So you think you can’t meditate?

Even someone who’s never stepped on a yoga mat will know that Meditation is having its moment. Not so long ago, people who meditated were regarded as a little flaky, ridiculed in movies as relics from the 60s and 70s, and generally depicted as long-haired hippies in beads and flowing cheesecloth. Now, we know that the hippies, like the ancient yogis, were onto something. Research has shown that meditation boosts the immune system, lowers blood pressure, relieves anxiety and depression, increases productivity, and enhances creativity. 

So why isn’t everyone at it, especially anyone with a regular asana practice? While Dhyana, or Meditative Absorption, is one of the eight limbs of yoga outlined in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, for most people who regularly practise yoga, the emphasis stays firmly on the third limb, Asana.

I stood guilty as charged, for a long time. While I could rattle off the eight limbs with ease and knew that Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana and Dhyana came in as numbers four, five, six and seven in Patanjali’s eight-limbed path of yoga, I spent all my time on Asana, swerving right around those pesky “non-active” parts of the practice. I might dabble happily in a bit of Pranayama or Meditation at an occasional workshop, but that was about it.

It’s a common strategy. It goes without saying that if you love the Ashtanga practice, you love diving into the asana sequence. Maybe to the point where you prioritise it above all other aspects of the practice. After all that asana practice, though, that seventh limb of meditation will be more accessible, if you want to make the time for it.

Meditation teacher Nischala Joy Devi* laments that we talk about “limbs” at all. Because this suggests that each one is entirely separate, whereas the eight limbs work together. When you’re fully immersed in your Asana practice, for example, you’re in a moving meditation. You’re using Drishti, so practising Dharana (focused concentration) and Pranayama (breath control) too. Elements of the Yamas and Niyamas (limbs numbers one and two) are involved, especially the Tapas (discipline) that got you on the mat and Svadhyaya (study of the self).  

I’ve sometimes heard it said that you don’t have to worry about all eight limbs, because if you do as Pattabhi Jois, the founder of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, advised: “Practise And All Is Coming”, they’ll reveal themselves naturally over time. Well, yes, kind of. There is a morsel of truth in there somewhere. And it’s certainly a pretty good get-out-of-jail card for Asana addicts. But while Pattabhi Jois was a man with a vast knowledge of yoga, his command of English was limited. Tempting as it might be to mould his words into what we’d like them to mean, we can’t be sure. It’s possible he meant something more akin to what any good teacher would tell a new student: “Just keep getting on the mat, and you’ll see what happens.” The practice is transformative, and it’s difficult to explain, much less understand, exactly how it works unless you experience it. That’s how I interpret “Practice and All is Coming”. 

However, magical as the asana practice is, you’re not going to spontaneously find yourself on a meditation cushion with a fully established sitting meditation practice just because you practise Primary, Second or even beyond. There is a bit of decisive action involved. If you want to have a meditation practice, sooner or later, you will have to make a conscious decision to sit and give it a go. 

I often hear people say they “can’t” meditate because their minds are too busy. But that’s all part of the process. You’re not trying to sit and make yourself stop thinking (and if you are, no wonder you’re giving up!). Meditation is not about stopping thoughts or controlling the mind. It’s about observing your inner thoughts and emotions without reacting to them. It helps you see things clearly and pause before you react. You start to see the “space” that Victor Frankl talks about in his famous quote: “Between the stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom”.**

You can’t “do” meditation. All you can do is create the right circumstances for meditation to happen. The preliminary practices, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, and Dharana, all help make Dhyana, or meditative absorption, more possible. 

There are many different techniques used by meditators in all traditions. The simplest is simply to observe the breath. The late American Zen teacher Charlotte Joko Beck recommended labelling the thoughts as a way of detaching from them. In her book, Everyday Zen***, she explains how this works: “There’s a world of difference between thinking: “She’s impossible!” and observing “I’m having a thought that she’s impossible”.  

You can also draw your awareness back to a mantra or a visual. It doesn’t matter which technique you use. Just sit for 5 minutes and draw your attention back to the breath, mantra or visual every time you realise you’ve drifted off into thought. Notice how it makes you feel. Whatever technique you use, you’ll slowly start to notice that there have been moments of true meditative absorption in your sitting practice. So, for example, if you were repeatedly returning to the breath, you’ll realise there was a moment (maybe even two!) where you had stopped consciously doing that, but you weren’t thinking either. Of course, as soon as you realise this, you’re back in thinking mode. But that’s ok. You just come back to the breath, happy that you’ve cultivated the ability to leave the thoughts behind and take the awareness inward. If you sit for 5 minutes and get a few seconds where you haven’t been thinking, that’s fantastic. And if you keep it up, those nuggets of “not-thinking time” will expand. You’ll find that just like the asana practice, your meditation practice becomes something you want to do, not something you think you should do. 

How To Meditate

• Find a quiet place to sit. Set a timer for 5 minutes.
• Sit up straight, on a meditation cushion with legs loosely crossed in front of you or folded back, or on a straight-backed chair with your feet on the floor. Place hands on your knees or cupped on your lap. Take the time to find a comfortable position. 
• Close your eyes and soften your face, releasing the tongue. Try to be still and resist any urge to fidget. 
• Notice your natural breath (not controlling it). Follow it as it goes in, goes out.
• Notice when your mind wanders. As soon as you realise you’ve drifted off into thoughts (your “To-Do” List is a favourite!), bring the awareness back to your breath going in, your breath going out.
• Keep drawing the awareness back to your breath, again, and again and again, whenever you realise you’re thinking. 
• When your timer sounds to finish, gently open your eyes, and take a moment to notice the effect of your meditation practice. 

*JBrown Yoga Talks podcast, episode 209

** Man’s Search For Meaning, by Victor Frankl (Ebury Publishing)

***Everyday Zen, by Charlotte Joko Beck (HarperCollins Publishing)

Breathe & Meditate Class with Ríonach is online on Wednesdays from 8 am to 9:15 am.