Debunking The 5 Biggest Myths About Meditation

By Sharee James


The simple practice of meditation can improve your relationships; reduce stress, worry and anxiety and even improve your productivity, performance and focus at work. Unfortunately, however, many potential students are often deterred from starting their own meditation practice by a few widely-held misconceptions about meditation that are simply not true! In this post I'm going to set the record straight about just how simple meditation really is, once and for all

Misconception 1: "I Tried It Once And It Didn't Work"

Perhaps you have tried meditation once in a yoga class, meditation workshop or even at home with a guided audio and were disappointed with the results. You were most likely expecting peace and bliss but instead felt like your mind was crazier than a bunch of monkeyson speed. This is a totally normal experience - the problem lies in making the assumption based on this one experience that meditation simply doesn't work for you. Meditation is a practiceit's something that needs to be done regularly and it can take time before you get more accomplished at quieting the mind.

Misconception 2: "I Just Can't Stop My Thoughts"

A lot of novice meditators mistakenly believe that if they were meditating "successfully", they would be able to switch their thoughts off like a switch in order to experience peace and calm. When they can't seem to be able to stop their thoughts, they often get into an internal struggle trying to resist them or worse, giving up completely. Meditation is about developing enough focus and awareness to simply notice when the mind is wandering, and to keep bringing the mind back to the object of concentration - again and again. There is no need to try to stop thinking altogether!

Misconception 3: "I Don't Have The Time To Meditate

We are all busier than ever these days and it can be hard adding one more thing to our "to-do" list. Meditation doesn't require long periods of time to be beneficial, it simply requires consistency - even 5 to 10 minutes a day can work wonders. By making your own happiness and wellbeing a true priority, you will feel motivated to make time for your practice in your schedule.

Misconception 4: "I Don't Have The Space To Meditate"

I know it would be wonderful to be able to meditate in an exotic monastery, on a mountain-top or on a serene beach. But it's not essential - all you need is somewhere fairly quiet where you can sit up straight comfortably for a few minutes without being disturbed. You can meditate sitting up in bed, on a chair or a couch or even on a bus or a train - don't let wanting a perfectly peaceful spot stop you from just doing it.

Misconception 5: "But I'm Not A Buddhist"

While a lot of meditation practices originated from Buddhism, meditation is not inherently religious, and you don't have to subscribe to any particular set of beliefs to meditate. Everyone experiences mental stress, agitation or anxiety from time to time and meditation can be beneficial to everyone - regardless what religion they belong to or even if they are not religious at all. There are, however, many practical and informative meditation classes and retreats held at Buddhist centres in many countries, and they are available to the general public no matter whether one is Buddhist or not.

Hopefully this article has cleared up some misconceptions that may have been stopping you from starting your own meditation practice. Meditation is truly for everyone and with patience and consistency, it can change your life in many profound and unexpected ways.




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