THAT TIME I TRIED TO LEVITATE: A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO MEDITATION

Levitation

1. The act of levitating
2. The raising or rising of a body by supernatural means

I want to tell you about the time I tried to levitate.

I was 15 years old and had recently read Anne Rice’s the tale of the body thief.

Inspired, I decided to try my hand at meditation.  I thought, maybe if I was able to get good enough at meditation, that it would be possible for me to levitate either my body or my soul. I  had a vision of my spirit leaving my body, and I would travel unencumbered.  (On a side note, I obviously didn’t think this through, because having your spirit leave your body is called death).  At the least, I thought maybe I could have my body hover in the air for a few seconds.

And before you ask, No I was not on drugs.  I am just weird.  I know this.  No need to point it out in the comments.

But back to the story, I wanted to try it.  Because in my mind, you just never knew unless you tried.

I knew it would be difficult.  It would take all my mental focus to succeed.  As my mind traveled deep in itself, I felt a strange sensation run through my entire body.  Was it working?  Was it happening?

Surprise, surprise.  It didn’t work. I didn’t levitate.  I didn’t float or fly.  I didn’t have an out of body experience.  And I gave up on meditation at the time.

Over the years, I tried a few more times to start a practice of meditation (I was no longer concerned with levitation or outer body experiences).  But, for whatever reason, I just couldn’t make it work.  It turns out, I just didn’t have a good system for success.   But over the past year, I have experimented with a few simple techniques that have seemed to make a big difference.

Now, please understand.  I am no longer attempting to levitate.  I am not a part of some cult.  I am not trying to be the Three Eyed Crow from Game of Thrones.

I will just settle for the best version of me.  Let me explain.

Imagine you are sitting by a brook, the gentle breeze upon your face, the sun upon your back.  The noises you hear are the noises of the stream.  There are no phones, no cars, no distractions.  You are at peace and because you are at peace, you are happy.  This peace is yours at any time.  You just have to know how to tap into it.

Maybe you are tired of feeling rushed all the time.  Maybe you are tired of constantly feeling “busy”.  Maybe you are tired of your mind racing at night, unable to shut down, and unable to sleep.

I am not saying meditation is the answer to your problems.  We all know that there is no quick fix.  But I do believe that there is a small step you can make that will reap giant rewards.

If you have read many of my blog posts, you will notice that I recommend meditation to enhance health and general well being.  Prayer and meditation have been around for ages.  There is no reason to think it too mysterious or impractical for your own life.  It’s benefits have been studied and are numerous.

Here are just a few of the benefits of meditating:

1. Reduce stress
2. Improve self awareness/mindfulness
3. Decrease anxiety
4. Increase compassion
5. Improve patience
6. Enhance learning
7. Enhance creativity

Lately, several people have asked me how to meditate.  If you have never done it before, it can seem strange and foreign.  That’s OK.  I am going to ease you in to the process with my very simple steps to get you started and then later, I will describe just what I do and what modifications I have made.

For this post, I am not going into details about how long or how often you should meditate.  The most important thing to remember is that for beginners, you just need to BEGIN.  You will figure out the rest later.

How to meditate

1. Find a quiet place.  Safe from most distraction.

2. Sit down.  Cross your legs.  Place your hands in your lap.  Your back should be straight.  You should be comfortable.

3. Close your eyes.

4. Now breathe.  Take slow breaths in and out.  Focus on your breathing.

5. Count your breaths.  Breathe in, breathe out, 1. Breathe in, breathe out, 2. etc.  Pick a number that you will start over on. I use 4.  After 4 breaths, I start back at 1.

6. Your aim will be to focus on nothing but your breathing.  As a thought comes in, let it go and get back to focusing on your breathing.

7. This will be difficult.  Your own mind will try to take over and run away.  Once you realize this has happened, start over counting your breaths.  This is the hard work, but this is also likely where a lot of the benefit comes. You are struggling against “thinking” and therefore becoming stronger at being at peace.

And that’s it.  Lather, rinse, repeat.  You don’t have to study in India.  You don’t have to tap into the “energy” of the universe.  You just have to follow these steps.  Easy.

My Process

My process is similar to the above but with a few adjustments.  I would recommend you start with the above until you can meditate consistently.  Keep it simple.

I like to listen to binaural beats when I meditate.  I place ear buds in, pick a track from amazon music, and go with it.

Once I am in position (sitting down, back straight, legs crossed, hands in lap, eyes closed), I take a deep breath in and deep breath out.  During these breaths I repeat a phrase that I read from Peace is Every Step by Thich Nhat Hanh.

Breathe in: “breathing in I clear my mind”

Breathe out: “breathing out I smile”

I repeat these phrases with my breathing until I feel my mind is set and ready to begin.

Next, I say a quick prayer.  I may also focus on a scripture or quote.  Then, I picture myself living a life of service and helping to relieve suffering.  I imagine a glow of compassion surrounding myself and then extending and growing until the entire world is touched.

Then, I begin to count my breaths.  From here on out, I will only focus on my breathing until I am done.

I am far from perfect at this.  My mind wanders like crazy.  But that’s OK.  When this happens, I just bring myself back to my breaths and I start over counting.

Maybe this seems weird to you.  I am way past worrying about that.  I know that this can help you.  Give it a try and see for yourself.

So there it is.  My guide for beginners.  It’s just as easy as it sounds.

Nothing to it, but to do it.

ADDENDUM: Just in this post, I have mentioned and linked to 7 books that I have read and been inspired by.  Read my BOOK and be weird like me.

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