Beginners Guide to Meditation
Meditation: every spiritualist talks about it, but very few explain the basic ins and outs to help get others started. Here is a beginner friendly guide to meditation. In this post we will cover what it is, the benefits of doing it, and tips and tricks to make it easier.
What is meditation?
Meditation is the act/practice of connecting with your inner self, the Divine, and your surroundings on a deeper level. In other words, a time for you to limit distractions and listen to the Universe speak to you. Meditation is the practice of listening.
What are the benefits?
There are numerous benefits to regularly practicing meditation, some of the most important (to me) are:
regulating your emotions and nervous system
being able to connect to yourself on a deeper, spiritual level
promote better sleep
being able to quiet the mind at a moment’s notice
lower stress levels
calm anxiety
Why should I meditate?
Honestly, that’s up to you and your spiritual beliefs/practices. But for me personally, the quote “Prayer is when you talk to God, mediation is when you listen” is a mantra I have lived by for years and has reign more true day by day. Taking the time to listen and understand the Universe has allowed me to advance my life because I am able to listen to what the Universe needs from me so that I can receive as well.
How do I meditate?
There’s numerous ways to meditate! Most will say you just sit in a dark room, shut your brain off, and sit in silence externally and internally. And that’s not a bad way to do it. It’s just not always the most realistic. Meditation is a time to sit back and observe, allow your random thoughts and visions to happen without judgement. Throughout our lives we are trying to control our thoughts, when in reality our thoughts just want to be free sometimes. Meditation is the time where so many greats have mentioned them getting million dollar ideas. Allowing divine guidance brings the greatest reward. But as I said earlier, you don’t have to sit/lay and do nothing when meditating. I like to say there are two forms of meditation: active and passive. Both have their own place, time, and benefits. I strongly believe people are not incapable of meditating, but merely unaware of their meditation style. Below are descriptions of the two.
Passive meditation: the most commonly known form, where you sit or lay down in silence or with relaxing music and float your way into a meditative state. I love this form of meditation for night/bed time to bring the body into a deep state of relaxation and surrender. I’ve practiced it as a way to relax and ease myself into bed as opposed to relying on other substances to help me sleep (melatonin, tart cherry juice, Mary Jane, etc) Also, if you’re unable to stay awake during meditation, practice this method ONLY before bed. Trust me, it saves you a lot of guilt and frustration.
Active meditation: this form of meditation is almost exactly how it sounds. You’re active and doing physical activity while simultaneously in a meditative state. This form more so happens on accident for me rather than on purpose, but when I recognize it’s happening, I don’t try to stop it. I allow things to flow so that I am able to receive what I need. For reference of what this feeling is, it is what musicians call the “flow state” or when you’re doing a tedious task and you get lost in thought. I have found this form of meditation is best for starting my day, or when I am trying to do a mid-day reset without going to sleep.
Most common times you may find yourself in active meditation are:
while cleaning (Certain chores may bring out messages/downloads stronger and faster than others)
while driving (We’ve all been there. No need to explain. Just don’t actively try to meditate while driving. Please be safe lol)
singing, playing an instrument, dancing (My favorite ways to deepen my connection with myself)
walking, bike riding, skateboarding/longboarding, roller-skating/blading (My favorite ways to connect with Mother Nature)
All in all, I hope this post helped you make more sense of what meditation is and how you can do it. Now all there is to it, is to practice. Happy mediating 🙏💚
P.S. if you like this blog post comment your thoughts down below, and let me know if you’d like a part two and more educational content like this. Thank you.