what do you do about "bad meditation" days?

[sjel]

Inspired by bring4th_jade. Most days my morning meditation goes okay. Occasionally it goes amazing, and i have a clarity for hours afterwards, lingering throughout the day. During these great ones I have positive insights, feels good. The average meditation I spend about the first 10-15 minutes "settling down" into the clear, listening mindspace, and then I really meditate for the next 20-25 minutes.

On the bad days I can't even sit still. Today was a "bad meditation" day, but also enlightening later on. On these days I try not to fall into the cycle of negativity: "Oh man, I couldn't clear my mind at ALL, today will be a terrible experience for sure, I'm going to miss cues from my higher self, disrespect people, oh man, oh man..." that sort of loop.

so what do you do when your daily meditation does NOT go right? Is it ever so bad for you that you could barely sit through 20 minutes?

[Billy]

I used to meditate with regularity but then stopped the practice and I think it is because of what you are describing.  I was expecting perfection each and every time and became disillusioned when the insights I had been hoping for didn't come.  Meditations became painful and I chucked it.  I want to start meditating again but realize that I need to change my mindset.  My new way of looking at things is that every little bit counts.  Each and every meditation adds something, even if it doesn't seem like it.  There is no need to get caught up on perfect posture, technique or results.  The intention is enough.  The effort yields its own rewards.  I think there is actually a group meditation today in the chat room.  Great place to start or further your practice.    

[Jade]

I'm pretty sure it's from Q'uo that I was encouraged to persevere through the bad days. The message was basically that the "perceived product" of the meditation doesn't matter - it's all about the intention. It's like how Ra would say that Carla would expend the energy to have a session once the group had decided to have a session, even if they cut the session short or didn't end up having the session at all. Her intentions for the act facilitated an energy transfer.

Sometimes I meditate for 5 crappy minutes, sometimes I can zone all the way out for 30-45 mins. For me, success is just taking the time to do it, period.

[AnthroHeart]

I usually do little 2-5 second meditations where I clear my mind. Then I repeat that for a bit.
I don't really measure the total time.

When I meditate, I focus intently on one thing.

[isis]

i meditate before sleeping at night, in bed, in the dark, all comfy n stuff. usually lasts 3-5hrs. i can keep my mind quiet if i want but i've found i prefer to let it wander & chatter & see where it goes. sometimes it insists on being quiet, though. if it goes in a direction i don't like i redirect it & i don't have any trouble doing this. so i really never have a bad meditation imo. very rarely i'll fall asleep quickly but that doesn't leave me disappointed the next day bc i don't see meditation as a requirement. i'm very lenient with myself. plus, i feel like it happens so much throughout my days...like when i'm walking 1-2hrs, when i'm cleaning, when i'm eating, when i'm gazing out of the window or staring at a wall. the only times i feel like i'm not meditating are when i'm doing things like listening to someone (or some show/movie) or reading something. also, i usually always do what gw does: take a few seconds throughout my day, sometimes multiple times a day, to feel in awe that i exist, that I Am.

[AnthroHeart]

And feel the presence energy of everything around you. That goes well with pondering "I AM".
They both enhance awareness.

[Aion]

What's a bad meditation? Either you meditate or you do not. If you do, you will come face to face with the catalyst you are processing. If you do not life will find other ways to get its point across.

[anagogy]

so what do you do when your daily meditation does NOT go right? Is it ever so bad for you that you could barely sit through 20 minutes?

I find forcing it to be counter productive. Just do something else. Simply intend that you will try again tomorrow and that you will be really focused and in the mood to meditate. You would be surprised how effective a firm instruction to yourself can be. It gives your subconscious something to fixate on.

Alternatively, do some exercise before you meditate. Even just 10 push-ups makes meditating at least 10 times easier. Usually when you can't sit still its because your body doesn't feel like sitting still, so you need to expend some physical energy to properly utilize your mental energy. It will really help you get in the flow of things.

edit: I also wanted to add this goes doubly true for magickal work (i.e. manifestation). Don't attempt to create new "belief bridges" when in a resistant negative state. It won't go well. It is a *lot* of work for little gain, wait till you are in a less resistant state and you will make twice as much progress. Quality over quantity.

[Night Owl]

Personally I try and bring the meditation state with me all day long. If you can't meditate still in silence try meditating in some other way. Listening to music or playing an instrument, exercising, contemplation, reading, philosophing are all ways in which you can bring up this meditation state. Once you reach this state don't just let it go and think you're done for today, try and keep this vibration and hold on to it. It makes it much easier afterward to just bring up this peaceful undistorted state of beingness. You contain the potential to be able to bring yourself to meditation state by simply focusing on your breathing. One thing that helps about breathing is to not only breathe with your lungs but with all your energy field and chakras and feel the energy rising up from the earth to your mind. Use your lungs as the center of attraction which brings energy from all around into and through you. Good luck.

[sjel]

Alternatively, do some exercise before you meditate. Even just 10 push-ups makes meditating at least 10 times easier. Usually when you can't sit still its because your body doesn't feel like sitting still, so you need to expend some physical energy to properly utilize your mental energy.

yeah, ive started doing 11 pushups (i like the number 11 a lot) before my meditation, as well as doing gibberish meditation (which is letting your mouth and body move and make noises to release inner tension/pressure), BEFORE I even sit down to silently meditate. But even with this, I sometimes still have intense mental chatter. The gibberish meditation really helps most of the time though.

Don't attempt to create new "belief bridges" when in a resistant negative state. It won't go well. It is a *lot* of work for little gain, wait till you are in a less resistant state and you will make twice as much progress. Quality over quantity.

I think I disagree with this because - isn't it that, during the times when you have a heavier weight on you, the work you do strengthens you that much more? Like if meditation is compared to climbing a steep hill every day - on the days you have no weight, it's a regular old workout, you gain an average amount from it. on the days you have a heavy backpack, rather than it being "little gain," it's actually working your leg muscles more than it would have without the backpack. so on those super distracting days, isn't it extremely beneficial to adamantly seek the silence??

this is the philosophy ive been using, and sometimes, like today, i break through to a more rewarding silence than if I had been clearheaded initially.

i'm more wondering what you all do when you find your mind unnaturally cluttered and can't seem to find the silence.

[AnthroHeart]

Just say "ignore" to each thought that comes up. Eventually you'll have pure awareness.

[Plenum]

why would you ignore what the Creation is trying to show you?

[AnthroHeart]

why would you ignore what the Creation is trying to show you?

If you're going for pure awareness, or to experience Creator, it's important to get past all thought.

But if you want to learn more about yourself, then sure, entertain them.

But if they make you feel bad, you can turn that around immediately, and start feeling good again.

[Plenum]

But if they make you feel bad, you can turn that around immediately, and start feeling good again.

I dunno.  I don't see 'feeling bad' as an issue.  It's definitely not something that one 'desires', but there are ways of balancing the thoughts that lead to poor emotional states.  That is, there is causation and reason for why one feels that way.

[anagogy]

I think I disagree with this because - isn't it that, during the times when you have a heavier weight on you, the work you do strengthens you that much more? Like if meditation is compared to climbing a steep hill every day - on the days you have no weight, it's a regular old workout, you gain an average amount from it. on the days you have a heavy backpack, rather than it being "little gain," it's actually working your leg muscles more than it would have without the backpack. so on those super distracting days, isn't it extremely beneficial to adamantly seek the silence??

this is the philosophy ive been using, and sometimes, like today, i break through to a more rewarding silence than if I had been clearheaded initially.

i'm more wondering what you all do when you find your mind unnaturally cluttered and can't seem to find the silence.

In certain situations you are absolutely correct. But it is sort of like working out when you are sick. It could just make you sicker to exert yourself when you are in a resistant place. It really just depends on the circumstance.

There are challenges that strengthen you, and there are challenges that kick you when you're down... I suppose it just takes a level of discernment to determine which is which.

[Nau7ik]

I know what you're talking about! We all have days where we feel off balance or that the meditation was chaotic. For me, I understand that difficulties are apart of the process, So I will go and sit in meditation regardless. I tell myself "I seek truth, I seek God above all else." I use those feelings as motivation for seeking.

"I'm feeling off today, but I will still put in the time because I am serious about my seeking." I think that is a powerful statement to yourself and the universe.

I believe Ra and Q'uo have said that it matters not how the meditation went. The intention to meditate holds the metaphysical weight.

So if one can take that on faith, the difficulties aren't so difficult to plod through much love to you all!

[AnthroHeart]

You don't need to seek if you realize you already are everything. I do meditations just to feel the presence of everything around me, not so much to seek anymore.
Seeking implies it's not really in you already.

[Nía]

I'm pretty sure it's from Q'uo that I was encouraged to persevere through the bad days. The message was basically that the "perceived product" of the meditation doesn't matter - it's all about the intention.

... made me think of this one:

The habit of meditation is, like any other habit, one which is learned through repetition. There is often the concept of meditation as being a complete blanking out of the mind and a resting in heavenly bliss. Yet we would say to you, my brother, that you will also have a fruitful and helpful meditation spending your time in silence, watching you thoughts arise and allowing them to fall, watching them arise and allowing them to fall away, watching them arise and allowing them once again, and once again, to fall away.

That may be your experience of meditation. That may be your experience of meditation for many years. That does not mean that that is what is occurring in meditation on a deeper level. It means that you have a characteristically active and restless mind and therefore it may take years and years for you to be able to do more on the surface than allow the silence to continue while you interrupt that silence and let it fall away, interrupt and let it fall, interrupt and let it fall.

The seeming turbulence of the surface of the mind does not in any way keep your deeper mind from realizing your intention to focus your will upon the seeking of the communication that is in the silence. And bolstered by this awareness of your intention and the setting of your will, your deeper self will use that meditation time just as it would if your outer experience were completely peaceful.

Love it!  

[ada]

so what do you do when your daily meditation does NOT go right? Is it ever so bad for you that you could barely sit through 20 minutes?

I try to sit through at least 15 minutes, my mind would usually run into all directions like a mad monkey, but the choice to stand up and not meditate is my own

[native]

i'm more wondering what you all do when you find your mind unnaturally cluttered and can't seem to find the silence.

I meditate less and less these days, and often listen to meditative music for something to focus on. Also, the transcendental meditation method is to allow thought and follow it, then gently guide the mind back to a repetitive mantra. The idea being that you want to allow the mind to go where it wants, rather than fighting it.

[native]

Ra actually noted once that Jim required daily meditation I believe, whereas it became less useful for Don and Carla.

This seems to be the goal.."..and if possible, moving through this gateway, the penetration of violet-ray intelligent infinity. This may be seen to be manifested by a sense of the consecrate or hallowed nature of everyday creations and activities."