Meditation Technique

The environment – a quiet room where you are not going to be disturbed for 20 minutes. No TV or radio on, no pets. Can be done in the morning or early evening. Practicing late at night may cause difficulty in getting to sleep.

Sit in a comfortable chair, sit upright and don’t slouch.

Close the eyes and for the next 20 minutes, anything that comes into the mind: thoughts, feelings, images, memories, anything and everything that appears, you will think about later. Use any phrase ‘I’ll think about it later’ or ‘I’ll deal with it later’ or just ’later’.

At the end of the 20 minutes, slowly open the eyes, take a few moments then get up and carry on with normal life. That’s it. Ideally, carry out twice a day.

Explanation

By not engaging with thoughts, we are not stopping thoughts; this is important. Often people report difficulty in doing the practice because they cannot stop thinking. At no point have I said stop thinking – the only time this will happen is under general anesthesia and death.

By not engaging with thoughts, we are giving less mental energy to the thoughts, i.e. the thinking process. As a result, the strength of the thoughts will weaken and they will quieten down. This is when the magic occurs. It becomes very peaceful and positive changes start to be made in the brain resulting in deep relaxation and mental alertness. Many scientific studies have been done on this method, and all positive levels of functioning of the brain improve and negative functioning reduces.

Over time, the effects of the technique will spill over into daily life and we will experience inner peace even in the midst of chaos, greater happiness and positivity and less worry and anxiety.