My favorite thing about meditation is you don’t have to be perfect at it.  Just like anything else in life the more you practice it the better you will get.  So be patient with yourself.  You will soon see your efforts pay off.  We are going to be discussing the basic components of meditation.  They are getting started, breathing, focusing your thoughts, and integrating meditation into your life.  Understanding these basic components will help put some structure into conceptualizing the actual act of meditating.

Getting Started

The hardest part of meditation is getting started.  I find setting a goal that you want to achieve is a good first step.  You may want to relax, focus on the current moment, or just fall asleep faster.  Next is finding a place where you can get comfortable.  You don’t have to sit on the floor in a lotus position.  As a matter of fact, most people find a comfy chair is exactly what they need.  The important thing is that your meditation space be somewhere you feel comfortable and at ease.  Finally close your eyes and start breathing.

Breathing

This is where the magic starts to happen.  Breathing is the keys to the kingdom in meditation.  When you start to control your breathing, you start to improve the flow of oxygen to your entire body.  Taking slow deep breaths will help you relax and focus your mind.  Increasing your breathing in a controlled way will give you more energy and make you more alert.  When beginners start learning how to meditate focusing exclusively on their breathing is where they start.  This is where we start to focus our minds.

Focusing Your Thoughts

Our minds process a ton of information every single day.  This flood of data can be somewhat overwhelming.  So, concentrating on just one thing can be a real challenge; especially when you have several priorities vying for attention.  It’s only natural for random thoughts to pass through your mind when you’re meditating.  Therefore, focusing on your breathing is the perfect place to start controlling your thoughts.  When your mind wonders don’t be hard on yourself.  Just realize that it is natural and bring your mind back to focusing on your breathing, or whatever it is your focusing on during your meditation session.  Eventually you will notice it’s easier for you to stay focused on just one thing for longer periods of time.

Integrating Meditation Into Your Life

Establishing a consistent meditation practice will empower you to improve your life for the better.  You do not have to meditate everyday for it to become a consistent practice.  You only need a couple of sessions a week for just a few minutes to start seeing positive results.  A great tool to help integrate meditation into your life is journaling.  When you journal, you can keep track of how you’re feeling physically, mentally, and emotionally.  You can also record the epiphanies you have during your sessions.  It provides a way for you to record your progress and accomplishments.  Which in turn will fuel your motivation to keep meditating.

Now that we have discussed the basic components of meditation, I hope you find it a bit easier to understand.  The thing to remember is you are in control of your journey.  Take it one step at a time.  You can set the pace you are comfortable with.  You have just begun.