meditation - if you gonna do it, do it right

throwing yourself down the rabbit hole of meditation without due diligence, without full understanding of what you're embarking on, without structure & support... well, you're rolling the dice. 

there are a few common misconceptions about meditation: that it makes things 'easy'; that it's pleasant; that it fixes all that needs to be 'fixed'

in reality, your meditation practice can be challenging. on the periphery, just sitting still is a real pain for some people. as we go deeper, for meditation to give us clarity, first we have to go through the muck.

it takes a very mindful approach, best supported by people, teachers or guides, who understand the mental terrain & who can guide you through the course.

as they say in the vippasana method, a solid MEDITATION practice is akin to spiritual surgery - the opening of mental & emotional wounds, done so that you can sanitise them & no longer allow old experiences to influence your life. however, just as in surgery, you need qualified professionals to carry out the process & to oversee healing, if that is what is required.

jumping into a solid, daily 60 minute meditation practice without training, experience or a teacher to guide you is bold at best - dodgy at worst. not only do you need a reference to tell you what to do when you meet common obstacles, you also need a reference point for any negative stuff that comes up & advice on how to deal with it. i'm not saying that you need to spend hundreds of dollars on some guru quack course just to have someone play youtube mantra & blow incense in your face... but if your yoga studio has 'intro to meditation' courses, it might be worth taking one!! then at least you have a person, or point of contact, to check in with if & when you hit potholes in your practice.

because inevitably, you will. the whole point of meditation is to clear out old shit to make room for new insight, & even spiritual evolution. you need someone to rap with about this process. 100%. 

my point is this. from the outside, yes, meditation is as simple as sitting still & closing your eyes. internally? there is a storied terrain containing your entire life story to navigate. take a navigator!

check this vice article on bad meditation experiences & keep it in mind if you decide to dive into a practice of your own. which is a freakin' great idea. just get some advice first! join a group, a studio, find a guru or community, do a course or hit me up. if you gonna do it, do it right.