When somebody decided to start meditation, first question that baffles him is how to begin on his path. The first step in meditation is extremely important to maintain the enthusiasm in coming days. If in the beginning you get some success in meditating, the same will inspire you to continue meditation for long. It will result in some real progress and benefits in meditation.
If you are planning to give meditation a try, I would advise you to first of all start with the simplest form of meditation instead of some advanced techniques. The basic thing you should do in the beginning is to start spending some time in silence. Yes, just spend some time in silence ! Start by spending 10-15 minutes daily in silence. Don’t do anything during this duration. Just be silent. This is enough. Don’t try any complex thing in the beginning. Go to a park or garden in morning alone and sit silently there. If possible, go to a sea beach and sit silently there. If spending quiet time with nature is not possible then go to any nearby place of worship like Church, Temple or mosque and sit there in silence.
You must be wondering how just sitting in silence can help you in meditation. However, as you do it you will find that it is only when you actually sit in silence for sometime that you realize the real meaning of this small practice. Our mind is a constant chatterbox where all kinds of thoughts keep emerging. Even when you sit silently, your thought process will not stop. As you sit silently, you will observe that still thoughts are arising in your mind and taking your attention with them. The thing to do in such a situation is to don’t try to be a part of your though pattern. Just remain a observer of your thoughts as you sit silently. I know from my personal experience that it is not that easy. When thoughts comes, they tend to take away our attention with them. We just lost in some kind of thought of past or future. It will happen with you also. However, you should not feel discouraged by these invasions of thoughts. With a little practice, you’ll become adapt in being watcher of your thought.
One very helpful thing to do while sitting in silence is to listen to the subtle voices of the surroundings. For example if you are sitting in silence near a beach, listen to the roaring thunder of the waves. Listen it closely and observe how the sea waves come and strike with the coast. If a breeze is blowing, listen to the sound of the breeze. Listen to the sound produced when wind strike with the leaves of a tree. In short, try to listen the voice of the nature as it unfolds in front of you during that session of silent sitting. Listening to the outer voice of nature will help you shut the inner conflicting voices of the thoughts inside you. Rather you will be amazed with its effectiveness in reducing the incessant and meaningless thoughts process in mind. This small exercise of spending time in silence will prove to be a very helpful tool in laying the foundation of a strong spiritual path of meditation.
Let me finish this article by a quote from Mother Teresa on Silence :
“We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature – trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.”