These meditation tips are designed to help you build a steadier, deeper meditation practice. Meditation is not about controlling the mind. It is about learning to meet your experience with awareness, stability and compassion.
“Let me tell you what I lost through meditation: sickness, anger, depression, insecurity, the burden of old age, the fear of death. That is the good of meditation, which leads to nirvana.” — Siddhartha Gautama.
For the Buddha, as well as countless spiritual leaders across the ages, a meditation practice has been a key to lasting peace. It can also deepen our understanding of reality and the self. These meditation tips can help you approach the practice with more ease, awareness and consistency.
Science is slowly catching up to what these ancient teachers knew. More studies are exploring the many benefits of meditation. A regular meditation practice may help reduce stress, depression and anxiety. It may also support sleep, memory, immune function, relationships and compassion.
However, in order to truly benefit from meditation, there are some basic approaches that you may want to implement. Here are five meditation tips to help deepen your practice.
1. Do Not Try to Get Rid of Your Thoughts
While meditation is different for everyone, trying to stop your thoughts entirely can be frustrating, especially for beginners. Your thoughts may simply multiply like a shaken hornet’s nest. Instead, while meditating, it is critical to simply observe your thoughts as they come. Allow them to pass through your mind like a bird soaring through a blue sky or a wave crashing into the sea. Do not follow them, but do not try to push them away either.
After a while of not judging your thoughts and simply allowing them to be there without getting attached to them, you may eventually notice that spaces have begun to open up between them. In these spaces, you can begin to experience greater stillness and awareness. There is nothing you need to know or figure out. Instead, you can simply become receptive, allowing yourself to receive whatever arises in the silence.
If you would like to hear more about this, you can watch this short video from Lokta Joēl on the Hariharalaya YouTube channel.
2. Find a Stable Posture for Your Meditation Practice
While sitting cross-legged on the floor is a traditional meditation posture, it may not feel comfortable at first. Just like starting a new sport, your body needs time to adapt. One of the most useful meditation tips for beginners is to focus on stability rather than trying to find the perfect position. Aim for a long, straight spine with your body relaxed but alert.
You can sit on a cushion, chair, or use a wall for support if needed. If you have leg or back issues, choose a position that allows you to keep your spine upright without pain. It is generally best to avoid lying down, as this can make it easier to fall asleep.
With regular practice, your body will gradually become more accustomed to sitting for longer periods. As you learn to remain still despite some discomfort, you are also training the mind to become steady and present.
3. Find Your Way Into Meditation
Silent meditation is particularly powerful, as there is nothing more potent than truly finding stillness in the heart of silence. However, guided meditations can also be beneficial, especially for beginners. There are many different ways to meditate. You can also try a walking meditation or focus on relaxing different parts of your body. The important thing is to give yourself the time and space to turn inward and become more aware of what is happening within you.
At Hariharalaya, we practice the Self Tuning Method, which brings together different practices to help you settle into greater presence and awareness. Through this practice, you learn to become more connected with your body, mind, and inner experience. It offers a simple and accessible way to deepen your meditation practice and reconnect with yourself.
4. Exercise Self-Compassion
If meditation is difficult for you, the last thing you should do is judge yourself. After all, you would never expect to master an instrument after playing it for just ten minutes a day for a few weeks or months. Instead, be kind to yourself and practice self-acceptance. There is no such thing as a “good” or “bad” meditation session. Meditation is about escaping such binaries and transcending the mind’s judgments in the first place.
At times, you may also find that strong emotions or thoughts well up. It is very important to simply allow this to happen and to look at everything with compassion or non-attachment rather than judgment and a desire to change what is.
Allow your practice to be whatever it needs to be in the moment. Our modern world often makes us think that everything needs to be perfected, and modern wellness approaches are often aimed at eliminating all barriers to our productivity. Meditation, however, is not about this at all. Instead, it teaches us to accept things as they are, which is the path to true and lasting peace, not just temporary satisfaction.
5. Stay Consistent With Your Meditation Practice
Meditation is a practice. It is something to repeat, study, and return to. Like any worthwhile practice, it requires dedication, focus, strength, and clarity of purpose. These meditation tips are simple, but their benefits unfold through consistent practice and a willingness to stay with the process.
Instead, the more consistently you meditate, the more natural nonjudgmental awareness becomes. With time, you can begin to experience greater presence and stillness, rather than being constantly pulled into the past, the future, or the chatter of the mind. A consistent meditation practice can bring greater peace, clarity, and a deeper understanding of yourself and the world around you.
Deepen Your Meditation Practice
You can also learn from experienced teachers or join a yoga and meditation retreat at Hariharalaya, where we break down meditation and give you the tools you need to go deeper into the practice. With the right guidance and consistent practice, meditation can become a meaningful part of your everyday life.
