Meditation is inherently simple but not easy. The more you do it, the more you will become aware of things that seems to hinder you. It is not that doing it creates more obstacles, but that doing makes you more aware of things in general, including the obstacles and resistance you bring to your meditation practice.
The classic meditation obstacles, affectionately called ‘hindrances’ in meditation terminology are:
- Dullness (sleepiness)
- Restlesness (from boredom, pain or an agitated mind)
- Negativity (simply the natural balance for over optimism)
- Desire (wanting to reject the moment we are in and jump to a better moment)
- Doubt (thinking no progress is happening or possible)
- Aversion (wanting to be doing something else)
These hindrances (meditation obstacles) will definitely arise, so accept them as inevitable and wait them to disperse. Later, you will find specific meditation practices to help you accept or let go these meditation obstacles, should they persist. It is worth remembering, however, that hindrances are not signs of spiritual failure, but opportunities to acquaint us with our mental landscape. They are not enemies but doors into greater levels of insight.
Going back to the above meditation obstacles, desire warrants some further explanation. First, desire forces your mind into fantasy mode, because the moment you see or perceive something you want, you will fantasize about what you could do with it, or how it will enhance your pleasure or add to your self-esteem. For example, you might desire extra money. Why? Because you imagine all the things you could buy with it. As a result, your mind is forced into fantasy about the future, even though you do not yet have that money to fulfill the fantasy.
The other problem with desire is that one fulfilled desire can spawn a hundred more, because desire is inherently insatiable.
To make progress it is not necessary to be renunciate, as required of a monk. But it is question of degree. The message is: The simpler your needs, tha easier it is to overcome meditation obstacles and the easier it is to keep your mind in the present.
So, what if you are living a busy life in the material world? Does it mean there is no point in even trying? On the contrary, meditation might be difficult at first, but it will gradually disentangle your thought patterns, help you identify the trivial and offer a clear perspective on life. Finally you can overcome your meditation obstacles, even in a very busy life.
Meditation Obstacles
Mind Focusing in Meditation
What then, should we be focusing our mind on? Any object or subject will do, but the simpler the better, especially in the early stages. As you progress through your meditation skills, you will find many examples of suitable subjects and objects for your mind focusing.
Those people who do not practice meditation can be forgiven for believing they might be better employed doing something useful and creative instead. However, once you begin to practice meditation (reading about it is useful but not enough), you will find that your ability to focus your mind is progressively developed. So, rather than suppresing creativity and the imagination for your mind focusing, meditation will enhance them.
People might also be forgiven at this stage for wondering what the difference is between the mind focusing of meditation and the mind focusing required for less noble activities. To make the point with an extreme and slightly facetious comparison, let us compare meditation with the act of creeping around a house with a view to burglary. It is true that something like burglary requires total alertness and mind focusing, but there are differences. The concentration of burglary is a state of high tension, easily diverted by any sudden threat of discovery. It is adrenaline based and therefore accompanied by increased heartbeat and nervous tension. It is not motivated by compassion or high ethics, and after the act, burglars are probably totally exhausted. Emotions will be elated if sufficient booty was gathered, or depressed if it was insufficient. Either way, equanimity of mind will elude the burglar.
Meditation will bring physiological and emotional results exactly opposite to the mind focusing of burglary. The mind focusing of meditation will move us towards patience, clarity, compassion and wisdom, and away from resistance, distractness, indifference and overreaction.
BTW, If you're tired of yo-yoing and diets that don't work, Jay with his experience helping 90% of 98.000 clients to reach their goals will show you how to be successful with the foods you see every day. Get the best weight loss system here. Click to see how.
Those people who do not practice meditation can be forgiven for believing they might be better employed doing something useful and creative instead. However, once you begin to practice meditation (reading about it is useful but not enough), you will find that your ability to focus your mind is progressively developed. So, rather than suppresing creativity and the imagination for your mind focusing, meditation will enhance them.
People might also be forgiven at this stage for wondering what the difference is between the mind focusing of meditation and the mind focusing required for less noble activities. To make the point with an extreme and slightly facetious comparison, let us compare meditation with the act of creeping around a house with a view to burglary. It is true that something like burglary requires total alertness and mind focusing, but there are differences. The concentration of burglary is a state of high tension, easily diverted by any sudden threat of discovery. It is adrenaline based and therefore accompanied by increased heartbeat and nervous tension. It is not motivated by compassion or high ethics, and after the act, burglars are probably totally exhausted. Emotions will be elated if sufficient booty was gathered, or depressed if it was insufficient. Either way, equanimity of mind will elude the burglar.
Meditation will bring physiological and emotional results exactly opposite to the mind focusing of burglary. The mind focusing of meditation will move us towards patience, clarity, compassion and wisdom, and away from resistance, distractness, indifference and overreaction.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
