| Handling Distractions During Meditation |
| by Aluna Michaels |
| So you've finally made the commitment to meditate each day. You've found a quiet, comfortable place and a time during the day that suits you. Yet after a few relaxing meditation sessions your mind is going crazy with thoughts. Maybe you're even about to give up meditating because the first time you tried, your mind was scurrying around like a frantic squirrel. Don't give up! What is happening is extremely common for both beginning and experienced meditators alike. In fact, many mystical Christian, buddhist and other sacred texts designed for people who have devoted their lives to meditation are filled with techniques created to overcome the very problems that you are having! Your mind is designed to think. Meditation allows the mind time off to quiet down and do nothing. Try to think of your mind as an over-achieving workaholic who can't relax on a vacation. Unstructured time is threatening to that type of person -- and it is equally as awkward to your mind. Although practicing your personally selected meditation style will still your thinking more easily the more you do it, there are still those days (sometimes many in a row) that will discourage you with mind chatter. Maybe you had too much coffee or sugar. Maybe your hormones are raging. Maybe you're extra stressed. Even though these meditation sessions are the most frustrating -- they are actually benefiting you a tremendous amount, yet in a different way than a blissed-out meditation does. So sit down and try, even when you know you'll be confronting the monkey house that is your mind at that moment! Try these techniques when your in the trenches with your wild thoughts. -- Imagine your mind as a cute little puppy that you are trying to housebreak. Your centering method, be it your breathing or a short phrase, is the newspaper. The little puppy will sit on the paper for a moment, then it will excitedly jump off. Put the puppy gently back on the paper by returning to your focusing method. When your "puppy-mind" jumps off the paper, lovingly bring it back. Believe it or not, meditation is just "bringing the puppy back to the newspaper" quietly and with compassion. Treat your mind with firmness that is also sweet and gentle. -- Imagine that you are lying back in a green field looking up at a blue sky. As thoughts come into your mind, see them as fluffy clouds floating by. Don't react or hang on to the thoughts, let them drift in and out of your head calmly. Alternately, you can visualize sitting on a beach looking at the horizon. Your thoughts are the boats sailing by -- some are serene sailboats, some are loud motorboats -- but just observe them. -- For stubborn, nagging, worrisome thoughts that don't respond to the above suggestions, try addressing the thought like a persistent child. Say, "Yes, I hear you, but I am busy now. I promise I will address your concern after 20 minutes (or whenever the end of your meditation time will be)." Gently discipline your mind -- don't fight with it. Aluna Michaels is a second generation astrologer and has been teaching and consulting for more than a decade. She also holds a Masters in Spiritual Counseling. Call (816) 524-8550 to set an appointment. Her website is www.ascension.net/aluna. Look for Aluna's books, "Spiritual Gifts of the 12 Astrological Signs" and "Spiritual Collections" at Border's! |
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