The Five Biggest Myths about Meditation
“I can’t meditate!” There are a few common myths about what meditation is all about. Maybe one of the five below has kept you away from the meditation cushion.
Have a read through them…..it might be just what you need to kickstart a meditation practice. I would love to be the teacher to take you on this journey
1. “I can’t meditate because my mind is too busy!”
I hear this a lot. Congratulations! You are the perfect candidate for a mindful meditation practice! And you are the perfect student. Let me tell you something…..You are not alone. This is how our minds normally operate.
We are all slaves to our busy, thinking, judging, blaming, anxious, crazy and chaotic minds. By meditating you will begin to see more clearly how this mind of yours works. And you will learn how to relate to this busyness in a different way, so that your mind seems less chaotic. And, yes, maybe, your thoughts might slow down a little but even if they don’t, you will learn how to notice that your mind IS busy and, in that noticing, you can begin to relate to these thoughts differently.
2. “I can’t concentrate and focus for such a long time”
Meditation isn’t just about concentration and focus. Sure, it’s part of every beginner’s practice. We focus on the breath, for example, to help us notice and move away from the distraction of our mind. Mindfulness meditation, however, is more about awareness; being aware, noticing what is happening in our experience (emotions, sensations, thoughts, feelings)
3. “I can’t relax”
Sorry. Then you need to take up knitting or something similar. Meditation can be hard work. Exactly because we are getting to know our minds better. But that doesn’t mean that relaxation may not happen at some point or another because of your practice. In fact, it probably will. But if we set the mind a target to relax, well what usually happens? Yes. You tighten up more, especially when the meditation is anything but relaxing because of your crazy mind (see 1. above). So relax the intention to relax.
4. “I can’t to come into a blissful and trance-like state!”
With other forms of meditation, a bliss-like state might be the goal. But not with mindful meditation. Here, we become fully awake and aware to all your experience, whatever is here at the time – good, bad, or indifferent. We’re not away in some “other” blissful place. We’re here with the realities of our life right now before us. And that’s what we work with.
5. “I can’t empty my mind”
Sorry to disappoint you. We just might be able to slow our mind a little as we get to know it a bit better but there is no intention whatsoever to force thoughts away and achieve such a state (see number 1 again).
Not that this is totally impossible, of course. If we continue our practice, then we may experience more gaps between our thoughts, and find bigger spaces of awareness or stillness. But when we begin, our intention is to get up as close to the mind as we can and work with what we find, not push it away. Thinking is normal – let’s remember that.
So there you have it. Five ways you might be wrongly thinking about what’s holding you back from a meditation practice. Interested in learning more? Contact me here for a FREE introductory session to mindful meditation! Or check out our individual retreats and holidays here in Mozambique.
