How to begin the
practice of Meditation
ANDREA DANDOLO
Some time ago, a person who heard that I am a certified teacher in
meditation, well-known in Croatia and the ex-Yugoslavia as a
"spiritual teacher", had asked me: "What? To teach meditation you
need a certification?"
This is a marvelous example of the superficiality of what people call
"spiritual" as intended by self-styled teachers. Pity those people who
fall into the hands of those characters. And this is all but a rare
situation.However, such a nonsensical situation gave me the idea
for this post.
So, this short text is devoted to all those who feel the need to begin
a meditative practice, but perhaps don't have the possibility to
attend a center where this practice is promoted.Therefore, this post
is only a way to be familiarized with some concepts, until the
possibility to be trained by a guide to be “initiated” into Meditation,
presents itself.
The place
Find a place where you can feel comfortable. It could be a space in
the house, maybe the bedroom. In any case, it should be a quiet
and private place. Once the place is chosen, put a soft blanket or a
thick rug on the floor. It would be best if the place of meditation
always remains the same.
The time
The ideal moments for the practice of meditation are the morning,
when we just wake up, or in the evening at the end of the day. The
ideal would be dawn and/or dusk. In any case, the practice must be
compatible with our lifestyle for the reason that it has to be
included in our daily routine. This allows us to keep a constant in
the practice, and this is fundamental.
Silence
Silence is important, and this is the reason why it's best to choose
the hours when all is quiet outside the place where we meditate.
Silence generates calmness and concentration. It's better to choose
silence rather than background music, even if refined such as the
"music for meditation". In any case, if in the beginning silence
produces tension (however this could seem absurd, it's not a rare
thing), we can resort to soft music.
Duration
How often should we meditate? It's important to begin gradually.
This allows us to avoid useless tensions. Even five minutes are
enough in the beginning. We can gradually extend the meditative
practice to 30-45 minutes. To practice meditation for 30-45 minutes
daily will bring nice results.
Clothing
It's nice to dress in comfortable clothing, in natural fibers such as
cotton or silk. It's advisable to remove jewelry, watches, belts and all
that can impede blood circulation. And, of course... it's important to
keep the cell phone out of the room (a thing that people often
forget).
The posture
It would be good to procure a meditation cushion such as
the zafu used in the zen meditation (zazen). It's important that the
cushion allows us to sit comfortably. The optimal posture
is siddhasana, which belongs to the yogic postures, but all depends
on the elasticity of the legs and the pelvis.If it's not possible to sit
cross- legged, it's better to use a chair. The spinal column must be
maintained straight. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to notice the
postural errors, and it's far too difficult to explain how to maintain a
correct posture of the spine through a post on Facebook (and even
through a book or a text). In the beginning, keeping the back
straight is difficult, but with constant practice, everything becomes
easier and more comfortable.
The eyes
How to keep the eyes depends much on the mood in which we
find ourselves. For example, if we are tired, it's better to maintain
the eyes opened, half-closed, and the gaze downwards on the
space in front of us (at 45°).Many people prefer to keep the eyes
closed. This allows us to maintain a state of greater stillness and
concentration.
The breath
It's important to pay attention on the feeling of the natural breath,
without altering it. Maintaining such observation creates an
"anchor" in the present moment and helps to not lose the attention
on the unstoppable flow of thoughts. It's crucial to maintain the
observation on the breath alive, intentional, returning on the breath
each time we notice to have interrupted the attention.
Thoughts
What about the thoughts? Observe the thoughts, without following
them and without wishing them to disappear. Indeed, this
neutrality is one of the skills of observation. Let's remain spectators
of the continuous flow of thoughts, without tensions, without trying
to stop them.
Motivation
Remember every time to ourselves why we sit and have made the
choice to add the meditative practice to our daily routines. Then,
let aside every expectation (easier said than done), focusing on the
posture and the breath. It's important to allow ourselves some time
for a pure experimentation.
Regularity
Practice every day, and better if at the same time. If this is difficult,
it's possible to anticipate the time for practice. In any case, it's
better to not skip the time of practice. If it happens, let's write on a
paper the reason it was not possible to meditate. Keep the paper
and, at the end of the month, make an evaluation, discovering how
many "I couldn't" or "I didn't want", and, re-evaluate once again, the
motivation which lies behind these "I couldn't" and "I didn't want".
Have a nice practice!
