Welcome!! If you are reading this, you've made the commendable decision of joining me on a journey through the practice of meditation. Every Wednesday I will post a new mix alongside with some insights in these posts. As subscribers, you will have exclusive access to all my mixes, posts, and a front row seat to live sessions where I will lead guided meditations and perform live meditation mixes for your eyes only.

The best part, I am no expert. I am a beginner just like you, and it is on this initiate state I rest the effectiveness of this program. We are learning together.

In fact, the Buddha remarked that the journey towards enlightenment begins with a good friend, "Here a monk has a good friend, a good companion, a good comrade. This is the first thing that leads to the ripening of deliverance of mind when it is unripe" (Udāna, Meghiya sutta). Consider this my declaration to be your good friend. And as my first friendly act, I have some beginner's tips to share with you. But first a bit of a disclaimer:

The purpose of this page is not to convert anyone to Buddhism. I began meditation to help supplement treating my anxiety and depression. That is why I continue to meditate and I'm sharing this journey with you from that perspective.

Meditation is a practice for enhancing your mental health and enriching your body through the reduction of stress and anxiety via increasing an awareness of both the body and the mind and their relationship with the world. It is a scientifically proven method for altering one’s life perspectives in a beneficial manner and is an OPEN form—meaning you can combine many other elements that help you better practice meditation.

It goes without saying, though, that the meditation masters come from the Buddhist tradition. In my posts, which are meant to supplement my meditation mixes, much of the insights I share come from Buddhist masters. All of this is to benefit your meditative practice by helping you develop an appreciation for the rich spiritual and intellectual background from which Buddhist meditation developed. I am not trying to make you a Boddhisatva (an 'enlightened one'), nor am I myself on that path. The advice the masters have to share is, however, undeniably helpful.

Let us begin then!

If you are just starting with meditating, I recommend 10 minute long sessions just to get used to the form. There is a brilliant app called Insight Timer that allows you to set a timer for however long you want to meditate. You can even choose bell sounds that ring at the beginning, the end, and for every minute that passes. It's a great way to have control over your first few sessions.

You're here for the music right?? Good! That's why I made the mixes in the first place of course!! Put on a good pair of headphones and turn on whatever mix you desire (I have a 10-12 minute mix made just for you!), and let the sound set the stage for you.

Scent is also a great helper. Get ahold of some incense (Purecense has a wonderful resin incense starting kit on Amazon-I love their 3 kings blend!) and light it up! The smoke also provides a beautiful visual effect.

Now that the scene has been set, it's time to sit. The easiest and most instinctual way is to sit cross legged. But you can also rest your legs on your thighs, uncrossed with one leg in front of the other, one leg in front and one in back, or both legs curled behind you.

Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and focus on your breathing. Vissapana meditation teaches to focus on the "rising" and "falling" of your abdomen. As you breathe in think "rising", as you breathe out think "falling".

Meditation is about mindfulness WITHOUT thinking, or awareness. If you are no longer thinking in terms of "rising" or "falling" you aren't being mindful. Open your eyes, reset, take a deep breath, close your eyes again, and begin again thinking "rising", "falling", "rising", "falling".

As a beginner (like me), intrusive thoughts are inevitable. The stresses of the day, last night, tomorrow, our legs falling asleep...all of these can break your grounding. In these moments, when you catch yourself thinking outside your awareness, think "I am thinking, I am thinking, I am aware I am thinking, aware, aware, rising, falling, rising, falling".

There are other methods for awareness at the point we cannot detect the rising or falling of the abdomen. But for the first few sessions, becoming aware of our breathing is a good first step. In next week's post, I will cover what is known as the "sitting and touching" method.

With these tools in hand, you are ready to begin your journey into mindful meditation. With just a week of 10 minute meditation in the morning, you are going to notice a difference. You will notice easier breathing, cleaner energy, clearer thinking, you may even begin to see or hear things you were never aware of in the first place. These are all good signs you are headed in the right direction.

I can't thank you guys enough for joining me on this journey. As your new good friend, I cannot wait to grow together in awareness with you.

Namaste ॐ SEB