Meditation for dummies

Meditation has become a bit of a hype. But maybe you’re not sure what the point meditation is, it sounds a little weird to you -from India? Sitting uncomfortable? To stop thinking?- and that is why, in this journal, I will dive a little into the basics. From here, you can take it yourself to a higher level ;)

Let’s start at the beginning. Why I started to meditate? Not because I had seen people meditating and got totally excited. To be honest, I used to judge vegetarian meditating people and thought they were all boring. But then, traveling in Bali and having nothing much to worry about, I still carried a nervous feeling within me, like it had just hitched with me from The Netherlands. Well, after 1,5 years of having this nervous feeling in my home country and now being in a tropical country, it was the last thing I was waiting for. I wanted peace!

And then, there in Bali, I kept hearing about the Vipassana Meditation Course. It was like the Universe was screaming: you have to do this!!! The course meant meditating 10 hours per day, 10 days in a row. I think you could call this cold turkey. I had never meditated before. Anyway, if this would be the cure, I would have to do it. I wanted a peaceful feeling in my body more than anything.

I think you could call this cold turkey. I had never meditated before.

Now, 6 years down the line and many meditation courses, online guided mediations and having even creating quite a few meditations myself, I think I can say I have got a bit of experience about it all. This is not the one and only truth, but these are my answers to these basic questions about meditation.

Why would you meditate?

The goal of meditation is to back to your pure self. To calm your mind, but in a peaceful way. Not to fight with your thoughts and get angry at them, but to “see” them, to let them be, to accept them, and come back to yourself, your still mind or your breath. And like with anything, it is a practise. No one can run a marathon without training. You will find, the more you give your mind that space to just be and let go, the more your thoughts will calm down.

An average person has about 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts per day. Of those, 80% are negative and 95% are repetitive thoughts. If we repeat those negative thoughts, we think negative way more than we think positive thoughts. Really?

#notgood

Understand now why a bit of practice would’t be such a bad idea maybe? ;)

For me, meditating simply goes best at home, on a chair or cross-legged. With a candle and some incense on, yum.

How do you meditate?

I think there are a lot of false ideas about ‘how to meditate’. To me, it is about being in a place where you can be totally you, relax and let go. So no, not when you’re driving. Not when you have to concentrate on your difficult Excel sheet. It is about letting go, being in the zone and in this moment. And we are all different, so we could all get this meditation within different activities. Some can be totally in a peace of mind when they run, fish or do some simple sewing. It is when you do not need to think about anything. To me, that simply goes best at home, on a chair or cross-legged. With a candle and some incense on, yum. You don’t have to sit on a hard, cold floor without pillows, really. Make it yourself a little comfortable, and let yourself float into your peaceful state of mind.

When would you meditate?

Best would be every day. And this doesn’t had to be long! To me, the first thing is the morning is the best. Just to check in with yourself, instead of running around first thing in the morning. Giving yourself that conscious calmth, love and nurture can make you feel aligned (link https://backpackerverse.com/spiritual-alignment/ ) for the rest of the day. I need my meditations even more on my busiest days, just to let it all #flow, you know! Keeping your mind calm is like a practice, and is best to repeat, and not only to do when your mind is running already. You also won’t only start to practice the marathon the day before? It will be #alittletoolate. To me, on my bussiest day, it is mostly important to take that extra time for meditation so the rest of the day will flow better. It is actually a great #timesaver!

Is it the same as sleeping?

No.

I truly hope this helped you to understand meditation a little better, and to even motivate you to do it here and there. Let me know in a comment! ♡ ♡ ♡

If you have any questions, please go ahead and contact me! You can do that through the contact page.

With love

Anouk Anansi

A few of my favorite meditation teachers out there, plus two of my own!

Beginners

5 minutes - Beginners Level Meditation with Davidji

10 minuten - Ontspannende Zonsondergang Meditatie door mij zelf - Soul Expression

Medium

10 minutes – Start your day meditation by Boho Beautiful

More experienced

25 minutes - Reflect Like Water – Meditation for Selflove and Acceptance by me / Soul Expression

25 minutes - Morning Meditation by Davidji