Meditation?

[Cosmo]

Does anyone do this regularly? I'm interested in having a go at it, I think I need to clear my thoughts once in a while, not sure how to start though (For one thing because there's nowhere where I have privacy, my bedroom door has no lock).

[jenpiglet17]

every day!! It's wonderful! Beginning, I started with a Guided Meditation CD until I got the jist of it The body scan ones are nice also! I'm sure if you even youtube guided meditation, something will come up. But CD's are nice and a bit longer than the ones posted up there Starting one, I get really tense and it's hard to focus. But given time, it all goes away!

[thefirstlady]

I'm a Buddhist and meditate often (I do yoga too and it is awesome for stress relief as well!)! It's wonderful and stress relieving. I meditate to mantras but you can use cd's or youtube videos like suggested above that will help with relaxation!

[Nicole!]

We do this in yoga and it is nice and relaxing. It takes awhile before you can keep your mind clear though

[Kaisada]

Daily meditator here. I got introduced to the whole thing through a guided meditation CD, and now I usually do silent sitting meditation - which mostly consists of sitting cross-legged silently, eyes closed, and focusing on my breathing. Meditating with appropriate music is a great place to start as well. Experiment with different techniques. There are lots of videos and readings out there to reference.

Body scanning is a great practice for right before bed. Relaxes the mind, relaxes the body. I actually have an iApp that guides me through it, which I like to listen to while lying in bed - great for insomniac nights.

Is there a meditation group which meets up regularly anywhere near you? This really is the best place to start - other practitioners are crucial to helping us set up our practice initially, and then maintaining it into the long term.

One of the things that I think is good to keep in mind is - all of us have busy lives, and quite often we may find that we can only get five minutes out of our whole waking day to really sit in undisturbed silence and concentration. This is understandable and perfectly okay. If we can only get five minutes, then we should make good use of those five minutes. If we have more time, that would be better, but there shouldn't be any pressure to complete a certain amount of minutes of meditation every day - set a goal, but allow ourselves to fluctuate around that in our actual practice - or else it may be easy to get discouraged or lose interest. Be flexible. And be patient.

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by Kaisada

Daily meditator here. I got introduced to the whole thing through a guided meditation CD, and now I usually do silent sitting meditation - which mostly consists of sitting cross-legged silently, eyes closed, and focusing on my breathing. Meditating with appropriate music is a great place to start as well. Experiment with different techniques. There are lots of videos and readings out there to reference.

Body scanning is a great practice for right before bed. Relaxes the mind, relaxes the body. I actually have an iApp that guides me through it, which I like to listen to while lying in bed - great for insomniac nights.

Is there a meditation group which meets up regularly anywhere near you? This really is the best place to start - other practitioners are crucial to helping us set up our practice initially, and then maintaining it into the long term.

One of the things that I think is good to keep in mind is - all of us have busy lives, and quite often we may find that we can only get five minutes out of our whole waking day to really sit in undisturbed silence and concentration. This is understandable and perfectly okay. If we can only get five minutes, then we should make good use of those five minutes. If we have more time, that would be better, but there shouldn't be any pressure to complete a certain amount of minutes of meditation every day - set a goal, but allow ourselves to fluctuate around that in our actual practice - or else it may be easy to get discouraged or lose interest. Be flexible. And be patient.

Thanks for the awesome reply

There are no clubs near me, no. I think I'm going to buy a book and use an iApp, should do the job
Also, what are the immediate benefits of meditation?

[Paix et Amour]

i like it, i do it when everyone is asleep or gone :P

i usually dont use anything though, just sit and think about nothing xP

[Anthropomorphic]

I meditate around 2 a.m. most mornings. It's a phase between finishing my day and sincerely going to bed to try sleeping, in which I try to reorganize my thoughts, make any connections in ideas or facts I may have missed through the day, and sort through any problems that I think may be solved relatively simply. I find it to be incredibly useful and restful.

[evans_x]

I do it on the odd occasion, usually if I can't sleep or had a rough week (:

[Noah Zomby]

Originally Posted by MonsterCosmonaut

Also, what are the immediate benefits of meditation?

Well you feel an almost sense of calm wash over you. You just forget about life and focus on your breathing. It relaxes you immensely. It also helps you tackle tasks with a clearer mind and helps you focus more. It also helps with sleep if you go to bed right after you do it.

I've meditated several times in the past, but not recently. I've been wanting to do it again, it's a really good thing to do. I'm going to try, starting tomorrow, to meditate for a little while every morning when I get out of bed. Life has gotten a little stressful in the past few months, so I think it would be a very good way to start out my day (hehe, it rhymed. :3).

Going outside is a good place to meditate. Out there you can focus on your breath and/or focus on the sound and feel of the wind. If you get good at it, you can do it pretty much anywhere because you can block out all the sounds. I don't think you would even have to be all that good, just really concentrate on your breath. Inhale, exhale. In, out. Expanding, decompress. Give it a go, it's very beneficial.

[Kaisada]

Originally Posted by Noah Zomby

Going outside is a good place to meditate. Out there you can focus on your breath and/or focus on the sound and feel of the wind. If you get good at it, you can do it pretty much anywhere because you can block out all the sounds. I don't think you would even have to be all that good, just really concentrate on your breath. Inhale, exhale. In, out. Expanding, decompress. Give it a go, it's very beneficial.

Walking meditation is a great practice. It's a good excuse to go for a walk alone, too. Walk slowly anywhere, with the attention focused on the sensation of the feet making contact with the ground. Maybe we can cultivate gratitude for having healthy legs to walk with, and a healthy, stable earth to walk upon. We can also coordinate our breathing - one step, breathe in; one step, breathe out.