The thing about meditation is that you become more and more you.
When it comes to meditation, I was the type of person that would run from any activity that involved quieting my mind, focusing on my breathing, etc etc. Why? Because I have a monkey mind. You too? Yeah, that’s pretty much the society we live in right?
So, I’ve started to meditate slowly….starting with one minute which led to five minutes (a couple of years ago), and those couple of minutes always felt like hours.
I was lying down on my mat, trying to focus so much on being in the present moment, but my mind was always somewhere else. Thinking about what I ate last night, what do I need to get done today, what movie am I going to watch tonight and so on. Never able to quiet that monkey mind.
24h/7 my mind was going crazy, round and round and round and round.
Recently, I decided to take this practice more serious and actually learn about what meditation actually is. Started to read OSHO’s books, to listen to podcasts, to do guided meditations, read blogs and listen to more meditation background music to get used with the vibrations and energies that I was meant to be working with whilst meditating.
Now, to cut straight to the chase, what is meditation?
Meditation is EVERYTHING.
Meditation is the process of observing. All that really matters is the quality with which you observe and the fact that you are present and fully conscious. Anything you do whilst being fully conscious is meditation.
Walking can be a meditation. Sitting can be a meditation. Listening to the birds singing or just listening to the inner sound of your own mind can become a meditation if you remain fully aware and in the present moment.
That moment when you stop doing anything on all plans – physical, mental, spiritual – when you’ve consciously pressed pause on all your activities and you just EXIST.
Existing is not something that you can learn or practice, you just have to truly understand it.
Once you become familiar with this sensation, you can remain in that moment for as long as you want. After all, if you want to go all in, you can meditate 24h per day if you’d really put your mind to it.
Once you become aware of the state in which you can only EXIST without letting yourself get disturbed by anything, you can slowly start to engage in one or two activities whilst taking care of not getting out of your initial state of just being there, in the present moment, fully conscious. This is the second part of meditation.
And what comes after is even more complicated and wonderful.
So, meditation is not the opposite of doing stuff, being active. No. Meditation doesn’t imply that you should run from life, but instead it teaches you a new way of living your life by becoming your own centre, and furthermore, becoming one with the Universe.
From my own experience in which I started meditating 5 minutes from time to time to the present moment when I meditate 30-40 minutes everyday….there have been massive shifts in my life that I could never be more grateful for.
Life became more intense – overfilled with more joy, more clarity, more vision, more creativity – however, whilst all these happen in my daily life I remain an observer, simply looking at what’s happening around me.
Fully conscious. Fully present. Fully aware.
I am not the one that acts. I am the one who observes. This is the secret of meditation.
“A state of meditation is an innocent, silent state. You are blissfully unaware of your awareness. You are, but you are utterly relaxed. You are not in a state of sleep; you are fully alert, more alert than ever. Rather, you are alertness. “
– OSHO
Now, you’ve got the idea of what meditation is right? Great!
However, for people that prefer more science-based answers and justifications, I thought it would be a good idea to write another blog post in which I’ll briefly mention what are the benefits of Meditation and why you should incorporate this spiritual practice into your daily life.
Namaste 🙏
