Increasing meditation time

cranreuch

After reading around meditation and Buddhism for many months, I decided as a New Year's resolution to start meditating. I began with five minutes every morning increasing by a minute every few of days, at the same time gradually pulling my waking time back to 5:00am. My aim was to get to where I could sit for 35 minutes at a time because that's how long my local Zen center sits for in one go (for public sessions anyway), and I'd like to join in with them soon.

Thing is, I'm wondering if instead of working on quantity I should focus first on quality. To be honest I find meditating very tough -- like going to the gym, but for my mind. It's not remotely relaxing or peaceful. If I get to a count of three on breathing I'm doing well. There's a whole cage of monkeys up there. Having a party. On crack. Getting laid.

Now I was up to 30 minutes every morning but then a business trip tripped (ha ) me up and I haven't sat for a week now, so I may re-start at 20 minutes.

As I start again, is it worthwhile continuing to increase the time even though I'm not sure I'm "doing it right" even at shorter times. Should I get it right first, and then work on increasing time?
thx,
c

Cloud

Moved this to "Meditation" section, please double-check section before posting thread. Thanks.

cranreuch

Moved this to "Meditation" section, please double-check section before posting thread. Thanks.

I did double-check, saw there was one on Meditation and another on Buddhism for Beginners. Couldn't decide if the prime category was meditation or the fact that it's a beginner's question. Thanks for moving.

genkaku

Cranreuch -- Good for you. It sounds as if you were doing well.

My suggestion: Pick an amount of time you plan to sit tomorrow morning and then, come hell or high water, do it. Make a promise, keep a promise. Get an egg timer to mark the length of the sitting. Don't sit less and don't sit more. If you miss a sitting, don't say, "The toilet broke, so I couldn't." No excuses. Just say, "I choose not to sit." In that way your promise is preserved.

Each day, look forward to the next day and make your promise. Then keep it. Exactly. At the end of a week, reflect on the days gone by. What worked. What didn't. Was it basically OK. Were you lazy? Just reflect a little and then make adjustments that seem sensible. Then sit for another week, day by day, promise by promise. At the end of that week, reflect, revise, etc.

If your mind goes crazy while trying to count the breath, well ... welcome to the human race. Do it anyway. If you can count to three, you're doing pretty well. I once complained to an instructor that my mind was going nuts. And he suggested, "If you can't count to ten, count to nine. If you can't count to nine, count to eight. And if you can't count to eight, count to seven.... And if all else fails, count to one. Anyone can count to one." It took me several years to realize he had been pulling my leg.

Messy, terrible, awful, imperfect ... all these critiques come and go. Wonderful, blissful, ecstatic, peaceful, compassionate ... all these accolades come and go. The best advice I can think of may not sound very Buddhist, but it is as accurate as I know how to be: "Screw it! Do it!"

Best wishes.

IronRabbit

Cranreuch, sorry to see your other discussion about taxonomic members closed. That should put you a little farther off than you were before. Regarding your sitting time - it doesn't matter in the now if it is five seconds or five hours. If you think you are going to become "relaxed" or "peaceful" as a result of sitting you are off on the wrong foot. Forget about the results you think are ideal connected with sitting practice and begin to think about sitting as sustenance based - such as in breathing or eating - with a goal (not the right word but none other fits) of experiencing being alive and alert in the moment. If you think that is a "given" - ask yourself why you are compelled to sit and explore Buddhism.

buddhajunkie

sounds like it's a concentration/mindfulness issue.

What exactly is your counting method? Describe the technique in detail. Do you count the whole time?

Also, describe the meditation technique you are trying to do. What tradition/author/teacher are you following?

You meditation sessions should not feel like torture. Quality.

cranreuch

What exactly is your counting method? Describe the technique in detail. Do you count the whole time?

Also, describe the meditation technique you are trying to do. What tradition/author/teacher are you following?

Via a business book by Yvonne Chouinard, I read some Thich Naht Hahn. But I think the most significant one for me that got me to get on the cushion, as it were, was Matthieu Ricard's "Why Meditate?" I also found Noah Yuttadhammo's videos useful.

All I do at the moment is try to count my breaths up to ten, just noting distractions (including the pain in my back) as they come and go.

My sole aim right now is simply to get to the stage where I can handle a 35 minute sitting, and then I'll go see if I can get involved at my local Zen center. I'm assuming they'll keep me right at that point.

cranreuch

If you think you are going to become "relaxed" or "peaceful" as a result of sitting you are off on the wrong foot. Forget about the results you think are ideal connected with sitting practice and begin to think about sitting as sustenance based - such as in breathing or eating - with a goal (not the right word but none other fits) of experiencing being alive and alert in the moment.

Thanks Iron Rabbit. Yeah, I don't really have any expectations either way. Most of what I've read cautions against getting attached to expectations of peacefulness or otherwise. I'm not actually complaining about how it's going. I just wondered if maybe the trying-to-get-to-35-minutes thing was a problem. Trouble is, when I start at the local zendo, I'm going top have to do it that long, and I need to work up to it because of my back. Otherwise I'll be wriggling like a toddler after five minutes :-)

...ask yourself why you are compelled to sit and explore Buddhism.

I've noticed life is suffering.
I've noticed that Buddha bloke agrees with me
I've heard what some other "religions" have to offer on that front, have tried one very seriously, and am not convinced.
Buddhism's offering seems, from my very initial look, intriguing and worth a deeper look.
But my understanding is that it's not what you know or cogitate or look at that is central to Buddhism, but what you do. So I do. I sit.

fivebells

What happens if you sit with the intention to stick to it for 35 minutes?

If you can't do that, consider attending the Zen sessions anyway. If you let the folks there know of your difficulty, you will more than likely find them to be very accommodating.

cranreuch

What happens if you sit with the intention to stick to it for 35 minutes?

Haven't tried it yet. I was up to 30 minutes and then a business trip knocked me off my stride. Planning to start again tomorrow.

The main reason for building up gradually is my back. I know I can just sit on a chair, but I'm attached (so sue me ) to the idea of doing it crosslegged.

fivebells

Yeah, there's no problem with sitting in a chair whatsoever. I never sit cross-legged, and neither does my teacher, as far as I know.

buddhajunkie

You might want to experiment with not counting, or to only count for the beginning part of your meditation session.

Also, keep in mind that you want your focus to be more on your breath, rather than on the act of counting. Similarly, if you label a distraction, to have most of your energy dedicated towards the distraction, rather than on the labeling of that distraction.


Finally, a good book I recommend is "Mindfulness in Plain English".

http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma4/mpe.html