The place beyond thoughts
The beginning of meditation is usually a storm of chaos.
When you begin your meditation, whether experienced or advanced, there is a flow of thoughts, motions, memories, ideas, and notions of the mind floating through to the surface.
This is not always the case, yet it is quite common for many people to experience that.
A storm of sounds, ideas, images, people, thoughts, dreams, incidents, memories, and anything the mind can conjure to detract you from the goal it fears the most.
The goal of reaching the point of silence.
The place beyond thoughts, ideas, or illusion.
A place which is beyond thoughts
A place of true silence, calmness, and stillness
A state of BEING
What in this state is the mind so afraid of?
What is this mechanism which protects you from your very own SELF and state of mindlessness?
It is the state of ridding of the mind itself which the mind is so afraid of.
It is as if the mind is a being of it’s own, an organism striving to maintain and enliven the biological composition of the shell of your body.
As if the mind has different goals and priorities from the SELF which is reached in the point beyond comprehension and words to describe.
The place beyond the thoughts and clutter of the mind.
The place where you truly are and all is.
The Process of Meditation
So usually in every meditation there is a similar process happening.
From beginner to advanced this process can vary in the time length in each zone but I will outline the process for you here to compare and reference with your experience:
- The starting point -> The frequency of thoughts is high, the thoughts are very strong and flowing incredibly fast. There is a lot to flow through. In this state all of the compressed thoughts and emotions escape the mind.
- The slowing down phase -> during this phase, the practitioner begins to slow down the racing mind through observation and letting go of this stream of consciousness, just like observing a river, the river flows and the observer begins to be as one with the stream
- The phase of periodic silence -> During this phase the thoughts have slowed down significantly, and silence is experienced. Every now and then the observer notices the river flows and then returns to the unification of thought, observation, and silence. There are little to no hooks in the minds now for thoughts to cling onto.
- The phase of pure silence -> A state of silence and calmness. There are no more thoughts and ideas flowing in the river. There is no more river. There is no more observer. A merging and unification of consciousness with a state of now. A state of I AM and presence. This state is where meditation inevitably leads to.
- The phase of consciousness exploration -> If one chooses to do so, there is a phase beyond the state of pure silence. A state of exploration and wonder beyond any conventional terms we can bring into simple terms and words. Lights, colors, visions, places, and creation can occur in this state. It deserves a more in depth article or piece of writing to expand on.
The various phases of meditation don’t necessarily have to be linear, so one can skip phases or have them come back again during one meditation.
There is no definitions or wrong or right phases or states. It is all welcome and part of the process, where one unfolds the stream of consciousness of the mind, and finds stillness and calmness in the process.
Advice for beginners
The issue most beginners face is that there mind is unfolding years of thoughts, memories and ideas that have not yet been processed correctly.
So there is a lot of noise and clutter. I recently began meditating again after a prolonged period of a couple of months where I haven’t been consistent.
This means that my mind is incredibly noisy in comparison with the periods I have meditated intensely, every day, sometimes multiple times a day.
So for a beginner to experience this is exceptionally hard and I empathize with that. I know that your journey to begin meditation is not easy and harder than most.
Yet you must know that in the other side of the pain there is bliss beyond your imagination. You are beginning a process that is profound and powerful – a process of shedding the excess and entering the beingness of your spirit.
It is the process of joining the different parts of your mind and decluttering, decompressing years of suppressed thoughts, ideas, and illusions the mind created.
So buckle up and enjoy the ride, what else is more noble in the pursuit of true freedom?
You are doing something incredible for yourself.
If you want some guidance in the process, I have a book called “Meditation Master” which is both for beginners and advanced practitioners alike.
It will introduce 33 different types of meditations for you to explore and experience, from which you will surely find 1 or 2 to your liking and unique inner vibration.
Check it out here and let me know if you have any questions.
Yours,
Aaron Avraham
