New to meditation? Need help?

I'm new to meditating and I would like to start with it. I don't know what I'll be experiencing though while I go through with it. If anyone can tell me anything about meditation I would be appreciated. Also are there any tutorials for meditation out there? And are there different types of meditation? Do I need special clothes for meditating, etc? And can meditating get rid of stress, etc. I heard some meditation can let you see visions, etc. Sorry for all the questions.

This one helped me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0rSmxsVHPE

1) You don't need special clothes for meditation. But it's good to wear something comfortable.
2) Some people claim that they could see visions (people I know). Like bright light, people's faces, the future. But I think they are just a part of your imagination.
3) I know two kinds of meditation: breathing meditation and vipassana meditation.
3.1) Breathing meditation is pretty simple. Concentrate on your breathing. Feel it touch your nose as the air goes in and out. Some people feel that it is helpful to 'label' the motion of the air because it helps you stay focused. Label the intake of air 'in' and exhalation 'out.'
3.2) Vipassana meditation is deeper philosophically and a little more complicated. It is supposed to build up you mindfulness, concentration and help you grasp the concept of 'impermanence.'
If you want to know more give me a PM!:D

I've tried various forms of meditation and the ones which involve focus and concentration are ones I'm not terribly good at. I don't like to approach it with a method. I just think of it as rest. It helps me get rid of stress and negative feelings. I like to use music or sounds of rain, or sea or birds during my 'rests' and then close my eyes, sit down cross legged on my bed, or lie on my back. Lying down can make you want to go to sleep afterwards though, so I'd suggest that if you need to do something afterwards you should sit down. The music gives me something to lose myself in and sounds of nature help me feel serene. What I use depends what mood I'm in. I also like to recite mentally recite a mantra to get rid of other mental chatter. It could be anything that doesn't have emotion or meaning behind it. I say the letters, 'F, C, G, D, A, E, B, E, A, D, G, C' over and over again. But you could just say, '1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 4, 3, 2' it doesn't matter.

What it does for me: gets rid of physical and mental tension. I sometimes feel a bit slow afterwards though. I can get rid of headaches, anxiety and nausea. sometimes my body goes numb, but i think that is just because of physiological causes and lack of novel stimulation rather than any mental magic. it's not pins and needles type numb, it's just unfeeling. this helps people feel like part of their surroundings, something that many schools encourage. Sometimes you can feel hypnic forces such as your body moving or feelings of weightlessness.

Anyway I'm still a novice. This is my own sort of 'meditation' because the other types seem to frustrate me. one piece of advice is to time your sessions. I want to re-attempt chakra meditation soon when I can be still for longer periods.

I just laugh when I read the views of people about meditation. Dears meditation is about peace of mind so why you involve yourself in complexities??? why don't you simple sit and meditate???

The main thing is concentration and relaxation, if you will start thinking about so many things then how wil you be able to concentrate on meditation??? So pay attention on your mind and try to gain its control rather then paying attention on vain factors like dress, music and place bla bla bla....

I have a question about posture. A lot of examples show someone sitting cross-legged (or some variety thereof) on the floor, with their backs straight. I can't seem to get into that position. If I am "relaxed" in that position, my back is curved (my spine curves in a bit towards my ass-bone). If I roll my hips forward to straighten out my back, it's a very tense, stiff, non-relaxed position. Is this normal?

I have a Zafu, which I put on my bed when I meditate, which makes things easier. I stay in more of a Burmese position, which means my knees are below my hips, which helps a LOT. However, it's still not perfect.

Should I just sit on the floor, straight-backed and stiff, until I build up the muscle more or something, or is this actually normal?

Whats important is that you are looking inward. Positions are second important. The position you are in is important because it allows the energy to flow in a natural way. I would not trip on what way you are sitting to much. Just sit in way that feels right or seems natural. let everything inside just be and allow it to flow.

Awesome, thanks! That's pretty much what I've been doing, and added some lower back exercises to my workout routine, which should help fix posture overtime while sitting.

Hello. I am fairly new to meditation also. Great posts, everyone.

The goal of meditation is insight. This is done through focusing awareness, which in turn builds awareness more. This increased awareness allows you to understand what tension and suffering you are experiencing and ultimately the causes of your suffering. Once you know the causes, you are able to find solutions to the problems. How can you fix a problem you don't even know is there/you're not aware of? Finding solutions to your tension and suffering will bring relaxation and happiness, and reduce your stress. Bliss is produced from the relaxation. These are results of meditation. Insight is achieved because through this awareness, you are able to gain more wisdom into yourself, others, and the unity of all. You are able to formulate solutions to your life (subconsciously) and heal.

I highly suggest Mindfulness in Plain English by Venerable Henepola Gunaratana. It's free to read online, and is truly a great introduction to meditation in a way that anybody can read and gain from.

Remember that meditation is 99% practice. Poorly paraphrasing from Gil Fronsdal, but - you can read all about the taste of an apple, but you won't actually know what it tastes like until you take a bite. The best tip you will receive is simply to sit. You will learn from meditation, but through sitting, not through learning about sitting.

A tip for your practice, though, is to remember that no intruding thoughts are bad - they are simply part of the experience. Let them pass, but do not get involved. Let them go. Your goal is to be aware. Nothing is good or bad, but awareness is your goal.

Good luck, Skarr. Hope you're doing well. Haven't talked to you in a while. :)

Wow thanks for linking to that page! Added to reading list :)

Replicon, Putting your zafu on your bed might make you sink down too much, it depends on your bed. If you have some soft carpet that might be better, or fold up a blanket and put you zafu on top of that. It's more important to be comfortable than to be completely straight. It's very important to feel rooted, this is another reason why I like the ground better than a bed, being closer to the ground makes you feel more stable.

Try leaning forward then back slowly until you find a comfortable position for your spine. You can do the same thing side to side. It also helps to lift from the lower occipitals, but whatever you do just don't strain to hold the position.

OP, meditation can help release stress, but it is not stress release. You can do this with breathing but that isn't exactly meditation then. Find where you feel stress and with each exhale, "exhale" the stress, the feeling. Watch it leave your body. If you are feeling a lot of stress it could be helpful to do this for 5 minutes before you meditate. Mediation will reduce stress as well because it is not a stressful activity and it gives the body a break. It also basically helps you do anything that you are going to do in life, you will be more efficient and create less stress.

From what I understand, meditation is watching yourself. Becoming intimately aware of you right now. I watch my breath and when thoughts creep up and I get lost in them I just come back to the breath, back to what is right here and now. It teaches you to really appreciate each breath. We take so much for granted and get pulled all around by our ideas of what should be we lose sight of what is right now. Meditation is a way of reconnecting with that, with yourself. And it doesn't stop when you get off the cushion, in each action in your life practice being deeply aware of what is right now. When you eat, eat your food, don't be thinking about the stuff you're gonna do later. Appreciate it for what it is.


I occasionally see "visions" but it's always weird shit, like shapes and shadows. Sometimes everything starts to have this weird hue to it, bright colors, greens and pinks and purples. But these like anything else are just phenomena, they will rise stabilize change and vanish like anything else. They've never been useful, but sometimes kind of interesting, but even when they are they're kind of just a distraction, like if a car drives by with the music blasting. Don't get too caught up in them, just stay with the breath or whatever the object of your meditation is.Visions don't mean that you're doing it right, nor that you're doing it wrong. It's just something that happens if you sit there long enough.

I practice zazen. From what I understand they're are 3 different kinds which have different objects. There is breath work, koan study, and another one where you basically just are aware of whatever comes into your field of consciousness. You start with breath work to develop stability and equanimity, then do koan study to develop wisdom, then you just sit and whatever comes into you field of awareness is transformed. I don't know enough about this 3rd kind to properly explain it, I still mostly do breath work though Ive always kinda jumped around, I read koans before I started meditating regularly.

There are other kinds of meditation too, but I highly recommend starting with the breath. You can count it if that helps you stay with it. Count each exhale, or some people will count each inhale and exhale if they get distracted really easily, that's how I started. Count to ten then start over. I used to see how high I could go but I realize that was kind of stupid now. Or just watch each breath. I've read that counting the breath is not mediation and while this makes sense to me I also think it helps when you're first starting out.

I also highly recommend you meditate with your eyes open. Otherwise it's likely that you'll just space out or fall asleep, which can be nice, but it's not meditation. Keep your eyes on a spot on the floor or the wall. See what is in front of you but don't become focused on it, looking at different details in it.