10 ms·
I've meditated weekly for about 2 to 3 years on and off, but these past three years, I've meditated almost daily averaging an hour every session, sitting zazen
by codyZ 13y ago
I've meditated weekly for about 2 to 3 years on and off, but these past three years, I've meditated almost daily averaging an hour every session, sitting zazen and breathing. For me, there's two types of meditation. One that clears my mind from the day and one that relaxes my mind.
a) Clearing my mind - I usually do this when something existential consumes me i.e. I get a bad phone call, someone pisses me off, anxious and unfocused, hyper, etc. and I simply can't stop thinking about it during the day. I do very controlled breathing exercises for 20-30 minutes. Inhale for 5 secs, exhale for 5 secs;then 7 secs;then 10. In almost all situations this frees my mind from being consumed. In the most drastic cases I've had to do this for nearly 2 hours. I'm almost always drenched in sweat and feel revived afterwards.
b)Relaxing my mind - I do this when I've had a very long day tired, but unable to fall asleep for various reasons. Again, controlled breathing for the first 15 minutes. The first few weeks were extremely tough. My mind would start racing in all sorts of directions and was unable to be mindful of the breath, especially since I was not consciously counting. After the first 4 weeks, though I was able to 'push' thoughts out of my head and start relaxing certain muscles in my body. I really can't explain this process/feeling without sounding like a crazyman, so I won't. But I'm at a point now where I can almost feel as though my mind is a shell and I can consciously shed layers off with each layer giving me a new sense of calmness. This type of meditation is vastly different that the one before because I'm here I'm not fixated on one certain thought, my mind is just kind of loosey-goose.
Disclaimer: I was taught meditation by a Daoist monk, so if there are any religious undertones, I apologize. Its unintentional.
- gnosis 13y agoCould you elaborate a bit more on the details of your breathing exercise? Do you do: 5 second inhale, 5 second exhale 7 second inhale, 7 second exhale 10 second inhale, 10 second exhale 5 second inhale, 5 second exhale 7 second inhale, 7 second exhale 10 second inhale, 10 second exhale etc.. or do you do: 5 second inhale, 5 second exhale repeat 5 second inhale/exhale X times or for Y minutes 7 second inhale, 7 second exhale repeat 7 second inhale/exhale X times or for Y minutes 10 second inhale, 10 second exhale repeat 10 second inhale/exhale X times or for Y minutes
- codyZ 13y ago5 second inhale, 5 second exhale, repeat 5 second inhale/exhale X times or for Y minutes, etc. Note that 5, 7, and 10 are arbitrary numbers that may change per person. The rate of inhale/exhale should be as constant as possible as well, meaning you don't fill/empty your lungs in the first 3 seconds and start slowing the last 2 seconds.