[quote=Gil
esC;13269]Hi Tigger,
I hadn't forgotten you, was just busy, so I'm back and will try and get your thread back on topic.
Ok, so you have expectations about what meditation should feel like. That's perfectly ok and normal.
However, the meditative state is something that is very simple yet our expectations and unfamiliarity with it (both things that are in the "mind") do tend to work against us and prevent us from getting into that state for any length of time.
We've all entered the state many times and sometimes we can recall being in it, such as like those times you lay on the grass on a warm summers day and just look up at the clouds and become completely aware of everything without actually thinking about anything.
And that's what the meditative state is really... a state of complete awareness. What most commonly gets in the way is thoughts; whether those thoughts are created by expectations or emotions or memories or whatever. When these thoughts arise (and you can observe that happening in your mind all the time) we attach onto them and start to follow them. With the act of meditation, what we want to do is observe that the thought is rising, then simply acknowledge it and let it go. It takes practice, but with time you will be able to just let the thoughts go, regardless of what they relate to. And occasionally you'll get thoughts that really drag you away from your meditation, but that's normal, and when you observe that that has happened you can use that observation as a trigger to bring yourself back to your meditation practice, just inviting your mantra back.
If you expect to feel things (like relaxation, calm etc.) during the meditation, you are putting your focus on your senses and your emotional state, and not letting those things go. Recognise that meditation doesn't give you those things whilst you are meditating, it is simply a state of complete awareness, without any emotion, without any thoughts etc. It is the effects of the meditative state that stay with us after we come out of the meditation practice that allow us to be more calm and relaxed in our everyday lives. You may start to notice this just slightly at first, but after a while of practicing meditation it becomes more of your daily being and you will recognise the change from when you started, much more.
So, simply let the expectations go, continue practicing your meditation, using your mantra as a tool to help you take the focus away from thoughts etc. If thoughts come up, (which is perfectly normal, so avoid thinking you are doing something wrong) just let them go and bring your mantra back. If you become aware that the mantra disappears and there are no thoughts either, then just stay with that.
Hugs
Giles[/QUO
can any one tell me what mantra means
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