INTRODUCTION TO MEDITATION
WEEK THREE
This page hold content from the weekly class, originally recorded on January 22nd, 2025. For the daily meditations, go to the daily meditations page.
Why We Need to Meditate
The mind is amazing, but has a few inherent flaws that keep us struggling and miserable.
Psychologists refer to two of these as negativity bias and hedonic adaptation. Can also be thought of as focussing more on what’s wrong, and on our almost immediate dissatisfaction even with good things.
Then there is also the condition of the comparing mind, which can lead to feelings of superiority or inferiority.
However recognising these flaws is not sufficient to overcome them.
That is where meditation and specifically mindfulness meditation comes in.
We develop awareness of our own mind from moment to moment, and also develop the skill of letting go of thoughts and redirecting attention to where we want it.
At various points during class there were four guided meditations.
The first two being similar to what had gone before – focus on the breath and focus on the body.
The second two introduce a new technique called “noting,” which involves adding a small observation to mindfulness meditation, such as counting breaths or labeling thoughts.
“Noting” is a way to stay present and focused during meditation, just creating a little more structure for the attention to hold onto during a session.
VIDEO
The Full Class
