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Don't be surprised or upset if you can't make it to 10 without being distracted. If you become distracted by a thought or a sensation, notice it, let it go, and return to your breathing, again beginning with 1 each time you lose your place. Simply notice whatever may grab your attention, and as soon as you catch your mind wandering, come back to your breathing and your counting. |
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Don't be judgmental if you lose your place, just keep returning to your breathing and your counting. It is perfectly normal for the mind to wanderthat is simply the nature of the mind. Try to stay with this meditation exercise at least 10 to 15 minutes, staying as physically still as possible and resisting any temptation to move. Just notice the impulse to move and then come back to your breath. |
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After 10 to 15 minutes, when you feel ready, gradually open your eyes and sit quietly for a minute or so. Notice what you experience in your body and anything you may be feeling. The purpose of silently counting from 1 to 10 is to help keep your attention anchored in the present and with your breath. Do not count absentmindedly. Using the preceding instructions, let yourself take some time now to try this basic meditation. |
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As a way to modify this meditation when you are sitting at the monitor following the market, you can always use this mental counting as you take a breath. This will pull you immediately back into the present when you find your mind drifting away. When you get pretty good at staying focused on the breath and are able to count all the way to 10 a number of times without losing your place, then try the following exercise. |
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Going Beyond the Breath: Focus on Thoughts |
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After learning to let the breath come and go on its own, without needing to change it in any way, and learning to let various sensations come and go without focusing too intently on them, the next thing we notice as we continue meditation practice is the persistence of the internal chatter of the mind. |
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Some of this chatter is in the form of the parts of ourselves we worked with earlier in this chapter. And some of the chatter is just gibberish that does not come through in a clear voice. Now we want to begin to hear more clearly exactly what is going on inside that may be of use to us. |
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We hear this incessant chatter when we begin to quiet down the mind. That is why it is useful to first practice the counting medita- |
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