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Time spent in Meditation
Hi- a couple of quick questions about meditation:
First: I was also curious about what your typical mediation "schedule" is if you have one?
If you meditate "on demand", how often does that end up being?
Second: If you stop for a week or so, do find you are more monkey-minded? Is it hard to get back, or is it more nourishing? What has been the effect of having taken a "break", and what is the point one should be concerned about losing some of the space they had gained if they were practicing fairly regularly?
Thanks so much!
First: I was also curious about what your typical mediation "schedule" is if you have one?
If you meditate "on demand", how often does that end up being?
Second: If you stop for a week or so, do find you are more monkey-minded? Is it hard to get back, or is it more nourishing? What has been the effect of having taken a "break", and what is the point one should be concerned about losing some of the space they had gained if they were practicing fairly regularly?
Thanks so much!
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Comments
Do I notice when i don't do it? Yes. My entire practice falls apart when I don't meditate because it sets the stage for how I start my day. I have never noticed anything beneficial in taking a break, though others have different experience I'm sure. I wouldn't drop dead if I didn't meditate, I do know people who've had surgery and been in such drug hazes they couldn't meditate, and they came out of that no worse for the wear in their practice. i think it just depends on the intention. If you feel the need to take a break, then you might be viewing meditation as an obligation, like going to church. Once you do it for a while, and you notice the benefits, it becomes as necessary as anything else your body needs to function optimally. If for some reason I miss meditation, I notice the effects of that before I notice the effects of not getting enough sleep or skipping a meal. It does happen on occasion but never as a planned break. I also notice when I miss my Sangha meetings, I find they have a very grounding effect on my entire week much the same as daily meditation grounds me in practice for the day.
The monkey-mind goes ape, so to speak.
I meditate for about 20-25 minutes every morning, also for short 5 min or so times when I feel the need to slow/calm down when things are getting too nuts.
2. I can say that I kinda stopped meditating for a year and I saw that I become lazier , more chaotic, more angry...but, I still maintained focus and calm when the situation demanded it.
I grab it where I can get it, but can usually get in 4-6x a week any way, including 1 session every couple of weeks at my Sangha.
I had a great summer of very regular meditation- almost daily without fail. I saw great benefits. The back to school schedule and family obligations over the last 2 weeks has cut into my cushion time, and I haven't meditated for almost a week... and I already find myself feeling a little mushy, like I'm standing too close to everything and everyone, if that makes sense.
When I am on top of my game I meditate 2 hours maybe though maybe one day 30 min and one day 2 hours and one day 3.5 hours.
When I let it go I meditate zero, but I almost always keep a candle lit on my shrine and almost always practice daily mindfulness at least part of the day. When I feel sunshine on me I let my awareness go into the sensation and feel if it is in my head or my heart or in the sun or in the warm skin. Where is the sensation? Daily awareness like that. When I get depressed because of my psychotic voices I remember the refuge and call in my heart for my lama to help me should she have enough time and energy; I believe my lama herself perhaps, or maybe just her lineage (padmasambhava, buddha, etc) has power to help and draw me into the path.
I feel tight and craving and narrow when I don't meditate. Like I am trying to stay together with the voices (above) and whatever I do isn't enough. Of course there are always breaks of sunshine even when you don't meditate. That is the nature of the heart, to be sane and whole. It will always call us back.
So, what I'm saying is, if you benefit from meditation, then you'll have to make a choice of going to bed earlier to get up earlier (I know with really young kids it's not so simple as that, lol) and also, it wouldn't hurt to involve them in short day time meditations. Kids naturally are very high energy and without learning how to corral it, they can throw the entire family off kilter by running like lunatics
i dont look a meditation like a runner looks a running if they can run ten miles
but take a week off then they can only run 5 miles they need to get back to the 10
we meditate on our learning and our understanding our mindfulness our journy
to becoming enlightened its not as thou when we meditate we can float 10 inches off the ground and if we stop for a bit we can only float 5 inches
its more like as we meditate we fill the empty cup but what goes in never comes out
i meditate every day to get my focus right but then i also meditate on the dharma
but if i miss a day or 2 there is no loss to what has already been understood
peace and joy
Coz
That's not bad all things considered, and definitely better than nothing...
Yes, you can lose what you gained.
Dhammapada 282. Acharya Buddharakkhita translation:
"Wisdom springs from meditation; without meditation wisdom wanes. Having known these two paths of progress and decline, let a man so conduct himself that his wisdom may increase."
It's quite unnerving to me now. Someone needs to set me straight here lol.
All of the comments seem to be consistent- one needs to keep meditating, less is better than not-at-all, you won't lose the benefits *immediately*. I think 1 week is as long as I can go, so I will heed @karasti's advice - to carve that time out!
@karasti- thanks for your post & for getting just how hard it is to make that time-and in my house, even the little alter area I have set up isn't save from toys and stuff. The other day I moved my cushion and found most of Mr. Potato head's parts. Just sayin'.
I have to eat to stay healthy. I have to sleep to stay healthy. I have to exercise to keep my mind and body healthy. And I have to meditate to stay mentally clear and healthy .All those things have an equal place in my life. Will I immediately die if any one of those isn't present for a time? No. But then bad things happen if too much time passes and you do not give due attention to those areas.
I'm a runner, and right now, I cannot run due to a foot problem. It's possible I will not be able to run for a year. Does that mean in a year I can't put on my shoes and run? Of course not. Does it mean I'll suffer horribly because I can't run? No. But it does mean that a year from now when I put on my running shoes and go out the door, I'll be in a very different place than if I went running today. Meditation is much the same for me. But every person is different. For me it's not a fear of being monkey minded that keeps me going back to meditation. But I notice profound differences in my ability to assimilate the teachings when I do not meditate. I can read them, and listen to them, and understand them. But I have a much, much harder time putting them into practice. Just like taking an algebra test. I can listen to the teacher talk, and I can take notes and understand, but without practice, I'm not going to pass the class.
I tend to stick better with any healthful practice - be it exercise or clean, mindful eating or meditation if they are motivated by the gains as opposed to out of fear. Good point!
Also, no more heel to toe, ever!
The surgery will be similar to a bunion surgery, as they'll have to realign the bones in my first 2 toes and the ligaments, as well as some issue with the ligament farther up on the top of my foot.
btw, I fully recommend Zen and the Art of Running to anyone who works out, or even walks. It has a lot of good information about what basically amounts to ask walking meditation and making the best use of your surroundings. I was quite surprised how much use I got from it.
Hopefully, all goes well concerning the operation. It's too bad that there isn't a non invasive alternative.
The guy taking the picture is wearing Yukon Charlie Kodiak 930's.
Most Western Buddhists meditate regularly, and that's good.
Some Western Buddhists meditate rarely - if at all, and that's OK.
Many Eastern/Asian Buddhists do not meditate regularly, and that's OK too.
Please don't be discouraged from getting deeper and more committed into Buddhism based solely on if you want to / don't want to / like to/ need to meditate.
Your 'fear' isn't that ridiculous, as I have known people who became very attached to their meditation, and not in a good way. It may not happen that often (honestly, I really don't know if it does or not) but it can become quite the obsession.
Meditation is a fantastic tool, but there is no one single way to do it, nor specific hourly requirements. Do it (or not) as often as you can - comfortably and without stressing over it. If a person is going to have a meltdown whenever they miss a sit, are they really gaining anything from it?
Anyway, try as many different methods as you need to. Don't get too hung up if it takes a while to figure out what style and frequency works best for you.
Peace
I find that starting the day with a calm, peaceful, more focused mind makes things easier to deal with and the silly little things are just that, silly little things.
But that's just my experience.
Never hurts to try something that really can't do you any harm.
I was reading something that Ajahn Sumedho had writting in the book 'The Way It Is'. He was talking about how in the first few months he was in robes he would spend a lot of time in his hut in Thailand and meditate a lot (formally sitting). He would see lights, have experiences of ecstasy and great joy. He later moved to Ajahn Chahs temple, Wat Pah Phong where he was forced to do the daily rounds of collecting the food in the morning as he was one of the healthy young monks. He then had the meal with everyone else and then of course chores followed. This made him very tired and he thought back to those amazing experiences in his hut, he aspired to have them again and was suffering. He finally said to Ajahn Chah, "I cannot meditate here." Ajahn Chah laughed at him and said to everyone "Young Sumedho cannot meditate here." After some years he was forced to learn the importance of meditating in every day life, this is where the fruits of meditation can be actually used. How could one was the dishes in sheer ecstasy? And even if you aspire to sit down on that cushion and see great lights and colours, you will only eventually suffer as if you pick up the good the bad will eventually follow anyway, it is about being realistic and applying the Dhamma to everyday life.
I am working at making everything I do a meditation, by concentrating on each task and watching the emotions and thoughts that arise. Truly a work in practice...