A 4-Minute Guide to Meditation:

Some in the LYFE Discord server have been asking a lot about mental clarity and the like. It is nice to have a clear headspace, however, it seems that even though there is an understanding that meditation is the way to go, a lot of people have stated they don’t have a good idea of exactly what meditation is, and by extension, they don’t have a system or a way to go about it.

With midterms just now finally behind us, we are going to have to now brace ourselves for the final exam. Until we get there, it’s imperative that we keep our mind sharp and fit, ready for another quarantined exam. 

Meditation is a great way to ensure that we keep our mind in top shape. This post is a practical, short, and simple guide on meditation. It will give you a general summary of what meditation is and then two ways on how to meditate.

With that said, let’s get into it. 

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Meditation… TL;DR

If you describe the short story of the long history of meditation as sitting down and emptying your mind of all thoughts, you would be grossly oversimplifying it, but… you’re not wrong. Meditation is the practice of focusing on one thing or nothing at all, and it usually involves focusing on breathing, a specific object, or physical sensations. 

In fact, from a strictly and exclusively practical standpoint, that’s what mediation is all about, turning your mind off from all the things that stimulate your mind (of course, the opposite of that would be giving your attention to everything that demands your attention, which is most likely what caused you the mind-numbing brain fog that turned you towards meditation in the first place).

Whatever you focus on, if on anything at all, the point is to not focus on many stimuli at once.

When you focus solely on, say, breathing, for example, you unplug yourself from looming deadlines, the army of unread notifications, and the buzzing noisiness of today’s busy world. It allows your mind to take a break. Just like how sleeping allows your body to take a break, meditation allows your mind to take a break. 

And when you allow your mind to take a break—away from all the clutter of a thousand other petty and insignificant things—you’ll find yourself more mentally prepared to take on the world.

Okay great, …so how exactly do I meditate?

Luckily for you, I have two types of meditation that you can try to start clearing your mind today. They are very distinct from each other and that’s on purpose so that if one doesn’t work for you, you can try and pick the way that works for you.

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A basic way to meditate:

The first method is pretty basic: set a timer for five to ten minutes, lay down, and try to focus on nothing. I personally find that focusing on nothing is most helpful, but if this is too hard, focus instead on your breath, breathing in for three seconds—focusing solely on that—hold it for three seconds, and then exhale for three seconds. 

Remember, the ultimate goal of doing this is to focus on one thing (breathing) or nothing at all. 

And whenever a thought does enter my mind, I consciously think to myself, “a thought about burgers has entered my head, I shall let it be,” because ironically allowing a thought to enter my brain is what makes it go away. It turns out that when I try to stop thinking, the conflict in trying to resist the thought constitutes the thought, so instead, I welcome it and let it dissolve on its own. 

Most people meditate sitting down, but this is a bit hard on my back and I like to have the blood flowing through my legs better for comfort, so I lay down on my back instead—find what works for you.

On-the-go Meditation:

This second style of meditation is something that you can practice as you go about your day; it can help build up your awareness of self, which is the essence of what meditation is all about. On top of that, being conscious and aware of your mental thought patterns helps a lot in more intentional meditation sessions.

But how many of us actually have this awareness of ourselves throughout the day? For example, when you’re going somewhere—from your kitchen to your bedroom or from your doorstep to the bus stop—you’re most likely only thinking about the place that you are going and what you have to do when you get there. 

It is very likely that you are not thinking about the footsteps that you take to get there or the way your feet hit the ground and lifts into the air again. If you are, awesome. And if you’re not, I urge you to give it a shot because, well, there’s no better way to be in the now than to focus and become aware of your entire body, every bone, all while getting to where you need to go.

Focus on each step. Try not to go on autopilot taking step after step after step, and instead, slow down, and take your time with each step.

What this does is that it helps your mind readjust to the here and now, instead of where you are going and what you have to do when you get there. Thus, meditating like this on the go helps to ensure that your headspace isn’t stretched thin.

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I do hope that these two methods are of help to you. I have made it so that if you do not even have the time to set aside 10 minutes a day, you can at least meditate on the go. Bottom line is that you should find yourself with a clearer mind. Personally, I feel like all the grime from my mind is just gone, and my entire headspace feels lighter. But I didn’t write this for me, I wrote this for you, especially the people who wanted to know a system as to how to meditate. Well, I just gave you two. 

I would love to hear back from you guys, maybe in the discord server, again here is the link, or in the comments section, if there is one. Let’s get a discussion going because our mental fitness is a conversation worth having.