficiently than when you're inconscious.
That also doesn't mean inconsciousness is bad, it is part of life, and every guru/teacher are inconscious at some point in their days too, they aren't saints  

It is important because when you are able to be conscious whenever you want, you can watch your emotions/feelings and know why they are there.
Which also means you won't be drowned in them, you will be able to see them from an another perspective, they won't be as bad as when you were totally indentified to them, and finally you will be able to drop them as long as you face them.
The more aware of your thoughts patterns you are, the more they will drop (in the long run), but that means you'll have to face them, one way or another, don't bypass emotional turmoil, this is a big trap that won't help you in the end.

The other perk that comes with a better consciousness level is that you won't react inconsciously to social event.
For example, if your coworker is critizing you just because he wants to trigger you (because he's in pain and wants to feed his pain body), it won't affect you, you'll be like "well ok dude *poker face*" then you'll go back to your work without any judgments about him or yourself (which what is peace btw).

Judgments is what makes life horrible, when you don't judge anything or anyone anymore, this is when life really starts.
No need to be worry of what you think of you, which doesn't means you don't recognize you were lazy or acted stupidly, but since you understand that you did that inconsciously, and that inconscious behaviors can't be blamed (it doesn't make sense, you'll understand in time) there is no need to judge.
Same thing for other people, you won't even think of judging them, because they are how they are, and there is nothing you can do to change that, no one can change someone else unless they want it themselves (this becomes EXTREMELY obvious too ^^).
So don't judge yourself too hard, but don't slack off too, just be neutral and note what you can do better next time

 

There is tons of other things I could say about having a higher consciousness level, but here you go:

http://ginadianneharding.com/12-benefits-of-living-in-higher-consciousness/

https://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2006/07/14-reasons-to-become-more-conscious/

http://howtobehappy.guru/why-is-meditation-so-important-and-why-it-can-help-us-to-feel-happier/

https://personalexcellence.co/blog/reasons-to-meditate/

And watch this (again):

 

 

 

 

Edited May 10, 2017 by Shin