Bud’s Meditation

If you want to learn to meditate, there are a million ways to do it … classes and books and websites … free and expensive … traditional and peculiar.    There are people who tell you there’s a best way and an easiest way and even a one way.    Some may tell you it’s contrary to your faith to use a practice based on Eastern religions, that it’s stealth religion.  Of course, my recommendation would be to try it and decide for yourself, but if you read my blog, you knew that.      I am not posting my technique as a recommendation … I’m uncomfortable with the whole notion of gurus … but as an example of what works for me and of how you can tailor your meditation to your own needs.   I needed some spiritual tradition behind it but found the whole Transcendental Meditation oversell a bit distasteful, so I modified it.   And I needed to address two personal issues specifically, conscious contact with God and my tendency toward negativity.   Here’s what I came up with.

I can be a meditation clock-watcher, peeking to see if I’m done, but I need a timer that doesn’t startle me, so I downloaded a meditation bell mp3 online that rings once at the start of the mediation and three times twenty minutes later.  You can download it here if you’re interested.   I sit in a chair or in my car when I’m at the park … if I ever managed to get into the lotus position, they’d have to call the Fire Department to get me out.   Placing my hands in the chin mudra, resting on my knees  with palms up and thumb lightly touching my index finger,  I take a few deep breaths to start, in through my nose and out through my mouth then start repeating a mantra … I still use shareem, shareem, shareem. Somewhere in the twenty minutes, I do something I found on a long forgotten meditation guide … The Three Breaths. On breath one, I breath in the grace of God, then release it.   On the second breath, I breath in strength from God, the release it.  On the third, I breathe in deeply, and as I exhale, I imagine that the breath is carrying with it negativity and fear.   I repeat this three times then go back to good old shareem.    Before I know it, the three chimes sound … I move my toes and fingers after the first chime, rub my hands together then use them to warm my face after the second chime, then slowly open my eyes after the third.     I make sure that I sit for a few minutes before I try to walk or drive.   This is important:  I don’t try to evaluate the experience or strive for deeper meditation.

That’s it.