meditation: looking for myself
Figure 1: Can you see a shapeless person in the picture? is it me? Made by Sveta Osborne
the word meditation has become more and more common in the content that i see online. everyone wants a quieter mind so they can make better decisions, improve focus, or continue some spiritual journey to find oneself.
i started this note to question whether i should try to meditate or not because i feel the need to better handle my attention span. the amount of distractions during the day is too difficult to handle alone without any good training or preparation to protect me.
meditation is not something you do meditation is something entirely, a moviment into the whole question into our living how we live, how we behave, whether we have fears, anxieties, sorrows, or if we are pursuing pleasure, whether we have built images of ourselves and others.
this is part of our life and in the understanding of that life and of those various issues involved in live and in being free from those.
Krishnamurti
my first encounter with meditation practice was through the book Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind from Shunryu Suzuki. this book came in a very good time in my life, i had quit my golden handcuff job, i was burned out from work, and i had lost perspective on what i enjoy doing other than working.
before making the decision to start meditating, i had to clear some distinction between meditation and buddhism. although, i enjoyed the zen buddhism when i first read it, i am never comfortable following any religious group. therefore, i made a shallow search on buddhism and ofc i didn’t like that much about what i saw there.
then, i was able to clearly place the meditative practice as something that is solely done to better control my attention and be more connected with current reality. if in the process of doing so, i end up more spiritual aligned as well, i can call it a double win, right?
why should i medidate and what is the significance of meditation?
there are many reasons that people find to start the practice of meditation such as enlightenment which could be more related to a spiritual reason, peace of mind, and better understanding of oneself.
i try to always question things, it is good to have doubt, to be skeptical up to a certain point.
i researched some initial material to find out what is the meaning for meditation, some definitions, and the context about this practice.
these quotes summarized some interesting points of view:
when you say medidation you need to understand that this is not something you can DO because you CAN become meditative, you CAN become meditation, but never do it… it is a certain QUALITY.
medidation is something that blossom within you!
if you cultivate your body if you cultivate your mind if you cultivate your emotion if you cultivate your energy to a certain level of preparedness, then meditation will blossom within you.
Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev
the real purpose of meditation is to have fundamental insights into the nature of your mind - insights that change your whole approach to life
Sam Harris
don’t medidate because it’s good for you
this is a small audio from Sam Haris on waking up about this. there are deeper reasons to have an examined life other than “doing it just because is good for your health”
free your attention from all the trivial things around us
apps about meditation
i experimented a guided session with a random youtube video online and i found it to be a lot easier for beginners. after that experience, i looked for apps that offered this service.
- headspace
- didn’t like it ..
- but it triggered a deeper search on which app should i try
- waking up app
- i have been using this app a lot! its from Sam Harris and has a more philosophical approach than the others i found.
- each session takes from 8 to 15 minutes
- there are lessons, practices, and interviews
- for now, i recommend this app if you want to sit quietly
types of meditation
there are many different kind of meditations, for example: