You may this helpful

Meditation | StoneWater Zen Centre

ppl may disagree with me here, but posture is quite important, Not so much your legs, it doesn't matter if you do it sitting on a chair, in lotus(full or half) or Burmese, the most important thing is you align your spine/back properly with you pelvis, helps if your knees are lower than your arse, I found this out the hard way, withOut good posture it hard to sit for a long time.

When you are sitting, I tend to count breaths (breath in, 1, breath out, 2 etc etc) up to 10 and restart again or when ever a thought pops into your head restart and keep focusing on counting your breaths.

Don't resist the thoughts just let them wash over you, don't hold on to them or try and push them away. A good way to think about it is that you brain is like any other organ in you body like for example you salvia glands under your tongue but instead of pumping out salvia it pumps out thoughts. The key is not to get attached to the thoughts.

When you first start it might be a struggle to get past one or two breaths before skull cinema kicks in, when it does it not a problem just let the thoughts flows out of you and restart.

There is an element of discipline, as it is, quite uncomfortable to just sit and do nothing, because we are conditioned to need constant stimulation but keep at it and enjoy the process/act of sitting and notice the inner calm that results

Basically what I said, scientifically proven.

The guy talks about studies carried out on groups of people. Some who meditated, some who didn't, & then had to carry out tasks or take part in things (i think. It's been 6 months since I watched it) & the results show that the meditation groups performed better or had more positive results, even in a short space of time.

As I might have mentioned my therapist has encouraged me to use mindfulllness (Just focusing on breathing, or even say your foot and listen deeply noting sounds around you). He encourages it to be done with open eyes and to simply take note of all the things in your environment. I think ther whole point he's getting me to do this is to stop me getting stuck in my head and to be more aware of externalities.

I've nevrr really done this as "dedicated" medication - more done it in short bursts for a few minutes at a time but might try initially doing it for 10 minutes.

Does anybody do this simply sitting in a chair or even lying down? (Kinda hard doing it lying down with your eyes open focusing on your surrundings if your staring at the ceiling lol).

Meditation is good, I mean its better than sitting around doing nothing HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Hahahaha Thanks you've been great, good night guys.

I lie on the floor and stare at the ceiling.

Trying to become more consistent with meditating, I think I will do 30 days straight and report back on the experience afterwards

I started a meditation course last week. We spent 20 or so minutes 'experiencing' a raisin, that is touching it, smelling it, hearing it & tasting it.

Our homework is to do do a body scan for 20 minutes each day. I sit in a chair and listen to a recorded track where the instructor talks you through feeling sensations in different parts of your body. It's very difficult but I'm going to stick with it. My brain is always on the go and I want to be in control of it more.

ive just found a free session tonight at manchester buddhist centre at 5:45 - 6:45 if anyone wants to join me?

I was at the beach the other day & I disappeared up into the high sand dunes & found a nice spot to sit & look out over the sea.

I sat there, eyes open as always, & meditated for about 10 minutes before I got disturbed by my niece & her daddy.

It was a fucking perfect place for meditation & when we hit the beach again before we go home, I'll be doing a couple of hours there in one session.

Does anyone listen to any meditation music?

If so is it good? Bad? Ugly? Etc

Has anyone ever used a video like this for meditation..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHr-...e_gdata_player

Or does anyone use music such as this..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwJs...e_gdata_player

If so, were/are they better than trying to sit thinking about nothing?

Obviously I've tried these both once, & I think they might be good, but I'm talking long term here, are they good long term.

there is no right or wrong way dude, whatever you find is clever will do.

I personally feel music is too emotive and causes me to bring up any associated memories or if the song/music has a clear narrative to it can carry my mind away with it.

for me meditation(zazen) is about being in the present in the moment, focusing on the now without intellectualising/hanging on any one element, but simpling opening my awareness to everything. So, I avoid things which can distract me from the universe around me, like music and that.

don't think of meditation "as trying not to think" that isn't a helpful way to understand it

from my previous post in this thread
so in this vain a pro-tip in my opinion is not to meditate for anything other than just to meditate. just do it for itself as itself.

dont try to empty your thoughts just allow them to come and go, with enough practice the period of inner silence will grow longer and longer, so long as you don't try, its very cliched Zen but its cliche for a reason.

EDIT

Also this is only my personal preference lird, back to my first statement and find whatever is clever for you man, and stick to it

I was meditating earlier to a sound I've got saved from YouTube that's 15 minutes long. It froze halfway through so I scrolled down & found this little gem...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrsO...e_gdata_player

Obviously I didn't know it was a gem at the time, but I hit play & sat back.

Now, I was already 6 minutes into meditation so I didn't have any settling in to do, but fuck me sideways this sound literally took me on a fucking trip!

It was easily the best meditation session I've had since starting in January. I'll point out that I've meditated about 5 times in 3 months, so I'd lost all momentum or whatever it is called in meditation terms.

This took me into a very deep, dreamlike state. Eyes closed. I was in such a trance that my mind was actually stuttering as opposed to thinking, such a fucking amazing feeling.

And in a less than 10 minute sound? I was sucked in within a minute or 2 as well.

The music had stopped long before I even noticed, & then when I did notice I snapped out of it, not that I wanted to!

Going to search for the same sound but much, much longer. It was awesome.

Went to this Sahaja Yoga Meditation class yesterday that's literally across the road from me.

The class was good. It would probably be worth the 2 hours a week, but I'm not sure I can go back even though I really want to do the course.

The reason is that at a couple of points during the class, we were guided to - with eyes closed - to perform either "ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" or "ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" or "hummmmmmmmmmm" 3 times, all together.

Before we even started I was giggling at the thought of sitting in a room of 10 people collectively going "hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm"

Then we started.

On the first one I thought it was really funny, & felt like bursting out laughing, but I thought of other things like having sex & dancing to take my mind off the fact that I was sitting in a room of 10 people who were going "ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" "ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"

As the session carried on though, it got harder each time. It got so difficult to hold back my laughter. Do you know that situation where you're really not supposed to laugh, but because you're not supposed to laugh, the urge to laugh becomes stronger? It was something like that. Multiplied by 10.

At the toughest point I had to grind my jaw & lips solid closed, with the consolation of my shaking head & scrunched up face being that everyone's eyes was closed so nobody could see that I was about to explode laughing.

I almost did explode laughing a couple of times but I covered it up by deep breathing. Then all I could think was how funny the situation was; me sat trying my hardest to focus on something other than laughing, which obviously inadvertertently makes you think of nothing but the thing you're trying not to do.


If I go back it's going to be so difficult not to explode in hysterics because I'll be anticipating those moments. It wouldn't be the end of the world, but it would be fucking hilarious.

I've heard part of the benefit is it trains you to focus and calm your mind.

New things tend to feel a bit odd until you get in the swing and buy into it.

It would be worth persevering for a bit. I'm defo going to try a class at my gym soon.

30 minutes mp3 of a gently babbling brook combined with a fainter background of pink noise to soothe mental chatter

http://www.mediafire.com/listen/msj2...Pink+Noise.mp3

Went to the yoga meditation class again yesterday. It was much better this time, with a nice lady doing the class alongside a decent Asian guy, but the woman done the most of it.

She has a really relaxing delicate voice & it really helped put you in a meditative state.

I am going to practice this Sahaja yoga meditation from now on. I am scrapping everything else.

Already I can tell that this stuff will give you self-realisation & clarity. I'm not saying I've been gifted with it after only doing the meditation 3 times, but I can feel that it's going to be worth it.

I'll be doing it every day, twice when I can.

Started doing this again in the past few weeks. Will certainly make it a permanent thing this time.

I sit on my bed in a comfortable legs crossed meditation position. I started with 10 minutes & upped it by 1 each week so now I'm on 13. I have to put ear plugs in cos I'm in the city centre with content traffic outside.

It'll be done at least 5 times a week. Monday to Friday, cos I'm usually too busy on Saturdays then hungover or pissed on Sundays.

I actually started this a few weeks ago and I am really surprised at how calm and relaxed I feel after.
Just took it up as its recommended for Type A's but all of the RSD guys say it helps game, like holding eye contact etc.
Thoughts?

It certainly does help individuals in varying ways not just with females.

I've felt the differences before after longish periods of practising it but for me I think the reason I always stopped it was that eventually you become so super chilled & comfortable in yourself that you slowly begin to do it less because you think you don't need to do it anymore.

I can only imagine how fucking Zen I'd be now if I'd permanently continued with it throughout the past 3 or 4 years.

Sometimes it's hard to stay present at all times while doing it & you can find yourself drifting off in a thought cycle, which you then notice & can refocus.

I love it when, after getting used to meditation again anyway, you can consciously capture that point where you're in the ZONE.. & completely free of thought. You might only be here for a few minutes or even a minute, but it's the area your looking for.

It makes for an awesome meditative state & if you can hold it to the end you come out of it feeling amazing. Like it was really worthwhile.

I've been doing it intermittently, was going great when a friend and I were accountable to each other and doing it together, doing it alone its hard to find the motivation daily, but I don't know anyone else that meditates.