How Do You Meditate? 8 Meditation Techniques for Complete Beginners

Do you meditate? Negativity surrounds you in the form of people and situations. You react to every element and lose your conscious response. That repulsive reaction makes you a negative over-thinker! Ever heard of tool to cut the chord of negativity and lead a blissful life? It’s meditation. The state of meditation is a fuel of your inner world for a pleasant sail in your outer world. There are many reasons to meditate. Want to know the foremost? A meditated mind enables you to create your karma consciously. When you do that, the sources say you achieve the ultimate purpose of life- To feel happy!((PICK THE BRAIN: Why is consciousness the key to happiness?)) So yes, feeling happiness is the biggest reason to meditate! To unlock the magical experience of meditation, you neither follow a thumb rule nor turn into an ascetic. Meditation is any means of creating a majestic experience. So how do you meditate? No one can tell you which meditation technique gives you the best experience. You need to find your own course. But don’t overburden your mind with tonnes of techniques. Just start… How? When? For how much time? Leave them all. Start with a mindset you’ll spend a little alone time to enjoy solitude. Until you find your best meditation technique, let me explain:

1. Mindfulness Meditation

This form of meditation creates wonders in mind. It is the tool to maximize the concentration; the secret to extracting mind’s fullest potential.

How to Do It

Mindfulness meditation practice couldn’t be simpler: Take a good seat, pay attention to the breath, and when your attention wanders, return.((mindful: Mindfulness: How to Do It )) Don’t be hard on yourself. More it is effortless, more blissful is your experience. Not as easy as chewing a piece of gum! Playing hide and seek, thoughts are turbulence reaching that mind-sate. But that is what the challenge is all about -- to reduce the frequency and polish the quality of thoughts. Don’t expect dramatic magic the first few days. Please be patient and don’t stop; this is where you’ll get the result. You are always close reaching there. Do it every day to feel it one day. Once you taste the experience, trust me it’ll become as customary as eating food. Come on! 15 minutes is what it asks.

2. Open Monitoring Meditation

This meditation technique is about perceiving everything the way it is, not as per your judgmental convenience. It is one of the best technique to learn the art of loving with detachment.

How to Do It

In “open monitoring meditation,” one begins to practice “awareness of thinking.” All we must do to practice this form of meditation is to be aware of our thoughts and feelings and observe them without attachment.((The Psychology of Wellbeing: Open your mind with open monitoring meditation)) Whether it's a feeling from your inner world or a sound from the outer world, allow everything to free-flow without focusing on a particular thing.

Attachment is the root cause of suffering -- Gautama Buddha

When you learn the art of detachment, you don't stick to failures and loses. You move on. My observation says... "Open monitoring meditation" is the perfect answer to “How to create awareness in the present moment?”.

3. Follow Compassion

It is one of the best meditation techniques to feel content and blissful. If empathy is to feel the pain of others by stepping into their shoes, compassion is to walk wearing those shoes. It is the conversion of feelings into action, doing something to relieve the pain of others.((Happy Realization: It is your responsibility to complete the process; Sympathy-Empathy-Compassion)) ‘Help’ is just a four-letter word, but its impact is beyond words. Not only it makes the recipient blissful but also the one offering help.

How to Do It

You don’t have to do anything extra for a start. Many help-seekers are around you. Your emotional friend needs your moral advice and a beggar lying on street needs your financial help. If you have a solution to any of their problems, please don’t walk away leaving them suffering. Help them without expectations. Not only for them, do it for yourself. Your karma produces an unmatched feeling of contentment. It’ll enable you to have a positive approach towards life.

4. Change Your Lifestyle

Ever heard about this technique? A different experience altogether as it involves both mind and body. Not only it is the key to live happier but longer and stronger.

How to Do It

The best thing about this meditation technique is there isn’t a particular time or place to do it. You can do it anytime, anyplace. It starts with one small sacrifice -- seeking self-control. It could be anything from your routine or diet, forgoing an hour’s sleep to welcome the sunshine or resisting sugar in your delicious coffee. A little voluntary sacrifice has a rejuvenating effect on the mind and body. It boosts inner-self attributes and fuels your motivation levels to choose the right path. These simple lifestyle changes, for example, may seem small, but they can lead to big improvements to your health. Try them now to start thriving 24-7.((NUTRITIOUS LIFE: 7 Small Lifestyle Changes with Big Health Benefits)) Make sure you make realistic and small targets because the purpose is to achieve them. The effect of accomplishment is a joyous experience.

5. Do Whatever You Feel

It is one of the most beautiful techniques for developing self-love and shooting self-esteem. Unless you are not harming anyone, doing whatever you love is a soulful experience.

How to Do It

We are different, incomparable individuals. I feel there is one uniqueness in every soul which distinguishes him/her from others. You need to explore your passion to pursue it. I love to write, and this is what I am doing -- writing my soul out. It makes me complete as an individual. Ask yourself that one thing which makes you smile, which no one does better. When you get an answer, make it worthy to define you. If you don't feel fortunate enough to do whatever you feel, the next technique is for you.

6. Feel Whatever You Do

It is the best technique to make you an endeavor. Come what may, you’ll always be a winner in life.

How to Do It

The initiation requires an explanation: Not everyone is fortunate to do whatever they feel. Sometimes, you need to submit to life’s unpredictable nature. And if it’s a bread-butter fight, the passion for anything not yielding money initially, becomes secondary. This technique is about accepting life the way it is. You need to see the positive side, always. Instead of counting your weaknesses and shortfalls, you need to count on your strengths and blessings. Gradually, you develop a feeling of appreciation towards life. This appreciation itself is a technique helps you develop an optimistic approach full of opportunities and possibilities. You develop a nothing-to-lose attitude which makes you fearless of the outer world. Who knows, when you practice this technique, you reach a state where you start doing whatever you feel.

7. Walking Meditation

This meditation technique is an answer to your impatience in meditation while sitting. It is a gateway to many powerful meditation techniques.

In order to have peace and joy, you must succeed in having peace within each of your steps. Your steps are the most important thing. -- Thich Nhat Hanh

I discovered it accidentally. With no mechanical mode available to commute, I walked 5 kilometers to attend an important meeting. With no extra effort, I was just aware of my steps. Yes, that was a lively experience.

How to Do It

Start with a small walk -- morning, evening, dinner, anytime. Feel your moving steps to create awareness about the same. Even if your mind diverts; bring it back to your steps. You’ll become calmer and cheerful. Mindfulness practice of all kinds, especially walking meditation, is highly nourishing and allows you to find a moment of peace and a sense of being grounded or “balanced” each day that’s invaluable for our well-being.((Buddhaimonia: The Beginner’s Guide to Walking Meditation)) Walking is one of the physical activities which doesn’t tire but energizes your body. But it is you who has to make it a pleasant experience for your mind too.

8. Connect with Nature

This form of meditation is a source of immense positive energy. It is one of your rare interactions with the outer world without altercations.

How to Do It

Nothing special, just interact with nature. Find a place in the green where the outer environment is serene and peaceful, not a place full of air pollution or people population. Listen to nature's offer -- the sound of a flowing river, chattering birds or the flowing wind. Mesmerized by nature’s beauty, you’ll comprehend its essence. But there is a problem with your mind-state. Completely driven by the social environment, you have lost awareness over the natural environment. Nature is waiting to tell you a beautiful story. Please be patient to listen to it. It’ll give you another dimension to experiencing life.

The Bottom Line

Easy to follow, and immensely effective, all the meditation techniques mentioned above are for complete beginners. These are simple meditation techniques which only seek your initial patience. Try every technique to find out the one giving you the most worldly experience. Most things from the outer world induce stress and raise anxiety levels. It is you who has to find the peace inside. The best thing about meditation is it changes the way you respond to everything. You blossom as an individual. Start your day with an effortless smile. No matter how busy you are, take out time to meditate. Not only you know yourself bigger but you adapt to situations better. I find the morning time the best time to meditate. If you are an early riser, this guided morning meditation for beginners is the answer you are seeking: The Guided Morning Meditation for Beginners (That Will Change Your Day) Even if brunch is your first meal of the morning, you can try this: How Guided Meditation for Sleep Improves Your Mindset While Awake Happy exploring your best way to enjoy solitude... Good luck!

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