Experienced meditators - your advice and help much appreciated

[tenderbuttons]

I've been meditating- with stops and starts - for about 18 months now using a few different guided meditations (Jon Kabat Zinn and Mark Williams mainly). And I sort of feel as though I am doing ok, and it has definitely helped me a huge amount, but now I am starting to think that I need to take it a bit more seriously/to the next level/do something more with it. Or something like that. And then I think, maybe this is just me worrying with no justification and I should carry on as I am.

But I think i need a bit more teaching, so any books or whatever that you could recommend would be very helpful. Or just advice.

And if you also have any hints as to how to carry on in the summer holidays I'd love to have them too.

Have you tried looking for classes nearby? There are a couple near me, affiliated to a Buddhist centre a little way away. The classes are a mix of guided meditations and talks/lessons, ending with a discussion from the attendees. It's a nice mix of ideas/theory and practice.

The biggest barriers to meditation are when we worry about whether we are doing it right or are too goal orientated (and of course finding the time and space to do it in the first place). All you really need to do to meditate is to still your mind, but it is helpful to learn new techniques and see what works for you. You get a very different energy in a group to when meditating alone, so do give that a go if there is one close to you.

As you've been doing JKZ and MW meditations, have you looked at doing the full mindfulness meditation course? I use it to manage stress and anxiety, and it helps you to see that anything can be a meditation - walking, gardening, doing the dishes, which is really helpful for when it is difficult to have a regular formal practice.

Mindfulness meditation also has some overlap with yoga, which is my other practice. The whole point of the physical practice is to prepare the body for meditation, and to develop concentration and relaxation. There are quite a few different techniques for yoga meditation - pranayama (breathing techniques), yoga nidra (yogic sleep, similar to the body scan in mindfulness meditation), mantras or gazing (usually on a candle or mandala).

Pranayama is definitely best learnt with a teacher, but you could try mantra meditation or trataka (the candle gazing) at home - there are a couple of videos on You Tube if you have a google.