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Meditating To Sleep
Hello all 
. Recently I've discovered a rather interesting practice, meditating myself to sleep at night, a practice I'd now very much recommend to the rest of you. For some reason in the last week I've FINALLY (after months of struggling) been able to meditate peacefully without it being a big struggle that ends in frustration. few days ago I was meditating at night and was making a lot of progress. Finally I got really tired and accepted, even though I wanted to continue, that I should get to bed. after all, a fatigued mind, at least in my experience, does not accomplish much in meditative practice. So when I went to bed I layed down and just stayed in my meditation, staying both focused and relaxed rather than thinking the usual flood of speedy thoughts I'd usually have. I have to say this was one of the best decisions I ever made.
For years I've had a lot of sleep troubles, drifting in and out of sleep and having really erratic and often distressfull dreams. but when I meditated into sleep, I had the most deep and relaxing sleep ever, and felt much more rested in the morning. this seems to work every time for me. Plus, my dreams actually feel focused and meaningfull and not exhausting, as they used to. anybody else tried this? I think this practice has also helped me in my waking meditations.
. Recently I've discovered a rather interesting practice, meditating myself to sleep at night, a practice I'd now very much recommend to the rest of you. For some reason in the last week I've FINALLY (after months of struggling) been able to meditate peacefully without it being a big struggle that ends in frustration. few days ago I was meditating at night and was making a lot of progress. Finally I got really tired and accepted, even though I wanted to continue, that I should get to bed. after all, a fatigued mind, at least in my experience, does not accomplish much in meditative practice. So when I went to bed I layed down and just stayed in my meditation, staying both focused and relaxed rather than thinking the usual flood of speedy thoughts I'd usually have. I have to say this was one of the best decisions I ever made.For years I've had a lot of sleep troubles, drifting in and out of sleep and having really erratic and often distressfull dreams. but when I meditated into sleep, I had the most deep and relaxing sleep ever, and felt much more rested in the morning. this seems to work every time for me. Plus, my dreams actually feel focused and meaningfull and not exhausting, as they used to. anybody else tried this? I think this practice has also helped me in my waking meditations.
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Comments
The secret of being able to get to sleep isn't relaxation, it's stopping the babble, the incessant chatter that goes round and round and round.....
Well done you. I sleep much better too, since I found ways of calming the Mind....
whatever we can positively do to make ourselves 'better' people is constructive. Sleep deprivation sucks!
heh, that it really really does. a couple years ago I was so sleep deprived I could barely keep up in school and kept biting my teacher's heads off. only recently have I finally been getting the quality of sleep I need.
as for all you purists
I couldn't do that - I don't think...
Going to bed to meditate is what I would call "going to sleep".
-bf
In our house, we had a couple of old priests, one of whom was in my care. He was an extraordinary person. 98 years old and still as bright as ever. I talked about my worry about night meditation to him on one of our strolls round the garden. He listened and then suggested that it was a bad idea for me to go to sleep in such an uncomfortable position. Instead, he suggested, I should do all the preliminaries for my meditation then get into bed and continue. If I fell asleep, I should, immediately upon waking, recite the closing prayers. In that way, my sleep, itself, would become part of the meditation process, in the hope and expectation that the Holy Spirit would use it as was best.
It has 'worked' for me time and against across the years, both when I have found myself exhausted at meditation time and, most significantly, when I have been unable to sleep. In hospital, for example, I find sleeping very difficult and pass the time with my mala. Sometimes I sleep, sometimes I don't but, in either case, I have no reason to get as het up as I used to do when facing insomnia.
But his real name is TIMMEHLIVINLAHHHHG...TIMMEH!
-bf
I don't know how to tell you this, Mr Devious: South Park is fiction (just like its God). LOL
NOOOOOOOOOOOO!! Say it ain't SOOO!!
Hay you have mentioned a good tactic. I am doing a hectic job and for many days i an unable to take a sound sleep. When i go to the bed different questions and queries start to circulate in my mind and i am getting to loose my balance. But now i will experience meditating such like you. I hope this practice will help me a lot.Thanks again!:)