My Meditation
I have five forms of meditation that I currently use in my practice. Although if you ask a purist (or my girlfriend) they would likely not consider them meditation at. But they work for me, so, who cares.
A mantra. Sitting cross legged on the floor (with or without back support) I breath and repeat to myself: in through the nose, fill up your lungs, out through your mouth, feel it on the lips. In through the nose, fill up your lungs, out through your mouth, feel it on the lips. I repeat this mantra as many times as necessary or until a 10 minutes timer goes off.
Reading early in the morning. I’ve found that nothing centers my day like reading for an hour or finishing a chapter in the morning. Sitting down with a book is the first thing I do after getting the morning’s routines (bathroom, coffee, walk the dog) out of the way. I try to do this every morning.
Sauna. Sitting cross legged quiet in a sauna puts me into a trance like no other. I like to sit with my thoughts (not meditation I know) or repeat the mantra from above and do some clearing of my mind.
Sensory deprivation tank. This isn’t so much a method of meditation but an easy way I find to get into a deep state of calm. I might repeat the mantra above, or I might go through my thoughts trying to bring each one to closure.
Thinking in complete sentences. This is one I stole from a Tim Ferriss Show episode, although I can’t recall the episode. Tim was speaking about a friend who told him he meditates by thinking in full sentences. When I heard this it didn’t make much sense right away. But as I began to practice, I realized how often I cut off my own sentences in my mind, and jumped to the next one. This practice has been one of my favorites and has helped me communicate, read, write, think and focus better.
These are my practices and they wouldn’t all (if any) be considered conventional, or formal, meditation, but this is what works for me. Two weeks ago I started working with Sam Harris’ Waking Up App which teaches you how to meditate, plus provides additional mindfulness tools. For a week straight (the free trial period) I woke up with the Waking Up app (😃) and properly meditated for 10 minutes (probably my third or fourth attempt at formal meditation). In that week I learned a lot, and is actually how I developed the mantra above. But I wasn’t ready for the full course, and so I let the trial expire. But I learned something to take into my practices. Which is kind of the point.
The point is your practice (whether it be exercise, reading, writing) needs to work for you. The goal is to find what you like and will engage with, which will require trying different methods and other people’s practices. Then taking the pieces that work for you, and leaving what doesn’t. And incorporating those pieces into your practice, until they no longer serve you.
Don’t worry if it’s not conventional, or if it’s something that no one else does. Practices are highly individualized and change. Your goal is to work on you and that will only happen if you find your path.