Keep It Simple
Meditation is very simple – just sit still with your attention resting lightly on the breath. Notice what arises in the mind and body, always letting it go and returning to the breath… Continue reading
Category Archive: Stillness
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It’s Not About Relaxation
I think for this post I’ll get back to basics. It’s in response to a question a friend asked me the other day … a very, very … very … basic question which… Continue reading
Being Mindful
I replied to this on Quora, and thought it might make a good addition to this blog (the drawing to the right has nothing to do with it … it’s just something I… Continue reading
The Trap of Wondrous Meditation Experiences
“Hi Roger … I notice in your book you deal with the presence of pain and anxiety and the lack of calm that most of us experience in meditation, but you don’t describe… Continue reading
Be Here Now
Recently someone emailed me the following question: Hi Roger, I’ve got this friend who drives me nuts because every time I do something stupid, he pipes up with this cliché, ‘be here now’,… Continue reading
The Main Game
A while back, while sitting in a café having a coffee, I overheard a group of people arguing about meditation. It seemed as if they’d been to some kind of meditation retreat, and… Continue reading
Meditating Without Faith is Like Breathing Without Air
It occurred to me today, that one thing I’ve neglected to write about on this blog is perhaps, one of the most important requirements of efficient meditation. And that is the notion of… Continue reading
Can Positive Thinking Work as Powerfully as Meditation?
This was another Quora question, which prompted my following reply. There’s a problem with positive thinking – and that is, your mind is not an idiot. It knows all of you, both positive… Continue reading
Making Mindfulness Part of Life
This question came up on my Quora feed, so I thought I’d share it to this blog because I think it’s an important aspect of meditation practice: “How should the practice of meditation… Continue reading
The False God of Happiness
‘If only we’d stop trying to be happy, we could have a pretty good time.’– Edith Wharton Got this question today, and thought it might be worth a post: ‘Roger, I’ve been meditating… Continue reading
Routine
‘The big things that come our way are the fruit of seeds planted in the daily routine of our work.’– William Feather One of the biggest problems people have with meditation is it… Continue reading
Practicing Mindfulness
‘Mindfulness isn’t difficult. We just need to remember to do it.’ – Sharon Salzberg Mindfulness gets a lot of media attention these days. Everybody’s talking about it, books have been written about it,… Continue reading
The Skill of Being Still
As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve not been posting over the last year, largely because I’ve been preoccupied with other things – but also because the answers to most of the questions I’m getting… Continue reading
The Practical Illusion of Self
Hi … I haven’t posted for a long time, largely because, this being question-based blog, most of the questions I’ve been sent of late have already been responded to in other posts, which… Continue reading
The Physicality of Mentality
As you might have noticed I’ve been absent for quite a while, travelling, finishing a book and dealing with life things. Added to which, I felt as if most of the questions I’ve… Continue reading
Just Sitting
“Do everything with a mind that lets go. Do not expect any praise or reward. If you let go a little, you will have a little peace. If you let go a lot,… Continue reading
Dealing with Dukkha
This post came in response to a question from one of my other posts, ‘Why Does Meditation Make Me Angry’– which, without fail, is, along with another similar post, ‘Why Does Meditation Make… Continue reading
Siddhârtha’s Gift – The Middle Way
Essentially, meditation is about finding balance. Take the act of meditating for example – for sure, we need to apply effort – but only if it is balanced effort. If we use too… Continue reading
Meditation Needs Love
When I first began meditating I had terrible difficulty with it, and almost gave up at one point, because I felt as if I just didn’t have what it took. It wasn’t… Continue reading
Attention and Awareness
The Monkey in Our Mind The aspect of mind we’re working with in meditation is our meddlesome, hyperactive and mischievous attention – the part of the mind we were nagged about all through childhood, all… Continue reading
Rhythm of Breathing Affects Memory and Fear
NEUROSCIENCE NEWS DECEMBER 7, 2016Summary: A new study reports the rhythm of your breathing can influence neural activity that enhances memory recall and emotional judgement. Source: Northwestern University. Breathing is not just for oxygen;… Continue reading
Meditating From the Source
A while ago I was doing an online session with a meditator, and we were talking generally about what it is to practice meditation, and how difficult it can be to maintain a… Continue reading
The Brain Changes Itself
Meditation is not a panacea or any kind of quick fix. Nor is it simply a relaxation exercise, as it’s often marketed. When we meditate, we’re training the mind to be more efficient.… Continue reading