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    Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

    Hi again! I wanted to meditate for the first time tonight to try and see what gods call out to me (It's 10:40 pm at the moment) and I am TERRIFIED. I'm afraid I'll get lost and not come back..... can you give me some reassurance maybe??? I really would love an answer quickly if you can... I know a lot of people aren't online........ but still, I'm so scared! I want so badly to do it, but I'm terrified!
    Love me for who I am, not for who you want me to be.

    #2
    Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

    Honestly, I don't think your first meditation is gonna get far enough to get lost. Quieting the mind generally takes either a bit of practice or a bit of exertion. The former you don't have and the latter tends to be inherently grounding. Getting lost will involve what one of our members would describe as either Inner Worlds work (exploring your own psyche) or Outer Worlds work (exploring other realms) and those aren't likely to happen during your initial attempts at meditation. We've got a few people who may be on later tonight or sometime tomorrow that may have advice for when you end up dealing with deeper meditations (and if I see any then I'll point them this way) but you shouldn't be trying those tonight.
    life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

    Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

    "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

    John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

    "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

    Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


    Comment


      #3
      Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

      Originally posted by MaskedOne View Post
      Honestly, I don't think your first meditation is gonna get far enough to get lost. Quieting the mind generally takes either a bit of practice or a bit of exertion. The former you don't have and the latter tends to be inherently grounding. Getting lost will involve what one of our members would describe as either Inner Worlds work (exploring your own psyche) or Outer Worlds work (exploring other realms) and those aren't likely to happen during your initial attempts at meditation. We've got a few people who may be on later tonight or sometime tomorrow that may have advice for when you end up dealing with deeper meditations (and if I see any then I'll point them this way) but you shouldn't be trying those tonight.

      Oh, alright, thank you.....
      I'm not trying to do anything complicated, I'm just trying to make an offering to Bast......

      I'm probably going to be laughing at my own nervousness tommorow after nothing bad happens...... ah, my anxiety at work again....
      But again, thank you so much!
      Love me for who I am, not for who you want me to be.

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

        Originally posted by CrystalJackal View Post
        Hi again! I wanted to meditate for the first time tonight to try and see what gods call out to me (It's 10:40 pm at the moment) and I am TERRIFIED. I'm afraid I'll get lost and not come back..... can you give me some reassurance maybe??? I really would love an answer quickly if you can... I know a lot of people aren't online........ but still, I'm so scared! I want so badly to do it, but I'm terrified!
        Honestly, if you've never meditated before, you're highly unlikely to get yourself into any sort of situation that will cause any issues. The most likely scenario is that you'll get bored and fidgety, or you'll fall asleep!

        Meditation is a diverse practice, and is often misrepresented in neo-paganism. The actual act of meditating is just stilling the mind and/or body and using that as a tool to slow down the brain waves and switch off the 'mind chatter' that we all experience every day. Doing it well actually takes practice... lots and lots of practice. It's one of those things that can be really, really frustrating for newbies because it's hard to get right in the beginning.

        Personally, I think that you should start with just some basic daily meditative practice to get the hang of it, BEFORE you try calling out to deities or trying to have a spiritual experience. You need to get your body and mind used to the idea of stilling and slowing down, and get used to the sensations and feelings, before you can really do anything more with that meditative state. Guided meditations being read out to you are also a good place to start, because it takes very little skill to be able to respond to a guided meditation - just be sure to pick one that suits a beginner and isn't going to throw you in the deep end.

        Should you be scared of meditation? In general, no. Most people wont reach the dangerous levels of meditation when they first start out unless they are mentally unstable. If you have a mental illness then I suggest you ONLY do meditation in a controlled manner, building up in slow stages and possibly with the guidance of your psychologist. If you don't have a mental illness then you don't really need to worry... fear will hold you back and make it very difficult for you to achieve anything, or may give you a falsely negative experiences because you've worked yourself up into a state of panic. As MO said, getting lost is only possible when you are doing deep meditation for Innerworlds work (in which case you get caught up in your own psyche and aren't prepared for it), or if you are actually leaving your body for Otherworlds work, which is not a goal of meditation anyway so you shouldn't be in any danger of that.

        One caveat is that inexperienced people CAN be in danger of attracting what we call 'astral nasties'... which are really just energetic leeches that can attach to you if you do the whole 'I open myself up to any entity that wants to talk to me' thing. It's what happens when you dabble with a Oijia board and is the reason your parents tell you not to mess with spiritual stuff. They aren't really dangerous to a mentally healthy person, but can be draining. And they are very easy to avoid. NEVER 'open yourself up to whoever wants to contact you'. Be specific. Invite a deity to contact you, using specific language and intention. Also learn how to ground and centre, and how to create a little bubble around yourself to keep your space clear. I always recommend that you learn those three basic things before you start trying to contact anything outside of yourself, including gods.

        Comment


          #5
          Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

          First of all, MO has given you an excellent advice. As long as you focus on basic meditation, everything will be ok. After all, meditation is done in order to let your mind and body rest.

          As for my own opinion - if you manage to perform altar projection (sorry if I typed that wrong), you'll get back in your body during the first few seconds. The first session never lasts long.
          "Fair means that everybody gets what they need. And the only way to get that is to make it happen yourself."



          Since I adore cats, I might write something strange or unusual in my comment.Cats are awesome!!! ^_^

          Comment


            #6
            Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

            Rae'ya gave the actual advice. I just stated my opinion on the odds of getting into major trouble during initial meditations.
            life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

            Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

            "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

            John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

            "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

            Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


            Comment


              #7
              Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

              Originally posted by Rae'ya View Post
              Meditation is a diverse practice, and is often misrepresented in neo-paganism. The actual act of meditating is just stilling the mind and/or body and using that as a tool to slow down the brain waves and switch off the 'mind chatter' that we all experience every day. Doing it well actually takes practice... lots and lots of practice. It's one of those things that can be really, really frustrating for newbies because it's hard to get right in the beginning.

              Personally, I think that you should start with just some basic daily meditative practice to get the hang of it, BEFORE you try calling out to deities or trying to have a spiritual experience.
              So much win here.

              There's no single definition or technique for meditating. I forgot which Hindu or Buddhist master says that meditation can be as simple as letting random thoughts come and go. Don't fight them, but don't latch onto them and meditate on them. In the movie Pacific Rim it was called "chasing the rabbit" when the Jaegar pilots latched onto a memory instead of letting it go. Just let them flow. Eventually they'll stop and the mind will be cleared.

              As far as visualizing or invoking a deity, in Vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhism, that is a very advanced technique that should not be undertaken without the guidance of an experienced lama (teacher). If the person is not ready it can be emotionally and psychologically upsetting.
              śivāya vishnu rūpaya śivaḥ rūpaya vishnave
              śivasya hridayam viṣṇur viṣṇoscha hridayam śivaḥ

              Comment


                #8
                Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

                Originally posted by Rae'ya View Post
                Honestly, if you've never meditated before, you're highly unlikely to get yourself into any sort of situation that will cause any issues. The most likely scenario is that you'll get bored and fidgety, or you'll fall asleep!

                Meditation is a diverse practice, and is often misrepresented in neo-paganism. The actual act of meditating is just stilling the mind and/or body and using that as a tool to slow down the brain waves and switch off the 'mind chatter' that we all experience every day. Doing it well actually takes practice... lots and lots of practice. It's one of those things that can be really, really frustrating for newbies because it's hard to get right in the beginning.

                Personally, I think that you should start with just some basic daily meditative practice to get the hang of it, BEFORE you try calling out to deities or trying to have a spiritual experience. You need to get your body and mind used to the idea of stilling and slowing down, and get used to the sensations and feelings, before you can really do anything more with that meditative state. Guided meditations being read out to you are also a good place to start, because it takes very little skill to be able to respond to a guided meditation - just be sure to pick one that suits a beginner and isn't going to throw you in the deep end.

                Should you be scared of meditation? In general, no. Most people wont reach the dangerous levels of meditation when they first start out unless they are mentally unstable. If you have a mental illness then I suggest you ONLY do meditation in a controlled manner, building up in slow stages and possibly with the guidance of your psychologist. If you don't have a mental illness then you don't really need to worry... fear will hold you back and make it very difficult for you to achieve anything, or may give you a falsely negative experiences because you've worked yourself up into a state of panic. As MO said, getting lost is only possible when you are doing deep meditation for Innerworlds work (in which case you get caught up in your own psyche and aren't prepared for it), or if you are actually leaving your body for Otherworlds work, which is not a goal of meditation anyway so you shouldn't be in any danger of that.

                One caveat is that inexperienced people CAN be in danger of attracting what we call 'astral nasties'... which are really just energetic leeches that can attach to you if you do the whole 'I open myself up to any entity that wants to talk to me' thing. It's what happens when you dabble with a Oijia board and is the reason your parents tell you not to mess with spiritual stuff. They aren't really dangerous to a mentally healthy person, but can be draining. And they are very easy to avoid. NEVER 'open yourself up to whoever wants to contact you'. Be specific. Invite a deity to contact you, using specific language and intention. Also learn how to ground and centre, and how to create a little bubble around yourself to keep your space clear. I always recommend that you learn those three basic things before you start trying to contact anything outside of yourself, including gods.
                First, don't worry about me opening myself up to entities. I called out three times, once specifying gods, once specifying the gods of Egypt, and once to Bast specifically, but I ALWAYS speciefied gods, never any entity. And GODS. I wouldn't touch an Ouija board with a three hundred foot pole. I'm pretty ignorant to this stuff still, but I'm not that dumb.

                I don't have any mental illnesses...

                I know, the only real reason I tried calling out to the gods is because I was making an offering to Bast. I probably won't try calling out again for a while till I get the hang of meditating.

                Thank you, though. Well, nothing bad happened so, as always, I was worried for absolutely nothing. I was actually surprised- my constantly chittering mind ACTUALLY shut up- it was nice

                I am going to start meditating every day to get the hang of it, and try making offerings and calling out to dieties once I'm more used to meditating.

                Thank you so much for your help!

                - - - Updated - - -

                Originally posted by Gleb View Post
                First of all, MO has given you an excellent advice. As long as you focus on basic meditation, everything will be ok. After all, meditation is done in order to let your mind and body rest.

                As for my own opinion - if you manage to perform altar projection (sorry if I typed that wrong), you'll get back in your body during the first few seconds. The first session never lasts long.
                True- thank you!

                - - - Updated - - -

                Thank you to everyone who replied to this! I'm sorry if I come off as kind of ridiculous or really annoying... I know I am, but I don't really know any other way to get answers about this stuff from actual people, I don't know any Pagans in real life, and the only other person I know who is pagan wasn't online at the time.....

                - - - Updated - - -

                Originally posted by Thorbjorn View Post
                So much win here.

                There's no single definition or technique for meditating. I forgot which Hindu or Buddhist master says that meditation can be as simple as letting random thoughts come and go. Don't fight them, but don't latch onto them and meditate on them. In the movie Pacific Rim it was called "chasing the rabbit" when the Jaegar pilots latched onto a memory instead of letting it go. Just let them flow. Eventually they'll stop and the mind will be cleared.

                As far as visualizing or invoking a deity, in Vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhism, that is a very advanced technique that should not be undertaken without the guidance of an experienced lama (teacher). If the person is not ready it can be emotionally and psychologically upsetting.
                I see, thank you for sharing!
                Well that's good at least, because apparently I can't meditate wrong, which I was sure I did.

                Well, I can't really get a teacher xD But honestly, I wasn't really trying to visualize a god, or even invoke one, I was kinda just looking for signs to see what gods I connected to.

                Thank you!
                Love me for who I am, not for who you want me to be.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

                  Just an aside though but I always found it relaxing to imagine I was sitting in a movie theatre and the images were played out on the movie screen. As such it can also aide in stopping you from chasing the rabbit as it were.

                  I will advise though that when you start calling out to specific divinities you also have to consider the idea of invoking them into you. As such your meditating but your also offering yourself up as a vessel to be used by them. Can produces some interesting results for certain but can be a mind warper as well in that their essence, energy is projected into your body. Sort of the up close and personal way of doing things.
                  I'm Only Responsible For What I Say Not For What Or How You Understand!

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: Afraid of meditating, afraid of not being able to come back?? Answer please....

                    Originally posted by monsno_leedra View Post
                    Just an aside though but I always found it relaxing to imagine I was sitting in a movie theatre and the images were played out on the movie screen. As such it can also aide in stopping you from chasing the rabbit as it were.

                    I will advise though that when you start calling out to specific divinities you also have to consider the idea of invoking them into you. As such your meditating but your also offering yourself up as a vessel to be used by them. Can produces some interesting results for certain but can be a mind warper as well in that their essence, energy is projected into your body. Sort of the up close and personal way of doing things.
                    Ah, I see. Thank you so much!
                    Love me for who I am, not for who you want me to be.

                    Comment

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