Why Is It So Hard to Meditate? Meditation, Drumming and the Sacred Art of Goofing Off - 4/28/05

I'm one of those people with a racing mind who finds it very hard to meditate. I know that if I could meditate better, my psychic abilities would open right up. Is there anything you'd recommend for people like me who can't seem to concentrate on just one thing at a time without racing onto something else?

---Thanks, J.

Dear J,

I know what you mean about having a racing mind that has troubles staying focused on just one thing at a time. For people like you (and me, too, for that matter!) "regular" forms of meditation sometimes don't work very well. I'm talking about all of those conventional meditation styles that have you doing deep breathing or counting down the colors of the rainbow (visualizing the colors of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet until your muscles start to feel heavy.)

I've found, too, that different types of meditation work for different people. There are visually-oriented people who can visualize really well who may be inspired to access a meditative state from looking at a candle, a sacred symbol, or an uplifting piece of art. There are "audio" people who are highly sensitized to sound who tend to do well with meditating to music. There are kinesthetically (movement) oriented people who need to incorporate some kind of motion and get the meditation down INTO their bodies. That's where drumming and rattling can be good, for the movement-oriented person who can't sit still! And this is also where sacred dance and martial arts can enter in.

Then there are people whose sense of smell is really acute, and they can lose themselves in the scent of nice incense or aromatherapy oils and enter into a meditative state that way. And people who like to experiment with vocalizations may find that chanting or singing various tones allows them to meditate.

So the form of meditation which might be easiest for you has a lot to do with the way you are "wired." We're each wired a little differently, so what works for one person may not work for the other.

I think "stilling the mind" can be the wrong way of going about meditation, because sometimes you have to put something IN in order to reset those brain waves. Get the mind to wrap itself around something steady and monotonous instead of just trying to meditate in silence.

The Magic of Rhythm

I'm a big fan of shamanic tools. I invested in some simple rattles years ago when I first started to learn shamanic journeying and meditation. Meanwhile, my honey bought a wonderful drum, and pretty soon I was using his drum all the time. Eventually, he encouraged me to get my own!

I recommend drumming for people with more "active" racing minds. The trick is to learn how to sit up in a somewhat relaxed position with your back straight. Your hands should be just barely supporting the drum and the drumstick. Focus on drumming a single, steady beat at the center of the drum, keeping your wrist loose. At first, you'll be going through the usual racing thoughts like "Am I doing this right?" But you're in luck. There's no "wrong" way to drum!

After you sit and drum for a few minutes, the sound of the drum (or the rattle if you use a rattle) will truly transport your mind into a clearer, more relaxed state. Over the years many people have reported to me that they respond much better to rhythmic tools rather than trying to meditate in silence. There's something primal about drumming to a beat, as it can get you in touch with the beat of your own heart and the natural rhythms of your body.

You can even buy drumming CD's where someone else is doing the drumming, but I've found this doesn't work so well for me. I have to be doing the drumming myself. That way, it's calibrated to my own natural pace instead of someone else's rhythms.

Don't be intimidated about the idea of drumming. You're not trying to play rock music, and you don't need any training! And you don't have to be familiar with shamanic techniques like journeying which are commonly associated with meditative drumming. A drum is a marvelous instrument that anyone can use to help them to relax. Just experiment with drumming a steady beat and setting the intention that you want to clear your mind of distractions. Sometimes you'll find that you're still thinking a lot as you drum, but the PACE of your thoughts tends to slow down, becoming more concrete and focused. And often insights will beging to flow in as you access a meditative state of consciousness. It's really great!

You can use any type of drum. We like to use Celtic bodhrans which are constructed of a nice wood and resonant goatskin. These seem to be very spiritually clear instruments. But going to a music shop may give you some ideas. Like I did, you can always start out with some hand rattles, either using one or two to connect you with rhythmic work. Just gently rattle with a steady beat while you are sitting comfortably.

I will say that there is something very powerful and unique about drums, though. You can really feel your auric field and your nervous system responding to the vibration of the drum, and clairvoyants can see how the vibration clears your energy field of debris. Rattles can be powerful, too, but they don't seem to sweep you up in as intense of a rhythm as a drum does.

Meditation is the Art of Goofing Off

I think one of the main misconceptions people have about being spiritual or accessing psychic energy is the idea that this "requires" certain things of us. I've always found that the most wonderful meditative states I've been able to get into generally happen because of some form of improvisation - meaning, I'm simply goofing off! This can happen when I'm sitting outside and hugging a tree and making a connection with that special being out in nature. It can take place when I'm relaxing at the beach and allowing my mind to be calmed by the expansive nature of the waves. Or it will happen when I'm playing with a new "toy" like a rattle or drum, or even a Tibetan chime or Tibetan bowl. With musical toys, I tend to lose myself in enjoying the sound and find myself entering INTO the sound, much like I'm doing a Vulcan mind meld with it, becoming one with it.

Meditation is happening wherever you are experiencing a feeling of oneness with something. That's how I like to think of it, anyway. It's a state of profound concentration, yet it happens without any effort because you are wrapped up in the sheer joy of the thing.

Any act that comes from the heart and flows out with ripples of love -- that's meditation, if you ask me! And such moments, cumulatively, build our ability to access higher energy states more frequently, so the more we are able to enter into activities and situations this way, the more we're opening up our pineal gland and building that "bridge to God."

Imagine if we all lived life this way. The very fabric of our world would change overnight!

Have fun, and don't be afraid to experiment with different forms of meditation on your own.

--Lipstick Mystic

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