Best moments for a meditation

Some people just force themselves to meditate. They say: that's is useful, and I will meditate every day for like an hour. Have you tried this? Succeed?

Usually, very rare people succeed. And for those who does, it's often accompanied by a not very pleasant feeling of wasted time.

Why is that? In my opinion, everything is obvious. There is the principle of Le Chatelier: if you act on a system in stable equilibrium, it will adjust to diminish the change that has been made to it. And we – people – are systems in a more or less stable equilibrium – which, by the way, is called homeostasis.

To reduce internal resistance, it is quite enough to practice meditation at the right time.

Meditation is not a target, but a tool. And any tool is used in those moments when it is actually useful. For example, water is a thirst quencher. And we use this tool (by taking a drink) when we are thirsty.

We all have a very wise body. And at the moments when meditation will be most useful and necessary, the body itself "falls through" into it.

• Moment number one is awakening.

  When you seem to be asleep, but not really; some memories and images from sleep are still vivid, and the body is so warm and soft. Usually at such moments you don't really want to get up abruptly, but the affairs of the new day do not allow you to fall asleep back. Waking up in the morning can be a wonderful, very ordained moment for meditation by the very nature of your body. Meditation in the morning will help you both to review plans for the day, and to wake up more quickly, vigorously and smoothly at the same time – than without it.

• Moment number two is falling asleep.

  Instead of reading the news feed before going to bed, you can pay attention to the feed of thoughts and states that is spinning inside you – this way you will fall asleep faster and be able to draw some valuable conclusions from what happened during the day. The same practice of meditation can be used for so-called insomnia – well, when you like woke up at three in the morning and do not know what to do at such a time – then meditation will be one of the most natural and effective activities. As a side effect, it will be much easier to fall asleep again.

• Moment number three is when you feel tired or lazy.

  Fatigue and laziness are very similar: one can say that laziness is fatigue before doing, and fatigue is laziness after. So, when you are lazy, or tired – and you start to "screw down" – here it is, the real meditation that we all know how to do from very childhood! And instead of scolding yourself for the "distraction" – surrender to it! Immerse yourself in meditation, allow yourself not to do anything for a while – and after that the things that you were too lazy to do will go much more cheerful – or disappear altogether. It so often happens that during the "screwing down" people understand that something is not obligatory at all, or it can be done couple times faster and easier, or even delegate to someone, and not do it yourself.

  Secret: hangover in the morning is another reason for meditation. But this is a combination of awakening and fatigue, and therefore does not count as a separate item. If you approach a hangover not from the position of suffering, feeling pity and angry – but more consciously, observing and tracking your condition – this will not only quickly relieve withdrawal state, but also turn the hangover into a rather interesting experience in itself.

• The fourth right moment to meditate is when you are waiting.

  There is such a "flow" state – which is often spoken and written about in the literature. When you are in the "flow" – traffic jams dissolve in front of you, a free cash register meets you in the store, and bureaucrats fill out all the papers themselves. But this is not always the case. If you have to wait, it means that you may have come out of this "state of the flow" – and a good time has come for meditation to tune in and enter this very "flow" back.

  If someone of is late for a meeting and you have to wait - perhaps you are not completely ready for the meeting, and while you are waiting, it will be useful to meditate on the relationship with this person - to reflect, to feel what he or she wants from you, what do you want from him or her, and why do you need each other at all.

  In any case, meditation while waiting will be much better than anger and worries about this delay – it will give a calmer mood for all subsequent meetings and affairs.

• The fifth moment to meditate is when you don't know what to do.

  This is well-described in detail in a separate article.

Meditation is translated from Latin as "thinking upon". If you do not force yourself to think exclusively "on schedule", but use thr moments when it is handy and appropriate – I am sure your whole life will become leagues ahead from now.