A brief overview of how we operate without meditation practice and how practice can begin to turn that around

While meditation techniques vary in terms of focus or particular instructions, all aim to harness the otherwise discursive mind and emotions so that we have direct contact with what is actually happening here and now. As a result, we can make wise choices and take action that is appropriate to our immediate circumstances. When we are not aware of our habitual thought processes and emotional reactivity, we are essentially taken for a ride or even highjacked by our own conditioning, operating either out of the past or the future, but not in creative, fresh response to the moment in front of us—the only place we ever have any impact. We human beings also tend to unconsciously form an identity around particular thoughts or feelings about ourselves. Consequently, when confronted by situations that threaten our identity (even if they are objectively agreed-upon positive things), we often try to avoid the loss of such identity as it may seem to frightening to do so. This can make us less flexible, more anxious and more defensive in the face of changing circumstances. We may also find it hard to let go when it is appropriate, which can keep us moving along a less than optimal or even disastrous trajectory. Carrying emotional habits from the past into the present, we may not respond appropriately to people in our lives because we are still animating relational patterns we established early on in life. In addition, we spend a lot of time and energy trying to buffer ourselves from life to prevent such losses and the feelings that attend them. Because of the highly intellectually centered (vs. emotionally centered or bodily centered) nature of our educational system in the West, we also tend to live in the world of our minds more than we do the world of feelings or the body, which makes us more vulnerable to not fully living in the present moment. All of this makes us less agile, resilient, creative and skillful in our lives. To be clear, thinking and planning have their place, but we are better served when we engage in such activities consciously vs. unconsciously and repeatedly ruminating, whether through worry, boredom or an attempt to avoid what we really need to handle right now.

Virtually all forms of meditation practice revolve around bringing attention back to the present moment through using our senses. For example, many methods involve paying attention to our breathing, whether through the nostrils, in the lungs or in the belly. Some use sound, for instance listening to tones or repeating a mantra (word or words associated with a peaceful state) internally or out loud. Others have us focusing on an external or internal object such as a real candle or an image we see in our mind’s eye. In any case, the primary instruction is to place our attention on any of these objects and when our attention strays, we gently bring it back to the object of attention, which is in the here and now. We let go of whatever was captivating us. Some approaches to meditation also suggest we label thoughts as they arise, e.g., noting “Thinking” in our mind when we realize we are thinking and then coming back to the breath. Like scientists exploring our own inner terrain, we are also to observe everything that arises in our awareness without judgment. While simple, this is not easy. Early on in our training, we realize that we have next to no control over our minds and emotions, but we also begin to become aware of our habitual story lines, emotional triggers, self-judgment, methods for escaping what is going on, etc. Over time, with practice, we begin to see the nature of thoughts and feelings—we see they have no solid substance, and it becomes easier to detach from them and address our situation “on and off the  meditation cushion” with immediate clarity, wisdom, creativity and compassion.