WHAT is the key to mediation??

Empty mind

Say hello to your thoughts, then say "ok, bye, move along now."

Just accept that you'll have thoughts, but don't interact with them.

Treat it like a parade.

If you advance in it you will achieve sanctification but first you will have to endure demonic interruptions by noise etc

I understand the concept, but how long do you sit there like that until some thought comes in? And what are you supposed to feel when meditation actually starts happening?

Youll feel a halo forming around your head this when the demons intervene,you must defeat them

Breathing . Sit and keep your back straight. Close your eyes and let your gaze go up naturally to that middle space between your eyebrows. Don’t force it. Open your palms upward. Draw a breath through your nose steady and count to fifteen . Hold to fifteen if not possible then ten. Let out through your mouth steady for ten .

Repeat three times.

Think of one object. Something simple. Hold that image . When some other thought creeps in go straight back to that image. Remain relaxed.

Ok, simple object, palms up.

Interesting and don't know if anyone else has experienced this, but if I palm my two hands together - there is a force there and you can feel it grow if you concentrate. Don't know if it's good or bad, but there is energy in that.

I love that, but was looking for something less solid.

And I mean, don't let your fingers touch each other, just hold the air between.

The key is practise makes perfect. I meditated very Wednesday night with a group for about a year. When I started they would all sit around afterwards talking about what they had seen in their Meditations. I saw nothing.

I persisted and around a year in something clicked and I have had no issues since.

The key is to make a set time and do it. They call it "Monkey Mind" and this is what you need to quieten. It takes practise but if you persist you will succeed.

How long did you practice each session?

mantra

There is real danger to meditation.

One is, you're pushing all of these normal thoughts of yours away, you're emptying yourself and something else can take over. Especially in Transcendental Meditation (TM).

There are others.

Don’t listen to any of this advice OP, they quite obviously don’t know the first thing about meditation or how the mind works. If you want the master key to the mind I would advise you to download 2 books Franz Bardon - Initiation into Hermetics and Rawn Clark - A Bardon Companion.

The fist book is a series of exercises and the first couple of them will answer your questions, the second is a commentary aimed at making sense of the translations in the first book.

IIH
[link to u1lib.org (secure)]
A Bardon Companion
[link to u1lib.org (secure)]
Rawn Clark’s YouTube
[link to youtube.com (secure)]

That is another concern of mine.
Should you actually leave your mind completely open?
If it's completely open, what comes to you?

Could be why I'm not getting it.

breath in

breath out

At first don’t try to shut your mind down, just observe your thoughts but don’t engage with them. JUST OBSERVE! Eventually with enough practice your mind will become still. The key is to not force it.

Best to forget what you call meditation. Meditation is something totally individual. There is no right or wrong. Some meditate with a hurry mind, others meditate with stillness, still others do meditate all the time no matter how they feel and think.... there are endless variations...

Read the book I posted for you. Practice the first couple of steps and you will have the answers to your quest questions and you will have a deeper understanding of your own mind. I had a lot of trouble emptying my mind until I read IIH. Also doesn’t hurt to throw in a mantra and cheat a little but eventually you should be able to empty your mind without mantras.

That’s new age bullshit and misleading. There’s a right and wrong way and if your doing it wrong your results will not manifest.

Do this little trick.

Tell yourself : I'm wondering what my next thought would be then wait for it.

See what happen.

You cannot look for a thought and have one at the same time. If you keep looking for it, your mind will become very still.

Use your thoughts to change your thoughts.

You can watch your thoughts like clouds....that's a good way if you can NOT react. Just watch them pass by.

The best thing is to imagine what you want...and feel what it feels like to already have it. EVEN IF YOU HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED IT BEFORE.

Imagine what it feels like to be calm. imagine the feelings of calm move through you, like a warm bath. (you actually might try a warm or hot bath at the same time as this exercise. Sometimes the tactile stuff really help)

If you are going to react to your thoughts, then you should change your thoughts to what you actually want to think.

It just takes repetition. Keep changing your old thoughts as they come rushing to you.

DO not let the negative thought complete. Push it aside and replace it with your desired thoughts/feeling.

[link to youtu.be (secure)]

This is also a good one. lol..I was trying to remember this technique just a few days ago :-)

Just do it. You ask too many questions. Start with good spelling. Otherwise you just don't want to pay for an attorney go to Legal Aid to get a meidator without the extra T.

Breathing

When the student is ready the teacher will manifest.

I don't know no new-age-bullshit

These days, turning off your phone and drinking less coffee.

I find it easier to do after a good laugh or cry. It isn't just about the thoughts but the feelings too. Emotions matter!

Yes me too. Almost warm for me