Sitting Meditation, I finally got round to it.

I have both read and been told that sitting with yourself with no expectations, focusing on your breathing and just being is one of the most compassionate things you can do for yourself. I had been planning on adding a sitting meditation to my daily practices for quite some time and today I took the plunge and set myself 20 minutes of sitting. It wasn't boring. So often we are unable to listen to ourselves properly because of all the outside stimulus going on. Often we find ourselves thinking of either the past or the future but rarely do we give the present moment our full attention. You might be sitting on a bus or walking to work and thinking to yourself about that programme you saw last night on television, or thinking about how you are looking forward to going to that party on the weekend. Sometimes even taking yourself on a walk through the countryside doesn't expend your full attention as the natural scenery just ends up being a backdrop to your own inner soap opera.

Turn the TV off, the computer off, any music off and sit down, take a breath and relax into the moment. You will find yourself becoming more aware of outside noises, don't try to ignore them, just let everything be. Today as I sat with the window open I heard every tree branch swaying in the wind and every distant bird cry brought a genuine smile to my face. Most people that practise this meditation regularly find that sitting brings about states of bliss and I found myself beginning to touch that today on my first attempt (OK so 10 years worth of other forms of meditation has probably come in handy)

Answers to questions you haven't allowed yourself to fully ponder will flow up to the surface of your mind and you will become aware of gentle flashes of insight as you sit, open and aware as the world goes about it's daily business around you.

I found sitting meditation to be of course, very similar to other forms of meditation I practise but the significant difference I found with sitting is that even the simplest and most natural form of meditation I practise still involves a little visualisation and pattern of breathing combined with imagery. I enjoyed this difference, I enjoyed sitting. I'm going to add it to my daily practises.