10min Theta Meditation

You are never more essentially, more deeply, yourself than when you are still.

- Eckhart Tolle, from A New Earth

Meditation is easy to learn. In this article, I will introduce you to a method that has been around for thousands of years and has been used by millions of people all over the world.

There may be a lot of different types of meditation, but they all have essentially the same purpose: to facilitate the realization of oneness with the universe. This oneness is enlightenment. Enlightenment isn’t only for Zen masters, though. It’s for everyone.

If your reason for learning meditation is not to experience enlightenment, that’s okay, too. Meditation has a lot of other positive benefits and they are all valid reasons to practice.

It is important to be open-minded when starting a meditation practice. As spiritual teacher Adyashanti put it in his book True Meditation, “The most important thing is that we come to meditation with an open attitude that’s not colored by the past, by what we’ve heard about meditation through culture, through the media, or through our various spiritual and religious traditions. We need to approach the notion of meditation in a way that is fresh and innocent”.

So, if you are ready, let’s get started.

Step 1

Sit in a comfortable position. You can either sit on the floor or in a chair. The important thing is that your posture is straight. You don’t want to fall asleep, so a pose that keeps you alert is best.

Step 2

Put your hands on your knees or lap. You can have them facing down or up; whatever you like.

Step 3

Close your eyes, and relax into the pose. Aim for a balance between resting your body and keeping your spine straight; not tense, but not loose, either.

Step 4

Breathe in and out through your nose. Begin to slow the pace until you achieve a very relaxed and comfortable pattern to your breathing.

Step 5

Pay attention to your body. Notice any areas of tension and let the tension go, let it relax. Listen to the sound of your breath coming in and out. Start to listen to the sounds around you. As you listen, just let everything be as it is. Listen to your internal dialogue in the same way. Take the role of a passive listener, not involved in your thoughts, not identified with them, but just observing them as if from a distance.

Step 6

Continue this practice of listening deeply for as long as you like. The audio file at the bottom of this article has one bell ring at the beginning and one at the 10 minute mark. You can use it if you want to do a 10 minute meditation. Start with the first ring, and when the bell rings the second time, slowly open your eyes. It is sometimes a good idea to sit for a bit and notice any new sensations, emotions, or thoughts that have come up as a result of your practice.

If your mind is busy with thoughts the whole time, this is entirely normal. In fact, one of the things you can learn from meditation is the degree to which you have almost no control over your thoughts. They come and go whether we try to stop them or not.

You also might wonder if you are “doing it right”. Don’t worry about this too much. Just keep meditating and you will start to know for yourself. One thing that might put your mind at ease is reading books or listening to audio from spiritual teachers. I have found that just listening to them helps my meditation a lot.

The most important thing in meditation is to let things be as they are. As Indian sage Ramana Maharshi said, “Let what comes come; let what goes go. Find out what remains”.

10 Minute Meditation

Entrainment is a term to describe the tendency of two oscillating systems in close proximity assuming the same period. For example, if you set a stringed instrument in a room for a length of time that happens to have ambient noise present, like a buzzing fluorescent light bulb, the instrument will go out of tune to match the noise. This phenomenon arises due to resonance, which is the transfer of vibration from one medium to another.

Brain entrainment programs use this phenomenon by introducing an external frequency through stereo headphones that causes the brain to entrain to that frequency. In effect, the brain is synced to lower frequencies, the same frequencies the brain naturally produces during relaxation, dreams, or even deep focus. This kind of technology is fantastic for inducing states of mind quickly and easily.

Bill Harris says the following about entrainment neuro-technologies: “One of the observed effects of this type of sound-induced brain synchronization is increased learning ability. What is now known as superlearning began in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s with the work of Bulgarian psychiatrist Georgi Lozanov. Lozanov used deep relaxation combined with synchronized rhythms in the brain to cause students to produce alpha waves. He found that students when in this state learned over five times as much information with less study time per day, with greater long-term retention”.

This brain entrainment technology is amazing in itself, but what really makes it explosive is when combined with other technologies or practices.

For quite some time now I have been using visualizations to train my non-conscious mind to be in tune with my conscious desires. Since the mind cannot tell the difference between a real experience and an experience that happens only in the mind, this tool forms new behaviours, capabilities, and beliefs with consistent practice. The only weakness in this is that when you visualize something you are in relative waking level awareness. Beliefs are stored in the subconscious mind and therefore it can take a long time and lots of effort to change them. But by combining visualizations with these brain entrainment audio programs you can more deeply embed the images and feelings as you experience them. It literally programs your mind to move toward whatever you want it to.

So what is the best way to practice Induced State Visualization? First off, get a program or audio recording that takes you through the first three brain wave patterns (beta, alpha, and theta) and make sure it is about 30 minutes in length. It’s a good idea to listen in a comfortable seated position and a quite setting. Use stereo headphones and keep the volume at a comfortable level. As the entrainment program starts close your eyes and begin seeing yourself living the life of your dreams in your mind’s eye. Imagine in first person perspective all the things you would like to have, do, or be. Get as clear as you can and be sure to include as many physical senses as you can in your vision. The most important thing is to absolutely feel like you have that life now. Go on adding to your vision until the audio stops. Then simply go about your day. After about a month of doing this every day you will start to notice a significant change in your psychology. Your thoughts will change, and eventually your beliefs will as well.

It’s quite phenomenal that we have the ability to consciously shape our minds however we want. We experience true freedom when we are no longer constrained by negative beliefs or limited by a sense of self that is less significant than we deserve. Our true potential is infinite. Having the tools to help us manifest that potential is vital.