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Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

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    Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

    I am new to both meditation and pathworking/guided visualisation and am finding it quite hard to do. Patience and perseverance aren't my strongest points. I was wondering if anyone else is in the same boat or has any nuggets of information they'd like to share on this topic that aren't commonly found in self-help guides.

    #2
    Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

    I've been working on this for a little over a month now. It started out difficult but got easier rather quickly. Where as I could never get my brain to shut up for a measly five freaking seconds at the beginning now I can just sit and breathe for at least half an hour without so much as feeling a twinge of discomfort or impatience. In my day to day life I find I'm more patient, intuitive, and understanding of other people, so the work was worth it.
    I'm still learning a lot about this too and would be interested in what others on the site have to say about the subject. Keep up with it though! The first few steps are always hardest.

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      #3
      Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

      I guess I'm slowly working up to it... I've started yoga, so getting used to the focussing onesself. Hopefully if I get nice and disciplined with the yoga, it will help me get towards the meditation side of things.
      ThorSon's milkshake brings all the PF girls to the yard - Volcaniclastic

      RIP

      I have never been across the way
      Seen the desert and the birds
      You cut your hair short
      Like a shush to an insult
      The world had been yelling
      Since the day you were born
      Revolting with anger
      While it smiled like it was cute
      That everything was shit.

      - J. Wylder

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        #4
        Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

        Originally posted by SilverSerenity View Post
        I am new to both meditation and pathworking/guided visualisation and am finding it quite hard to do. Patience and perseverance aren't my strongest points. I was wondering if anyone else is in the same boat or has any nuggets of information they'd like to share on this topic that aren't commonly found in self-help guides.
        Hey. I'm really sorry to self-promote on the boards - however, I can't send you a pm, and I wanted to mention that you can find free information on meditation and free guided meditations at the site listed below my signature. They're not the only, or even the best, articles and meditations out there, but you might still find them useful.
        OO

        Book of Spirals is my author site.
        The Sentient Hillside is my blog.
        Spiral Tree is an ezine for pagans I co-founded.

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          #5
          Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

          Originally posted by SilverSerenity View Post
          I am new to both meditation and pathworking/guided visualisation and am finding it quite hard to do. Patience and perseverance aren't my strongest points. I was wondering if anyone else is in the same boat or has any nuggets of information they'd like to share on this topic that aren't commonly found in self-help guides.
          I found that the trick was to start slowly. Lots of people fall into the trap of trying to do a half hour 'clear-your-mind' meditation right off the bat... and very, very few people can achieve this straight away. Some never can.

          Meditation is not just the classic 'clear-your-mind' type... there are hundreds of ways to meditate. Find out which one works best for you, and start small. Start with getting into a daily routine... just two minutes a day of sitting down and closing your eyes. Then build up to five minutes. Then ten. Start just sitting and letting your thoughts drift, then build up from there. Try using a relaxation technique, or a point of focus like a candle flame, or scent and lighting to set the scene. Try laying down, sitting up, kneeling... the best posture for most is sitting up with the hips tilted slightly so that your spine is straight and your breathing unrestricted without having to strain to hold it. Any discomfort in your body will distract you, but get too comfortable and you're liable to fall asleep.

          At the end of the day you wont be able to do it without a bit of patience and perseverance, but you can make it easier on yourself. Maybe you're better suited to a walking meditation, or tai chi, or whatever. Either way start small and build up. It takes 28 days to form a habit, and a further 28 days for it to become second nature. So don't expect too much of yourself in the beginning.

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            #6
            Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

            Originally posted by SilverSerenity View Post
            I am new to both meditation and pathworking/guided visualisation and am finding it quite hard to do. Patience and perseverance aren't my strongest points. I was wondering if anyone else is in the same boat or has any nuggets of information they'd like to share on this topic that aren't commonly found in self-help guides.
            Most everyone already made some fine points. I must seriously stress one factor above all that has been said: Focus. The one that was not mentioned much is: Breathe.

            Focus, and find your Breathe.

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              #7
              Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

              The folks telling you to start slowly have a great point. In our society, we have a prevailing need for instant gratification and if it's not hard RIGHT NOW many will give up. I know you said patience is not your strong suit, but that's something you will need to work on for more then just meditation and path working.

              Another point is to figure out your goal before hand, then look at what means would be most effective for attaining it. No technique is one-size-fits-all.
              "The doer alone learneth." -- Friedrich Nietzsche

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                #8
                Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

                I find I have to slowly work myself into the proper mental state first. I need to put on calming music, light incense, make myself as comfy as possible. sort of easy myself into the meditation before I begin. if I try anything else it just doesn't work :/

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                  #9
                  Re: Anyone else new to meditation or pathworking?

                  Originally posted by alternatingSelves View Post
                  ... if I try anything else it just doesn't work :/
                  Possibly the best start for you, try what works.

                  Allow me to point out something that many people may know, but don't realize, when they begin meditating. The simple fact that you are opening yourself up to your subconscious. What this means, in very simple terms, is that you will hear things that you don't hear normally. Well, sortta. You hear these things, but you filter them out. Things like the clock ticking, the dog breathing, the cars passing by your house, etc. You are removing the filters that keep you from hearing these things, and you will hear them as you begin to meditate.

                  Which brings me to my biggest hurdle in meditating... all the freakin noise around me. I too, have a hard time concentrating. My focus jumps from my breathing to the dogs breathing, to the cars outside, to my breathing, to the dog breathing, to the trains in the train yard, to the other dog breathing.... Sound familiar?

                  One bit of advice I was given was not to try and resist those "noises". If my focus shifts to one of them, then focus on that. The idea is that, while I may not be focusing on my breathing, I am focusing on something. Kind of like saying "Hey, so what if I'm focusing on the dog's breathing and not mine, I'm still focused on breathing... right?". In other words, try using these distractions as something to focus on. It gives you experience with focus, even if it is not your intended focus. Once you get the practice and can keep your focus on that distraction, you can start to work on directing your focus to where you want it to be. Which, by the way, is what you are going to do anyway. You start by focusing on your breathing, then move on to other things.

                  The key point being "whatever works" for you. In the beginning it important that you learn how to focus.

                  Do keep in mind that I say this while not yet having had much success of my own. I'm just passing on information that has been given to me, and it does seem to be helping.

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