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Meditation Questions
Hello all
Well i have a few question regarding meditation.
How do you focus your mind to meditate instead of sitting for a minute and then your mind becomes restless wanting you to stop meditating.
Also how do you deal with pains in the neck, knees and back in meditation?
Thank you
Well i have a few question regarding meditation.
How do you focus your mind to meditate instead of sitting for a minute and then your mind becomes restless wanting you to stop meditating.
Also how do you deal with pains in the neck, knees and back in meditation?
Thank you
0
Comments
If you are feeling pain, your posture is wrong. Have someone check it if you can, I can't say for sure without seeing it. Check that your back is straight without being rigid and that you don't lean forwards, backwards, or to either side. Often sitting on a higher cushion helps, or you can try using two.
Stretching can help a lot. I always do a couple of stretches before meditating. I know sometimes my back starts to hurt after a while so I shift back against the wall if I want to meditate longer.
The story of capturing a wild elephant and tying it to a stake on a short rope helps me with patience in this. At first, the elephant (like the mind during meditation) becomes wild and restless. It wants to go off in every direction. The more you keep bringing it back, coming back to the breath, it'll settle down, become calm and stay! The mind isn't used to being "tamed", it likes to roam free. This takes work.
I hope this helps!
Welcome Samadhi.
If there is restlessness there is restlessness, by sitting there for the time of the session you are learning to not just follow your moods and mind so much.
With meditation it is necessary to keep it up.
As to pains, suggest you go to a local meditation centre and ask there as direct advice is probably more useful.
Best wishes.
Thanks
Your mind may take you into a whole story about calling your mom, memories of how she reacts if you don't call, or what you need to tell her...you might spend 5 minutes drifting mindlessly away into that storyline....at some point, you will snap out of it and realize you have strayed from your meditation. THAT IS GOOD! The realization of that is being mindful! Now come back to the breath again.
The mind will wander...a lot...but note what is happening, no judgment, and let thoughts pass thru like clouds thru a big blue sky...
Don't give up! :-)
My instructor advises using the pain (back, neck, leg, foot, etc) as the Object of meditation. While breathing, focus on the pain in your neck--I often have that from sitting. What are the pain sensations? Sharp? Dull? Is it constantly painful or does the pain come and go? Your mind state may be: "this is too painful, I need to stop meditating..." but the pain may not be present the whole time. Notice what the pain does to your breath, to the tension in your body, to the arising of restlessness. ALL of these sensations are a way of becoming MINDFUL, both about your mind and your physical body. You don't need to feel as though you have failed when this pain arises! This is the work. Meditation is not just about doing it when feelings are pleasant, nor is the object to create pleasant feelings. THe object is to just notice what is going on.
Does that help? I hope so...it is difficult, but worth practicing!:)
Dear Friend
The following links may help:
Google -
Dharmaweb Directory
BuddhaNet Directory
Zen Centers of the World
This will bring up a list. The Thai Forest Tradition is in the UK and if you are close to any of their monasteries (e.g. Amaravati) they hold weekly meditation classes, I believe.
Best wishes,
Abu
Hi Samadhi,
You might find this link helpful in the meantime.
http://www.buddhanet.net/insight.htm
Kind wishes,
Dazzle
I live in Canada and there are a lot of centres, monasteries, and Buddhist groups in all major cities so you probably won't have trouble finding somewhere to go for support and advice. You can PM me if you'd like to know of some in your area.
I just wanted to add that very often physical pain only really plagues you when you're first starting out. Once you've had more practice and get better at attaining full concentration on the breath you'll notice your body less and less, including any pain that might be happening.
In the meantime just relax into it. If it isn't dangerous pain, try to endure it with patience. You can do what Cindy suggested and use the physical sensation of the pain as your object of concentration. Some people find that very helpful. Or you can keep concentrating on the breath and when the pain distracts you, use it as you would any thought that distracts you; gently allow it to go on its way and bring your full attention back to the breath.
Either way you're getting the training in. Beginners meditation, watching the breath, is about developing the ability to concentrate. So every single time you find yourself having to refocus and bring your attention back to your breath it's like another lift of the weight in weight training. Each refocusing makes your ability to concentrate stronger.
As Jinzang said, it could help to keep your sessions short at first and work your way up to longer and longer sessions. When I was struggling with drowsiness while meditating I found doing that to be very helpful. I cut back to 15 minute sessions and worked my way back up to one hour sessions.
I think it's important to mention here that it is best if you meditate every day or as regularly as you possibly can. When you establish a regular sitting schedule you're going to benefit much more than if you only sit once in a while or irregularly.
Good luck and keep going. Slow and steady wins the race! Patient endurance is your best friend.