There are exceptional people who sit down to meditate for the first time and experience a deep level of concentration, who can sit for hours not distracted by thoughts or discomfort in the body, and who then return to the normal state of mind refreshed and at ease. This is not you or me; this is not what most people experience when beginning to meditate.
Beginners usually start by focusing on a mantra, or on their breath; both methods are called concentration meditation. Breathing is normal, not manipulated. Your mind will not like this. Your mind wishes to remain free to jump about from topic to topic, chattering at you non-stop; including but not restricted to: planning, rehearsing what you plan to do or say, remembering past conversations or scenes, endlessly explaining something to somebody, and fantasizing. Your mind will most likely inform you that concentrating on one thing, like a mantra or your breath, is flat out boring.
While I think any attempt at meditation can be beneficial, I personally went looking for another method after attempting for years to just follow my breath. I was drawn to Vipassana or Insight meditation, which can incorporate focusing on the breath, but broadens the experience. I'm not attempting to give an official, certified teaching on meditation; just my understanding from my years of experience.
The instructions for concentration meditation are to put your attention back on your mantra or your breath as soon as you realize your mind has wandered off. That's it. Your mind wanders; put it back on the object of meditation. Analogies commonly given are that training or taming your mind is like breaking a wild horse, training a puppy or a monkey, or anything trainable. My mind was more like a zebra, which allegedly can't be tamed.
Insight meditation offers more interesting instruction. When I "wake up" and find that my mind has wandered off of my breath, I notice where my mind has gone. There is the experience of separation; I am watching my mind now. Bringing the incessant chatter to a halt while I check out and note where my mind has been. As my mind inevitably does wander and I notice each time, I am collecting useful information about where my mind likes to hang out, and I'm seeing patterns of thinking that I was not aware of. For example, though I wouldn't describe myself as an angry person, I see a habitual pattern in which my mind self-righteously (angrily) lectures a vague "someone" about political corruption and social injustice.
The experience of separation, of being acutely conscious of where my mind goes and of habitual thought patterns, is for me, extremely beneficial. People who have no experience of meditation are more apt to be bound within their own mind, to accept all of their thoughts as true, to believe that they are their thoughts. Meditation gives me the space to step back and observe my mind, to step back from whatever emotional state I'm feeling; to be a neutral observer. Rather than deep concentration, this method invites insight as to how my own mind works, and to some extent, the way everyone's mind works. As to the nature of the mind, we are all more alike than not; it is the content, or the story we tell ourselves about who we are that differs from person to person.
It's a beginning meditation trap to expect that all meditation will be peaceful and stress releasing. For most of us, every meditation session is different, entirely unpredictable. I may sit down and feel an immediate sense of calm and well-being; thoughts seem to slow down and give me space and peace. For no discernible reason, in the next session I may be restless and agitated with angry, negative thoughts seeming to overwhelm me. I no longer have any agenda for meditation; whatever happens will be interesting. Whatever happens will be illuminating in some way if I approach my meditation with curiosity rather than any expectation.
It is not my job as a meditator to stop my thinking. I can't. As I say, there are people who can but that's their experience and it is irrelevant to me. It is enough to be curious about my thoughts, to give my thoughts respect but not to be necessarily taken in. My thoughts are sometimes crazy, often judgmental, sometimes vicious, and not necessarily true. I don't control my thoughts; I observe them. If I can be more tolerant of myself regarding my own thoughts, than I can develop more tolerance for others.
I can't attribute the quote to anyone in particular, but one explanation as to who we really are asserts that we are the space between our thoughts. Meditation is a way to become aware of the space between your thoughts.
Beginners usually start by focusing on a mantra, or on their breath; both methods are called concentration meditation. Breathing is normal, not manipulated. Your mind will not like this. Your mind wishes to remain free to jump about from topic to topic, chattering at you non-stop; including but not restricted to: planning, rehearsing what you plan to do or say, remembering past conversations or scenes, endlessly explaining something to somebody, and fantasizing. Your mind will most likely inform you that concentrating on one thing, like a mantra or your breath, is flat out boring.
While I think any attempt at meditation can be beneficial, I personally went looking for another method after attempting for years to just follow my breath. I was drawn to Vipassana or Insight meditation, which can incorporate focusing on the breath, but broadens the experience. I'm not attempting to give an official, certified teaching on meditation; just my understanding from my years of experience.
The instructions for concentration meditation are to put your attention back on your mantra or your breath as soon as you realize your mind has wandered off. That's it. Your mind wanders; put it back on the object of meditation. Analogies commonly given are that training or taming your mind is like breaking a wild horse, training a puppy or a monkey, or anything trainable. My mind was more like a zebra, which allegedly can't be tamed.
Insight meditation offers more interesting instruction. When I "wake up" and find that my mind has wandered off of my breath, I notice where my mind has gone. There is the experience of separation; I am watching my mind now. Bringing the incessant chatter to a halt while I check out and note where my mind has been. As my mind inevitably does wander and I notice each time, I am collecting useful information about where my mind likes to hang out, and I'm seeing patterns of thinking that I was not aware of. For example, though I wouldn't describe myself as an angry person, I see a habitual pattern in which my mind self-righteously (angrily) lectures a vague "someone" about political corruption and social injustice.
The experience of separation, of being acutely conscious of where my mind goes and of habitual thought patterns, is for me, extremely beneficial. People who have no experience of meditation are more apt to be bound within their own mind, to accept all of their thoughts as true, to believe that they are their thoughts. Meditation gives me the space to step back and observe my mind, to step back from whatever emotional state I'm feeling; to be a neutral observer. Rather than deep concentration, this method invites insight as to how my own mind works, and to some extent, the way everyone's mind works. As to the nature of the mind, we are all more alike than not; it is the content, or the story we tell ourselves about who we are that differs from person to person.
It's a beginning meditation trap to expect that all meditation will be peaceful and stress releasing. For most of us, every meditation session is different, entirely unpredictable. I may sit down and feel an immediate sense of calm and well-being; thoughts seem to slow down and give me space and peace. For no discernible reason, in the next session I may be restless and agitated with angry, negative thoughts seeming to overwhelm me. I no longer have any agenda for meditation; whatever happens will be interesting. Whatever happens will be illuminating in some way if I approach my meditation with curiosity rather than any expectation.
It is not my job as a meditator to stop my thinking. I can't. As I say, there are people who can but that's their experience and it is irrelevant to me. It is enough to be curious about my thoughts, to give my thoughts respect but not to be necessarily taken in. My thoughts are sometimes crazy, often judgmental, sometimes vicious, and not necessarily true. I don't control my thoughts; I observe them. If I can be more tolerant of myself regarding my own thoughts, than I can develop more tolerance for others.
I can't attribute the quote to anyone in particular, but one explanation as to who we really are asserts that we are the space between our thoughts. Meditation is a way to become aware of the space between your thoughts.
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