Good morning fellow meditators,
Did any of you try a Forgiveness Meditation yesterday? It's well worth doing I promise you. I do find that people who've suffered serious wrongs find it impossible at first. And I understand. It seems too difficult a task to actually try and forgive the one who wronged you.
But remember that this practice is for you. If you can even part-way forgive someone, you can release yourself from dark thoughts of vengeance and feel calmer and happier yourself.
And I'd like to touch on hindrances to practice.
The first and most usual is procrastinating that there's 'not enough time'. It's infamous and I do it myself as often as I can get away with it! Don't we all?
If you want to practice but are using that excuse too, regularly, and preventing yourself from doing so, then make a commitment to get up 15 minutes earlier in the morning or go to bed, 15 minutes later at night. It is possible to commit to that relatively small amount of time.
Tiredness. I'm a victim of this as I get older. My mind quietens, and next thing I'm snoozing. To combat that, find the time of day when you are most alert. Just after you get up is good if you can fit it in then. Splash cold water on your face before you start. It's not as likely to happen to you if you are only meditating for 15 minutes, but an afflict longer sessions.
Anger, which I've already touched on through Forgiveness Meditation. If you try to sit when you've just had an argument, watch your thoughts and see what happens. There will probably only be one thought returning over and over to your mind. And you'll plot and plan over what you should have said, what you will say in future, and so on. It's interesting to do this once, just to experience it, but it's probably better to avoid sitting when you've had a disagreement.
Desire. Maybe we are in a new romantic relationship or are in love, and our minds constantly return to the object of our affection. Or we're going out later (in normal times), to buy that new dress or gadget. We want the gratification of this, and again our minds turn to it, again and again.
Worry, and that's especially relevant right now. Something's gone radically wrong in life, as with the current crisis, and our minds return to what-ifs, and what-happens-nexts. The truth is, that it doesn't make any difference to what WILL happen by worrying about it. We are projecting into the future when we worry, and actually that's not a real place. Only here in this minute is there reality. We can only look back at the past: we can't be there. And similarly, we can't be in the future. So when you are worrying, make a concerted effort to put that worry down on the other side of the river, as the monk did with the woman he carried across. The worry will return and return, but just put it down every time it appears, or file it in your 'worry drawer'.
Finally doubt. 'What is this actually doing for me'? Gains in calmness through meditation are minute and often imperceptible. I've never done longer than a 10 day retreat, and often they've been restless, boring; all of the above hindrances but when I've come back out into the world and mix with people going about their usual business, I find a calm and peaceful state of mind has taken root that sustains my practice for months to come.
So please do read all of the above carefully and when you sit, see if you can notice any aspects of any of it present in your practice.
I'm hoping that everyone is now able to do a solid meditation of at least 15 minutes a day by now, but if you haven't quite got there yet, keep trying.
Happy meditation everyone and have a great day. 🙏
The Calm Corner Update, Sunday 29th March 2020