What meditation isn't

For people who are new to yoga they are almost certainly new to meditation, and meditation is the ultimate aim of yoga. Meditation is essentially the 7th limb of yoga - dhyana - where the mind is in a state of one-pointed focus. But this does not imply it is only something you can do after you have mastered the other six limbs!

So what is meditation? It might be easier to say what it isn't! Meditation isn't effort. Meditation isn't a striving for enlightenment or transcendence. Meditation isn't an ego-driven desire of becoming a 'better' meditator or more spiritual person. Meditation isn't about getting into the lotus position. No ultimately meditation isn't effort (in terms of will or ego) at all.

Meditation is effortless effort; well ultimately, because at first meditation can seem like a lot of effort. But when you have been practicing meditation for a while on a regular basis, there is a letting go of effort, a non-striving that allows one to simply be. In this respect we can relax back into our awareness and re-connect to a sense of our pure self.

When the mind is in a state of deep meditation the brain is in a deeply relaxed state (waves are in theta and gamma). This means that there is an absence of the normal electrical activity that the brain is always so busy doing: thinking, worrying, planning, judging etc. The mind is still. And when the mind is very still, consciousness clears enough for us to see the pure awareness that rests below consciousness. And this is a blissful place indeed.

Techniques - Concentration

Many people get meditation confused with concentration. But on the progression to meditation we do need to learn how to a) withdraw the senses (the 5th limb of yoga pratyhara) and b) concentrate or focus the mind (the 6th limb of yoga dharana). The mind is like a crazy monkey running wild in the trees. We need techniques that will firstly tame this wild monkey. These techniques include:

• visualisations
• breath awareness visualisations
• counting breath meditations
• mantra meditations (focus on a repeated sound - this is essentially what the 'trendy' transcendental meditation or TM is)
• yoga nidra

These techniques serve as a support, crutch perhaps, for the mind as it learns how to become still and focused.

Meditation pure

Then the real job is non-doing. Meditation is doing nothing. It is sitting still, in the present moment, calmly abiding in the here and now, with a wide open awareness. It is mindfulness. The Soto Zen tradition embodies this. In the Soto school of Zen, meditation with no objects, anchors, or content, is the primary form of practice. The meditator strives to be aware of the stream of thoughts, allowing them to arise and pass away without interference. At some point in an advanced practice, thoughts themselves disappear.

Some useful reading on meditation:

1. Diamond Mind, a Psychology of Meditation. Nairn
2. Still the Mind. Alan Watts
3. Wherever You Go, There You are: Mindfulness Meditation for Everyday Life. Jon Kabat-Zinn
4. The Miracle of Mindfulness. Thich Nhat Hanh
5. Blooming of a Lotus. Thich Nhat Hanh
6. The Spirit of Meditation. Brealey
7. Meditation for Busy People. Groves