Med Made Simple

8/9/2019 Med Made Simple

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Arnie Kozak, Phd

Meditation MadeSimple:Seven Considerations to Get You Started


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About the Author

Arnie Kozak, Ph.D., is a Licensed Psychologist and a Clinical

Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at

the University of Vermont College of Medicine. He is the

founder of the Exquisite

Mind Psychotherapy

and Meditation Studio

in Burlington, Vermont

(exquisitemind.com). He

has practiced vipassana(insight) meditation for

over twenty years and is

the author of Wild Chickens and Petty Tyrants: 108 Metaphors

for Mindfulness and The Everything Buddhism Book. Arnie is

on the teaching faculty of the Barre Center for Buddhist

Studies. Visit Arnie’s blog, Mindfulness Matters , for daily

inspiration and meditation support.

http://exquisitemind.com/http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1349918049&sr=1-1&keywords=wild+chickens+and+petty+tyrantshttp://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1349918049&sr=1-1&keywords=wild+chickens+and+petty+tyrantshttp://features.beliefnet.com/mindfulnessmattershttp://features.beliefnet.com/mindfulnessmattershttp://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1349918049&sr=1-1&keywords=wild+chickens+and+petty+tyrantshttp://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1349918049&sr=1-1&keywords=wild+chickens+and+petty+tyrantshttp://exquisitemind.com/


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Table of Contents

You Already Know How To Meditate ...................................... 4

Meditation Is Neither Complicated Nor Mystical ................... 5

You Do Have The Time: If You Are Breathing You

Can Be Meditating ............................................................. 6

You Can’t Do It Wrong .............................................................. 8

Your Religion, If You Have One, Is OK With This ................. 9

You Have Everything You Need To Start Right Now ........... 11

What Comes Next? ................................................................... 13


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You Already Know How toMeditate

There are thousands of techniques that may be considered

meditation. This guide will describe mindfulness

meditation.

Meditation through the skill of mindfulness is native to all

of us. We all have the capacity to become absorbed in themoment, and we usually do so when special circumstances

are in place – a beautiful sunset, a magical moment, or a

crisis for that matter.

Practicing meditation makes this native skill available in

every moment, even in the most ordinary of moments. You

don’t have to wait around for gorgeous sunsets; you don’thave to arrange your life to catch things just right.

Mindfulness is right here, right now, and if you practice

meditation you’ll be able to access mindfulness

(the fruit of meditation) in any moment –

even the boring ones, the difcult ones,

the crazy ones, the ordinary ones.

So, relax. You already know how to

do this. You’ve just been too busy

to notice. You don’t even have to

relax – just be who you are right

now, and you’ll be OK.


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Meditation takes this native capacity and gets it into shape

just as you would lift weights to get your muscles in shape.

Meditation will get your brain in shape (and there is a

growing body of scientic evidence to support this).

As you know, when you lift weights you don’t get into shape

instantly. It takes time. Likewise, training your mind will take

time to see the benets of improved concentration, increased

appreciation and clarity of your sensory experiences, and an

ability to cope with even the most difcult circumstanceswith ease. There are other benets as well, such as being less

reactive, more engaged, and generally happier.

Meditation Is Neither ComplicatedNor Mystical

The instructions for meditation couldn’t be simpler: Pay

attention to what is happening now. When your attention

moves into the future or past or starts talking about the

present, bring it back. Repeat as necessary. Got it? Not too

complicated. Focus. Get distracted. Return your attention.

Repeat.

Something called “awareness” can notice and redirect

attention. And that is what we cultivate when we meditate

– awareness. Awareness is psychological, not mystical. It’s

a faculty that we all have, and, as noted above, we all have

the ability to be mindful in some circumstances. Meditation

will make mindfulness available in all circumstances.There is nothing mysterious about this. Nothing that can’t


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be observed directly, right here, right now. In fact, if we start to

talk about things that we can’t observe right here and right now,

then we’re not talking about mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness

meditation is simple, portable, and durable. We can take it

everywhere and it holds up to any circumstance and challenge. Wedon’t need to get into the ineffable, the unknowable, or the sublime

to be awake in our own lives. We just need to be breathing.

You Do Have The Time: If You Are

Breathing, You Can Be MeditatingMeditation can happen in any moment of your day. It can happen

while you are taking your shower, walking to work, and eating

your lunch. And, it can be a formal practice where you are doing

nothing other than meditation.

The fact of your breathing is something that is always happeningnow. If you are not breathing, then meditation is the least of

your concerns! Our lives are overburdened by commitments and

stressed from information overload and the demands of living

in the Information Age. “I don’t have the time to meditate,” is a

familiar refrain.

Well, you do have the time; if you are breathing, you have theopportunity to meditate. In any moment, you can bring your

attention to what it feels like to breathe right now, even if this is just

for one cycle of the breath – in and out. Do this for a few seconds, or

even a few minutes. Your day could be punctuated with moments

where the simple, natural, and physical process of your breathing

becomes the focus of your attention. Of course, if you can devotesome dedicated time to it, even better. There is no magic number

when it comes to the time to spend meditating. Even a few minutes

are better than none at all. Twenty minutes is a popular target, and


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if you are ambitious, forty-ve; however, as few as eight minutes

may be enough to change your life.

Paying attention to breathing has certain advantages. You could, of

course, pay attention to anything, but if you choose your breathing,three benets follow. First, the breath is ubiquitous and portable.

You don’t need any props or special conditions (other than being

alive). And you can’t forget to bring it with you. You don’t need

a special mantra or object to carry with you. Second, breathing

brings us into our bodies and our bodies live in the now. Our

bodies don’t generate stories about thefuture and past. There is a vast wisdom

in our bodies, and our breathing helps

us to get acquainted with it. Finally,

every breath we take is colored by our

emotional state of the moment. So, if

you are paying attention to your breath

throughout your day, you’ll have yournger on your emotional pulse, so to

speak, and be at the ready to step in if

things are moving in a direction you

don’t want things to move. So, if you

are breathing, you can be meditating!

In fact, anything you do throughout your day can be an opportunity

for meditation. Getting into the shower, brushing your teeth, driving

to work, walking from your car to work … whatever you do in your

day is source material for meditation.

Meditation can be piggybacked onto whatever you are doing right

now. Of course, it might not be a bad idea to devote some time tomeditation in the same way that most Americans devote some

time to American Idol and about twenty more hours of television

programming each week.


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A study from Harvard revealed that we are often not giving our

full attention to the activity at hand (hey, no big surprise, really).

Some activities, like sex, got about 70% of attention; other activities,

like personal grooming, got about 30%. Where was attention?

Anticipating the future, reviewing the past, passing judgment onthe present. The more time study participants spent away from the

present moment, the worse their mood. In fact, starting your day off

in this way, anticipating the future while taking your shower and

getting dressed on automatic pilot might cast a negative shadow

over your day.

So, why not give your full attention to these activities? If you do,

you’ll be starting your day with meditation instead of rumination

and you’ll feel better as a result. Besides, you’ll be getting your brain

into shape too, and you don’t have to spend any extra time to do so.

(Okay, perhaps a little time because you won’t be rushing around

like a decapitated chicken.)

You Can’t Do It Wrong

One of the most frequent complaints I get from my meditation

students is the concern that they can’t meditate because they can’t

concentrate. They can’t clear the thoughts, clutter, and commotion

from their minds.

Relax. The goal of meditation is not clearing the mind of thoughts

or making it a “blank slate” (at least not mindfulness meditation).

The goal of meditation is not to relax. Imagine pressuring

yourself to relax? How is that going to work out? Relaxation is a

fairly reliable by-product of meditation, but it is not the primarygoal. Just pay attention to what is happening now, without

preconceptions, agendas, and conditions, and see how you feel.

You just might feel relaxed.


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Meditation is a process, not a product. In fact, we ourselves are

processes, not products. When we treat ourselves like products, we’ll

only be frustrated. Likewise, meditation is about paying attention

to the process, and since most processes are neither good nor bad,

whatever is happening now can be okay. There is a real opportunityhere to “go with the ow” – the process of what is happening now.

If your thoughts are racing, notice racing thoughts. If you’re laden

with regret or worry, notice regret or worry. You’re still meditating;

you’re not doing it wrong! The difference is that you are aware of

these things, and, with practice, you can make choices about whereyour attention goes and get skilled at disentangling attention from

stories that are distressing.

Meditation is not about attaining a special

state; it’s about paying attention. It’s not

about achievements or outcomes. Rather

it’s about noticing whatever is happeningwithout judging that as good or bad;

without generating opinions about it.

Relax the opinions and real relaxation

may not be far behind.

Your Religion, If YouHave One, Is OkayWith This

Meditation is not religion. Or at least it doesn’t have to be. All

religions have a meditative tradition, but meditation is just about

paying attention to what is happening now. Religion doesn’t ownattention. You do.


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Meditation is not necessarily spiritual either. There is a strong

tradition of secular meditation in the West that started in 1979 at

a university medical center. Patients started paying attention on

purpose to their experience to cope better with chronic illness and

pain. No religion whatsoever.

If you are a person of religion, don’t worry. Meditation, at least

mindfulness meditation, is not in

conict with your beliefs. A

study found that people

who practiced mindfulness became more of whatever

they were already. If you

are Protestant, you’ll be

more Protestant. If you are

Catholic, you’ll be more

Catholic. If you are Jewish

you’ll be more Jewish. If youare Muslim, you’ll be more

Muslim.

Since meditation is giving our full

attention to whatever it is we are doing now, this

increase in piety makes sense. If you pay more attention to what is

happening in church, you’ll get more benets. Simple as that.

While meditation and mindfulness are often associated with the

Buddha or Buddhism, there is nothing essentially Buddhist about

meditation. Meditation existed long before the Buddha and he did

not invent it. The Eastern traditions don’t own meditation. Again,

you own it.

The simple fact that we have a brain that works in particular ways

has more to do with meditation than anything Eastern or esoteric.


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However, people in the Buddhist traditions have been practicing

these techniques for 2500 years, so they know a thing or two about

how to do it. There is a rich tradition of practice and a deep literature

to fascinate, inspire, and guide.

If religion or spirituality is not your agenda, that’s okay too.

Meditation is at its core psychological. As a psychologist, I’ll admit

that I’m biased, but there is a lot of evidence to support this notion.

God and spirit can be involved but they don’t have to be. That gives

you innite (no pun intended) exibility.

You Have Everything You Need ToStart Right Now

You can meditate anytime anywhere. You don’t need any special

conditions. Wherever you are right now is just ne. You can be on acrowded train, waiting for a bus, or in a quiet monastery. All of these

geographies are equally compatible with practice. And meditation

can occur in any moment. You don’t have to wait until your mind is

clearer or things are calmer (as if that might ever happen). You don’t

need any props. While it can be helpful to have a setting and some

accouterments for practice, these are not required.

Make a space for practice. It can be helpful to have a dedicated place

for meditation. If you don’t have an entire room, a part of a room

where your meditation cushion can go will sufce. To devote some of

your home’s real estate to meditation announces your commitment

to this practice and facilitates it at the same time.

A proper cushion (usually called a zafu or gomden) can help you to

get into a comfortable posture with your hips above your knees. You

can put your zafu or gomden on a padded mat, called a zabuton.


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‹ When you notice your attention in any one of these nine places,

gently return your attention to something that is happening now.

‹ What is happening now?

The activity of themoment includes:

~ What we see

~ What we hear

~ What we smell

~ What we taste

~ What we feel as

sensations in the bodyincluding, breathing.

Thoughts, images, and

emotions can also be

activites of the moment

when we can attend to them as events rather than following their

meanings, but this is difcult. So, we start our mindfulness practice

by attending to the more concrete sensations of now.

For example, focus your attention on breathing, and when your

mind wanders to one of the nine places mentioned above—and it

will—gently bring it back to the noticeable sensations of breathing.

Repeat as necessary.

If you have a lot of repeats, that’s Okay

Remember, there is NO way to do this practice wrong. In fact, the

more you have to return attention, the more mindfulness you aredeveloping. This is an important paradox and can be a touchstone

for encouraging yourself to persist.

!"#$ Se(sa+"(s

Taste

Hear

See

Smell


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I invite you to give yourself permission to do this practice and

permission to do it imperfectly. That’s the human way. Don’t get hung

up on things needing to be quiet or following a correct technique.

So long as you can bring interest to whatever is happening now, you

are practicing meditation. And if you can bring fascination, even better.

What Comes Next?

Okay. So you think this meditation stuff is kind of cool, and you

are ready to try it or you’ve been doing it more or lessevery day for a while and you’d like to take it to

the next level. What now?

The Pure Life Meditation website has many

resources to guide you in three simple

steps: learn, nd and shop. First, to learn

more about meditation, you can read about

meditation. There are many wonderful books

on the topic by renowned teachers. You can

read in the Eastern tradition or the Western,

whatever draws you closer.

If you’d like something innovative andaccessible, try my book, Wild Chickens and

Petty Tyrants: 108 Metaphors for Mindfulness

or my primer on the Buddhist traditions, The

Everything Buddhism Book. These are good places

to start.

For a complete selection of meditation titles, look in the SHOPsection of PureLifeMeditation.com for a bookstore that can engage

you for many days to come. Of course, reading is no substitute for

http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=tmm_pap_title_0http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=tmm_pap_title_0http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Buddhism-Book-introduction-traditions/dp/1440510288/ref=pd_vtp_b_2http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Buddhism-Book-introduction-traditions/dp/1440510288/ref=pd_vtp_b_2http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Buddhism-Book-introduction-traditions/dp/1440510288/ref=pd_vtp_b_2http://purelifemeditation.com/http://purelifemeditation.com/http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Buddhism-Book-introduction-traditions/dp/1440510288/ref=pd_vtp_b_2http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Buddhism-Book-introduction-traditions/dp/1440510288/ref=pd_vtp_b_2http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=tmm_pap_title_0http://www.amazon.com/Wild-Chickens-Petty-Tyrants-Mindfulness/dp/0861715764/ref=tmm_pap_title_0


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practice, but reading can orient you to what is important and help

to overcome blind spots that are inevitable along the way.

If you want to sit for extended periods, having the right cushion can

make all the difference. Visit the SHOP section of PureLifeMeditation.com for a full line of meditation cushions specically designed to

improve your meditation experience. Of course, you can sit in a chair

if you prefer. What matters most is your intention and attention, not

your posture.

Finding a teacher or a practice center is a good next step once you’vegotten going. Practicing with others helps to support practice, and

having a place to go can enliven your practice experience. A qualied

teacher can be a guide on your path to self-discovery. So, explore the

FIND section of PureLifeMeditation.com to nd a teacher in your

area, or plan a meditation adventure to a retreat center.

You can listen and download a series of guided meditations frommy page on the Pure Life Meditation website (when available) or

from the Learn section of the Exquiste Mind website. There are ten

hours of different practices. These will keep you off the streets for

a while!

The LEARN section ofPureLifeMeditation.com has many additional

resources for guiding your meditation path. You can also read my

blog, Mindfulness Matters.

Explore the Pure Life Meditation website for other great learning

resources and to nd a teacher or practice center near you. While

you’re at it, outt yourself with the gear to take you on the next part

of your journey.

http://purelifemeditation.com/http://purelifemeditation.com/http://exquisitemind.com/learn.htmlhttp://purelifemeditation.com/http://features.beliefnet.com/mindfulnessmattershttp://purelifemeditation.com/http://purelifemeditation.com/http://features.beliefnet.com/mindfulnessmattershttp://purelifemeditation.com/http://exquisitemind.com/learn.htmlhttp://purelifemeditation.com/http://purelifemeditation.com/


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Copyright © 2012 Arnie Kozak, Pure Life Meditation
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