Learn to Meditate

Learning meditation can be frustrating. When I attempted to learn to meditate, I went through a number of false starts and blind alleys. There is a lot of cryptic jargon and vague advice. That is one of the reasons for this site, so that meditation for beginners can be successful.

Learning to ride a bike involves a number of steps. First you ride on a big wheel or tricycle close to the ground. Then you move on to your real bike with training wheels attached. One day you notice that the training wheels weren’t needed or got in the way. So you take those off, but still start riding your bike where your parents can see. Finally you graduate to riding your bike all over the neighborhood.

Learning to meditate can involve a similar progression. Part of the use of graduated steps is that it gives you confirmation that you are doing it right. When I first attempted to learn to meditate, I read a very popular zen meditation book at the time. It told me to think of nothing. I was also instructed to watch thoughts come and go. I tried to do this. It was a fiasco. I kept thinking about my thinking, and I was more unsettled than I was at the start of my meditation attempt.

Experience meditation today

These cds use a process called hemispheric synchronization. It’s a big phrase that means your left and right sides of your brain gets in concert with each other. The cds play music or relaxing white noise, and in the background you hear some calming hums or tones. Those hums or tones are heard by your brain, which then creates a third tone that naturally guides you to a meditative state. When I first used these cds, I knew I would be able to meditate for the rest of my life if I wanted to.

Another way to learn to meditate is to practice yoga. Yoga was originally conceived as a way to prepare your body to meditate by relieving all the tension and leading the body to a natural state of relaxation. I practiced power yoga at home on VHS tape back in 2000 as an alternative to joining a gym. At the end of the session was a 10 minute relaxation. When the relaxation was over, I would lay there and zone out. It was an incredible feeling, sometimes I would come to and notice 30 minutes had passed! I was practicing yoga for my body’s health, but I found with the soothing meditations my mental state felt even better than my body did after a yoga session.

A qualified meditation instructor can guide you into a meditative state. Read more on guided meditations.

I went to some hypnotherapy sessions after reading the popular Brian Weiss book on past life regressions using hypnotherapy. I found it to be very, very similar to being in a deep meditation. The hypnotherapist guides you through some visualization exercises with your eyes closed. You feel calm, very relaxed, and very focused. The hynotherapist asks you questions about what you are visualizing in your mind and records your responses. It feels like an interview with your normal brain chatter shut off. Hypnotherapy is another way to learn how to meditate.

Don't give up if your inital efforts to learn to meditate don't work out. Learning meditation does not have to be stressful or unproductive. Hemi-sync cds, yoga, guided meditations, and hypnotherapy can all help you achieve meditation. Experiment with multiple methods until you find something you are comfortable and successful with.

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