As a person who didn’t understand meditation throughout my childhood, I’ll be the first to say it isn’t for everyone. It takes a dedicated, yet strong willed person to complete this heavy task, and the only way to learn the basics is to practice for long periods of time. Unfortunately, that means that you are pretty much guaranteed to fail, but, those who can overcome these failures and stay focused are the ones that will truly understand how meditation can benefit their lifestyle.
We get so caught up in our daily lives that we sometimes forget our purpose, as well as our existence. But in the end mindfulness only goes as far as you let it. If you aren’t committed, you’ll never understand the values of acknowledging different aspects of your mind. Everyone has these stereotypical ideas of what meditation is, but there’s a reason why only a small percentage of our population practices it. The cold truth is that it’s too complicated for some people. We live in an alternate reality known as our ego driven mind, and at this state we are comfortable. If you really think about it, we are living in a constant loop and lack realization of the reality around us. We have all experienced an awakening, which is when a person realizes that their life is actually real. This effect is caused by our constant worries about the future or past, and it blinds us from our natural state of mind. Furthermore, many of us lack the awareness of our physical existence until a significant event occurs. When this happens, we finally obtain these awakenings. Despite this, we shouldn’t have to wait for an situation such as near death experience to realize that we live in a reality.
In our society, everyone is constantly trying to find peace within themselves. Because of this, many resort to meditation due to the reputation it has across several media platforms. But what people don’t understand is that the practice doesn’t guarantee success. In order for a person to find peace, they have to trust the process, as well as being open to failure. Some people think to themselves, “Well it didn’t work so clearly it isn’t that effective.” Everyone expects instant gratification, but similar to most things in life, it doesn’t work that way.
It’s human nature to favor efficiency. Think about it, we shop at places that are close, drive on the least busiest roads, and take advantage of open lanes at the supermarkets. Despite this, meditation is actually one of the least efficient methods ever created, but it’s unbelievably effective. In order to have a successful meditation, one must forget about their concerns for time or how they could be doing other things that are deemed to be more important. This aspect of meditation is similar to studying; it’s a grueling and time consuming process, but it is necessary to do well on an exam. Meditation is no different. Yes, it isn’t the easiest or most joyful process, but the outcome can help lead to a more enjoyable life.
In the end, meditation only works if you let it. Are you willing to fail to succeed later? Will you have an open mindset going into the practice? What will you do when adversity strikes? These are all questions that you should be asking yourself if you want to use meditation as a tool to better your life. And by doing so, you are able to live in the present and find peace. There is a famous quote from a Chinese philosopher named Lao Tzu, and it states: “If you are depressed, you are living in the past If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present.” Take everything I said into consideration, and I wish you the best of luck with your practice!
Here are a few pictures from my experience:
