Putting the Monkey Mind to Bed

MorningView

Hi Everyone,

I'm am wondering how long it takes you, during a meditation session, to calm the "monkey mind" and enter an initial state of concentration (at least for a while before the monkey wakes up, goes back to sleep, wakes up, etc.)? I'm not a consistent meditator, nor am I very experienced, but I've found that it takes me about 15 minutes or so. Yes, I do understand the irony in noticing how long it takes to enter concentration in meditation and how long it took to get there; kinda counterproductive in a way.

Does the time shorten with experience? Are there ways, tips, or tricks, to calm the mind more quickly?

Thank you much!

ajnast4r

If you are truly able to achieve basic concentration in 15 minutes while not meditating on a regular basis you should seriously consider making a real commitment to meditation.


Ajahn Brahm has some really great commentary on monkey mind and how to stop it... quieting the inner commentary and past/future projections (monkey mind) are his preliminary steps to meditation.

http://www.dharmaweb.org/index.php/The_Basic_Method_of_Meditation_by_Ajahn_Brahmavamso


Also Yogic breathing techniques (pranayama) are also extremely effective. A simple one that works well is deep long breathing. inhale until your lungs are full quickly (but calmly, not a gasp), hold for a second, and exhale as slowly as you can. the ideal ratio is about 1:2.. the exhale should be about 2x longer than the inhale. you should not feel any pain in the lungs or 'air starvation' (strong sensation of needing to breath in the lungs & mind)... if you do, adjust accordingly. I'm not sure if that is considered 'Dhamma proper' but it is taught by many very high beings... re: Ajahn Chah, Bhante Gunaratana etc.

It's good to always start meditation with that technique and you can use it during meditation if the mind becomes restless. Because of how the breathing technique effects the central nervous system it can also be using in waking life to calm anxiety, nervousness, rapid heartbeat etc. I've used it many times before and during things like public speaking and its VERY effective.

person

There a 9 stages of calming the mind. Here's a link to a good explanation. It has a helpful traditional picture explaining the different stages.

http://gnosticteachings.org/the-teachings-of-gnosis/resources-and-references/575-stages-of-meditative-concentration.html

Meditative concentration is like any other skill, the more you practice at it the better you get.

justshea

Binaural beats on an ipod!

ajnast4r

calming the mind

As a sidenot to this post here is Venerable Rene Feusi talking about each stage of concentration.

MorningView

Thank you everyone for the links and information! I appreciate you taking time out of your day to help me out. As I am trying to become more consistent with meditation, I will read the two links (dharmaweb and gnosticteachings) thoroughly. I've heard of people using binaural beats, but have also seen reports of people having bad experiences with it, a bad "trip" if you will (or am I thinking of something else?)

I've meditated on and off for years and, being tired of the lack of progress and my unending attachments to mundane life, I'm beginning to redirect my focus more consistently.

Thanks again!

Telly03

Less than a minute, but I don't have an answer to how I do it... I've always been that way. Well, I have just recently started meditating, but my wife has always been jealous of my ability to lay down, close my eyes, and be asleep in a matter of seconds. I think the two abilities are somehow related. I'm also a calm easy going person, I don't carry much stress with me, so maybe that has something to do with it.

ajnast4r

imo binaural beats are not conducive to establishing real meditative practice.