It’s an hour drive to a yoga studio in any direction from my home. Aside from teacher training, most of my practice has been self-taught. I practiced asana sporadically, but became immersed in yogic philosophy early on. I couldn’t get enough of it, but I really didn’t understand it. Being a lone yogi, I knew I wanted and needed to go deeper, but was terrified on the first day of teacher training. Dreadful thoughts raced through my mind: Did I know enough? Was I good enough? I was fortunate to have an extremely giving and kind teacher who, to me, embodies the spirit of yoga. I remember her talking about her own experiences, thinking to herself . . . I can never know enough. I must go deeper. And then in her next breath, telling us not to get caught up in this syndrome. All of us were and are enough right now, in this very moment! Since then, my practice has evolved to include a healthy asana practice, as well as incorporating the eight limbs of yoga into my daily existence.
In June, as part of the 21.5.800 Challenge, I decided to focus my practice with meditation. Practicing yoga is easy and natural. Practicing meditation? Oh the sitting. Oh the angst. Necessary? Yes! What was really getting to me was all of the negative things I was “saying”. I can’t stop my thoughts, but my effort in meditation is to turn those negative self beliefs into positive ones. Off to sit . . .
So many people define meditation in varying ways. My internalization is that it is simply a practice of quieting my mind so that my true nature can be revealed. Sitting in the negative is hard. Depending on my inner landscape on any given day, I will sometimes use affirmations and visualizations and then sit. I’ve certainly not yet reached Samadhi, the last of the 8 Limbs of Yoga. Most of the time, I linger between Pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses) and Dharana (concentration), only reaching Dhyana (meditation) in ever brief moments. I’ve learned a lot about myself, and can’t wait to keep learning, growing. It’s all about practice, doing the work. Everyday.
I just said to my husband last week . . . “How can anyone ever get bored with everything there is to learn in the world? There is so much wonder in the examining of it all.” Since I have so many wonderful yogi friends who read my blog, I invite your thoughts and insights.
- Do you practice meditation, and if so, in what format? What struggles do you have with practicing meditation?
- Besides yoga, what other practices do you use for personal growth?
Peace Love and Light on your journey, as I’m trying to find the same on mine. 
Meditation… by far… is one of the hardest things to do ever. I found that the only time that I could meditate was during the saddest time of my life. Nowadays… it’s just really really hard to shut the monkey mind up. Good luck! I’m still trying too.
Namaste.
meditation. the most important part of my practice and that which i practice the least. sigh.
Oh devil’s teeth I have trouble with meditation. As a very Vatta Dosha I have a lot of problems keeping still. Which is why I enjoy KHYF meditation which involves movement and chanting (Desikachar doesn’t think the west is ready to sit still yet!)
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Meditation is tough. I start my classes with a brief (3-5min) seated meditation and try to meditate a bit in savasana, but I admit I struggle with it significantly. I feel like I need a really good meditation teacher to help me focus on just that, and no asana for a while. Are you up to the task? Haha ; )
I mostly practice formless meditation (which is VERY hard), plus yoga nidra and then also, I see pranayama as a meditation, too. Then there’s kirtan, which to me, is another way of bringing the heart and mind to the same place of stillness and openness.
As long as we keep on trucking with these things, we’ll get there some day
It’s funny that you are talking about this here because it’s the second time that I’ve heard meditation brought up in as many days. Yesterday I told a friend that I want to start practicing it, but am afraid that I’m too all over the place to focus that way.
I guess I’ll never know until I try though.
You know, I think MOST of us are all over the place. It’s so hard, but has been so beneficial with examining all of my thoughts – most of which are LIES!
Good luck!
I try to meditate for 10-15 minutes when I first wake up. Giving myself a time is helpful, even when I (often) don’t stick with it. It’s funny how pressing my to-do list becomes the moment I sit down on my meditation cushion…
I simply go to my favorite place in the forest, in rain or sunshine, summer or winter, and just sit down and watch my breath. Then I close my eyes and do a bodysweep. After that, when I feel grounded, I open my eyes and let things happen. See, hear, smell and observe… even think – but without judgement. Sometimes I feel ‘done’ after five minutes, and other times it takes longer. But I always come out naturally. I follow no system, but I occasionally do some yoga excercises to loosen up before the actual sitting.
I especially like it when I’m so at ease, that all kinds of birds flock around me. And no: I don’t feed them breadcrumbs