Stage 4: Mindfulness of Breathing

Increasing Clarity

When going through the previous steps in your practice, make sure to pay special attention to each step. Make it a point to notice distractions right away and return to the task at hand as quickly as possible. Take your time when practicing this skill. It’s basically about doing each step meticulously until you feel some real progress. This is also the time when you could start writing down a few notes each time after your session has finished. Having such a “Meditation Diary” can be a great way to document your progress and see what helps you to go deeper. That way your practice will feel less aimless and more directed.

Devoting yourself to each step will not only deepen the experience, it will also sharpen your mind and keep you within the present moment. This will make the practice feel more joyful as you are continuously letting go of past and future. Even though this is all about devoting yourself to each step in this practice you want to be careful not to put yourself under pressure. This is not about working at “this” in order to get “that”. It’s all about deepening and appreciating “this” to the point where you forget everything else. By letting go of everything but the task at hand your are freeing yourself from the burden of agitation and time. This is liberating and should be experienced as deeply relaxing and comfortable. And I promise: You won’t turn into a Mindful Zombie!