Why I am unable to meditate well?

• Rooney9

  1 Dec 10, 00:27

  I sit down to meditate, but feel that I cant concentrate and my thoughts are elsewhere. Why is it so? Because the mind is restless, need to calm down the thoughts first?

  I heard from Ajahn Brahm that if you are unable to meditate well, that is because you are fighting your thoughts, like I am unable to concentrate, I need to concentrate and focus, arrghhhh.........similarly when you meditate, you are in a sleepy position and unable to concentrate? This, Ajahn Brahmn advises, is not to fight it if you are sleepy. Just go with the flow. He said what is important is your reaction to the sleepiness or concentration when meditating.

   

   

• likeyou

  1 Dec 10, 00:38

  External forces is hard to bear.

  It make ones mind go haywire.

  It make ones mind mad and angry.

  It make ones lost control and temper.

  it make ones anger and quarrel.

  The evil forces is too great to bear.

  The only peace I get is I am alone, quiet in the dark place.

• sinweiy

  1 Dec 10, 09:28

  i think there's too many external information bombarding our mind. nowaday is information explosion generation. the more one can cut off, the better of taming the monkey mind. keep the mind pure and clean as possible.

  TAMING the MONKEY MIND
  http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/monkeym.pdf

  http://www.ymba.org/monkey/monkyfrm.htm

  can also watch your food intake. don't do on full or hungry stomach. eat 70% full.

  heard also for married person, don't do within 2 hours before and after sex. think more to do with conscience.

  /\

• PedoBear

  1 Dec 10, 10:21

  i thought it does not really matter as

  nothing is everything and everything is nothing

  so when your mind is restless = your mind is not restless

  and when you cannot concentrate and focus = you are able to concentrate and focus

• realization

  1 Dec 10, 10:49

  What sort of meditation do you practise?

• dukedracula

  1 Dec 10, 15:36

  i read this somewhere; 'mediation is not thinking'

• likeyou

  1 Dec 10, 15:44

  Is meditation different from listening to chanting of buddha?

• diablotical

  1 Dec 10, 16:30

  Hi Rooney, 

  I think it is normal for us to feel that way. I do have 'bad' and 'good' days when meditating. During the 'bad' day, my mind will flicker and start to wonder.

  I THINK... the reason why you feel restlessness could be due to the fact that you think you are restless before the meditation. Don't be so particular about it. Just sit down, relax, breathe!

  Meditation is about watch your mind, watching your breath. 

  The common things you will think about is:

  1) Events which had past (either happy, or sad e.g. boss scolding you)

  2) Events which has not come 

  If you are sitting for 5 mins, just tell yourself, nothing in this world can disturb you. This is your 5 mins. Unhappy or happy events which has passed, has passed, you cannot do anything about it. Happy or unhappy events which has not arrive, you also cannot do anything about it. Leave the worrying till next time. 

  Then notice what are you feeling? what are you thinking? where does your restlessness come from? where does it goes? what happens next?

  Try to lock your attention to the breath. feel the sensation of the air at the tip of the nose or whatever object you are meditating on. When you realized you ha drifted, come back to the breathing gently. It is not your fault, this is how the mind reacts. 

  Most importantly, enjoy the blissfulness which stays when you are calm and peaceful, if possible, feel the joy =)

  It is sad when most people do not know how to appreciate this but you can! continue to practice hard. This wholesome feeling will be the motivation to bring you back to practice in the future.

  Hope it does help.

• likeyou

  1 Dec 10, 16:32

  Will mediation make your fresher? I mean if you are unable to sleep. You mediate for say 5 to 10 min....

• wisdomeye

  1 Dec 10, 23:04

  Hi Rooney,

  Just my guess and hope it help.

  It may be that in your daily life, you did not keep your behavior and mental state well, ie, keep your precepts well, and thus your gross 烦æ�¼ is still very strong... it carries on into your meditation.  If you are not used to letting go of your afflictive mental states eg. anger, impatience, finding faults with others, greed, pride, jealousy etc., then it is hard to suddenly let go during meditation period.  Therefore , the ancient masters always emphasize that one use precepts and compassion practices to tame one's mind on the grosser level during daily life and then concentration can much more easily arise during practice session.

  Also, please don't hope for results very fast.  Hope or expectation is a big obstacle.  Actually this hope will also be naturally lessened if one is careful with one's mind in daily and keep the precepts well. It is all inter-linked.  Practice on compassion, morality and the other paramitas in daily life is very important and it supports our meditation practice in a very vital way.

   

   

   

   

• Demon Bane

  2 Dec 10, 18:06

  Have u tried other forms of meditation eg. Chanting Buddhas' names or Om Mani Padme Hom ? Maybe u have too much tea/coffee? The caffeine can affect mental state.

• An Eternal Now

  9 Dec 10, 17:02

  Originally posted by Rooney9:

  I sit down to meditate, but feel that I cant concentrate and my thoughts are elsewhere. Why is it so? Because the mind is restless, need to calm down the thoughts first?

  I heard from Ajahn Brahm that if you are unable to meditate well, that is because you are fighting your thoughts, like I am unable to concentrate, I need to concentrate and focus, arrghhhh.........similarly when you meditate, you are in a sleepy position and unable to concentrate? This, Ajahn Brahmn advises, is not to fight it if you are sleepy. Just go with the flow. He said what is important is your reaction to the sleepiness or concentration when meditating.

   

   

  It's very normal. You need to meditate regularly for a period of time. Try 20-30 minutes a day. It will take time and practice.

  Thusness's advice on lethargy and restlessness works for me: when tired, practice strong mindfulness of bodily sensations. You will have a crystal clear luminous sensation and feel awake. When restless, practice endless dropping/letting go. Mind will gradually subside.

• Demon Bane

  15 Dec 10, 11:39

  So now u still have problems meditating?

• sinweiy

  15 Dec 10, 13:26

  i find reciting Amituofo(or Buddho) using sets of 3-3-4 very useful. without the sets to "leash" the mind, the mind wander off and think of other thing easily.

  sets of 3-3-4

  Amituofo Amituofo Amituofo (pause)

  Amituofo Amituofo Amituofo (pause)

  Amituofo Amituofo Amituofo Amituofo (pause and continue all over again)...

  /\

• Weychin

  17 Dec 10, 14:08

  Hi Rooney,in order to meditate, you must achieve perfect ease/perfect tension.

  The balance from  extremes of agitation and torpor. The mind is often compared to a monkey and an elephant, first, always running around, and very hard to catch hold of, the other, hard to get moving.

  
  

  We  are often caught in the two states, making focus and concentration hard.  Also, we tend to occupied to"doing" things, keeping our mind and body busy, as if to reifying our existence.  We do not allow ourselves to be doing nothing.

  
  

  To keep my suggestion  simple,  in agitative state , a body at ease is a mind at ease.  Allocate meditation time as time for yourself to be doing nothing, not achieving, not wanting, not doing. If body is tense, relax the body and tend to any body aches, if any. Use a back rest(back to wall) to relax the body.  As time goes by, when the mind is at ease, watching your thoughts and emotions. In an agitative state, everything is a "lump",  slowly learn to identify thoughts, and emotions aroused by  thoughts and emotions attached to thoughts. Learn your habitual tendencies, strong, mild, no, emotions arising, inconsequential thoughts,the flow of it . 

  
  

  In a torporific state, especially after day of stress at work, the mind winds down or switches off.  Have a shower, eat lightly and maybe short nap.  Concentrate on proper posture first, erect spine,shoulder. tongue touching palate, etc. Once sufficient attention is achieve, concentrate on breathing or focusing on an object.

  
  

  To try understand the mindset, imagine the experience you have when you go an watch a movie, eating popcorn, passing time not really doing anything. Sounds corny and mundane, but it works! 

  
  

  In daily life, when dealing with people, lightly observe your  attention, arising thoughts and emotions when interacting with everbody.

  Do a rectification of faults in front the image of Buddha of your intolerance to other people in your daily interaction.    

  
  

  Finally, contemplate on your self worth,that, is it  ok that you are useless and worth nothing?   Do you need to seek your own approval or others' approval for you being  what you are? Why are you struggling internally? Do you need measure how much effort you should make to commensurate your returns.