The Paranormal Guide

Exercises to help you start meditating without much effort and almost instantly start enjoying the benefits of meditation

The definition of to meditate is to focus one's mind for a time for relaxation or spiritual purposes, or to think carefully about something.

As I suspect you already know, this is easier said than done. Once mastered, however, meditation will make for a most amazing pastime, and it remains without a doubt a worthy pursuit. It is with this in mind that I have written this meditation course which will show you, step by step, how to meditate with the help of some exercises and aids.

To this end you will also find that this course has been developed to enable beginners without much effort to start almost instantly enjoying the benefits of meditation. It will also serve as a refresher or perhaps offer a slightly different perspective for those who already have a background in meditation.

There are numerous benefits of meditation, including: better physical health, better mental health and abilities, reduced stress, better sleeping habits, and of course they could also include personal spiritual growth, even if not philosophically associated, and many more not mentioned here.

As a start I would suggest that we begin with a fairly important aspect of meditation. An aspect which will have an impact on your meditations in the future...

Seating Arrangements

Whilst most teachers will insist that you take up a lotus position, I have found that there is very little limitation to potential positions which are suitable for meditation at this level. Essentially, there are three things to consider:

1. It must be a position in which you would be able to sit (or stand) for at least 5-10 minutes, and with reasonable comfort, ensuring that you reduce discomfort, and following fidgeting to a minimum.

2. It must be in a place where you will not be disturbed for the duration of your meditation. (There is little as unpleasant as being rudely awakened in the middle of a meditation session.)

3. It must be a comfortable position, but a position which is not conducive to sleep. Trying to meditate lying down on your bed is the easiest way to fall asleep rather than meditate.

For the sake of ease, I have found that simply sitting fairly upright in a normal chair is fairly suitable. It is OK for the chair to have armrests and soft cushioning as this will likely increase the comfort level by just enough to keep you going. If the chair has no armrests of course you could simply rest your hands in your lap.

Of course you are welcome to attempt a lotus position, as this will likely eventually prove to be a suitable position, however I have found that not only is it a difficult position to take for normal folk, but unless you are a seasoned meditator, you are likely to find that you get distracting aches in places which will force you to fidget

To avoid this I have found that a partial lotus (only crossing one foot over your leg, and the other underneath, or one foot across and the other not totally underneath) with back support makes for a comfortable position for most meditations.

Again I must state that it remains unimportant whether or not your are able to sit in this position or not, and at this stage I would suggest that you can give up perfection for comfort, as this will have very little (if any) impact on the success of your meditations...

Oh, and do not be afraid to stop reading to try finding a comfortable position right now.