I need help. Still confused about meditation.

[phrs16]

Like I'm confused. You're not supposed to try to stop your thoughts. So that means that if you sit down and tell yourself not to judge your thoughts, that in of itself becomes a thought. So you're still thinking. You're thinking about not judging your thoughts. Do you understand what I'm trying to say? That's what happens with me. I sit down, close my eyes. Whatever comes about, I try to not judge it and I try to let it pass. But deep down, I still want to think about it, even if I try not to. Even if I tell myself just allow everything to be, I'm still thinking the thought, ''Just allow, Just allow.''

So that's why at times I feel it's not doing anything. Because whenever you try to be mindfull, you're just thinking the though try to be mindfull. I don't understand how exactly you do this. It is so confusing. And whenever I meditate, after the session I feel really tired and dehydrated. It's not a great feeling. It's almost a hung over feeling.

So if you seat to meditate and try to not judge your thoughts, you are thinking about judging your thoughts. And if you try to do not think about not judging your thoughts, you are thinking about not thinking about not judging your thoughts! hahaha

Thinking is very crazy right? How to solve it?

That's why they teach breath awareness. Do not try to judge or not judge, accept or not accept. The practice is very simple. Start to feel the sensation of the breath on your nostrils. Soon you'll get distracted and will start to think about what you have to do tomorrow or about yesterday's how-Seahawks-lost SuperBowl game. Then you remember: "ooooppsss, I need to FEEL my breath". And then you pull back your attention to your breath.

And again and again and again and again.

Do you see? FEEL your breath. Concentrate the better you can on the physical sensation of the breath and do not get bothered if you are thinking at the same time (this is very important and actually what I think will help you). This is mindfulness meditation.

When you, with time, get better at pulling your attention from mind wandering to your breath, THIS is what they mean by being able to disengage from thoughts and rumination!

And when you constantly disengage from thoughts on a day-to-day basis, THIS is what they mean by only observing/not judging the thoughts!

Do you get it?

So, the main point is: FEEL the sensation of the breath on your nostrils. When you get distracted, come back to the physical sensation. Do this and soon you'll understand what everybody here is talking about

Good practice!

[phrs16]

Thanks guys. but you aren't kidding. A book or course... I saw a youtube video that says all books do is distract you from the true way to meditate which is supposed to be simple.

This is not true. Dogen, one of the greatest meditation masters of all time, wrote a extensive book called Shobogenzo. Books are only bad if you just read them and do not practice. So you become kind of a Buddhist scholar, something that lots of masters criticized because your understanding is only intellectual and this way you can't attain/experiment the nature of the mind.

But if you practice, reading books - that are basically other people's experience with meditation - is very good. Shunryu Suzuki on Zen Mind Beginner's Mind says:

"The teaching which is written on paper is not the true teaching. Written teaching is kind of a food for the brain. Of course, it is necessary to take some food for the brain, but it is more important to be yourself by practicing the right way of life".

And this is a great point!

[ResistNothing]

I have exactly the same question. Here's a post on Reddit that I found very helpful.

"This is something that has been on my mind and confused me a little. Watching your thoughts is good, not being attached to them, not labeling, letting them pass. But doesn't watching your thoughts imply activity? Doesn't watching your thoughts take away from being completely mindful in the present? I feel like if I am watching my thoughts and there are none, I will create thoughts because now there must be activity.
Isn't it better to just be aware that your thoughts exist and will come & go but not engage them at all, not even watch. To be completely above thought. Like a crowd of people, I can realize they are there & go on my way, but is it necessary to watch them?
Keep in mind I am not talking about BLOCKING out thoughts. Just realizing they are all neutral and useless so why even watch?
Maybe that's what is meant by "watching your thoughts' and I'm just over thinking it. Or maybe "watch" isn't the right word. Sorry if that's confusing, it's kind of hard to put abstract topics like this into words."

I just feel that using the word "watch" is confusing, being "aware" of my thoughts seems to be a more appropriate description.

The post was from this link: https://www.reddit.com/r/Meditation/com ... _thoughts/

[arguseyed]

Late to this post, but I think a book can only do good to your understanding of mindfulness. I meditated for a year before I read a book and realized what exactly one is trying to do through meditation.