Should you be trying to meditate?

Apparently not, is what I learnt yesterday!

This is actually a misnomer. Our fabulous philosophy teacher, Ram, explained that what we are trying to do or be taught or even teach is not meditation but concentration. Once you can concentrate then, meditation will follow. Now to me this puts a whole different slant on the practice. By Ram just explaining this I already feel that what I’m trying to do is more within reach and not some esoteric concept. Ram explained that the brain has around 60 different thoughts per second only ¼ of which are conscious. Rather than ridding ourselves of those thoughts we are trying to focus all of those thoughts on the same thing. I’m not saying I will be doing this tomorrow, but it feels like a different approach, Ill be interested to see how I feel about this concept after our meditation practice tomorrow.

Of course stilling the mind to one focus is still a huge challenge but one that I think I would benefit from significantly. If you know me, then you will know that I tend to be at full speed all the time and juggling a myriad of thoughts, ideas and things to do.

One of my teachers, Sharon, led an excellent series of Chakra focused classes with an extended meditation at the end. During only a couple of these classes, I was actually able to focus a little enough maybe to taste a morsel of the benefit. Looking back I wonder if today's insight would’ve helped. Interestingly its possible I might be able to get to one of her classes very soon so it will be interesting to find out.

What I think is missing for me are the techniques and the tools required. The ‘how to’ in order to try to focus if you like.

Cynthia, during a Yin class, explained techniques for observing, naming and letting go of thought as they occur. This was useful but in itself takes focus and practice.

If you read my blog on preparing for my yoga teacher training course, then you will know that I planned to start the DoYouYoga.com 30-day meditation challenge. I have watched a few of these short videos now and found them really helpful for the actual how to side. If you are interested, Day 4, has been my favorite so far. This short video actually helped me get some rest when dealing with my jetlag. I was also introduced to Headspace, which is an app for your phone, but I haven't got around to trying that yet, I will get back to you when I do.

This subject is far from over and I will get back to you for sure with what I have learned.

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#meditation #yogateachertrainingcourse