An Unconventional Practice

I haven’t always had a meditation practice, although it was something that prodded at me from the back of my mind for many years. Maybe I was too afraid of where my mind would go, given the state of my previous marriage and all the tumultuous emotions and states of mind that accompanied it. After my separation, I almost immediately picked up a practice, albeit an intermittent one. Before meeting my current wife, I was a fan of Sam Harris (and still am) and had been an avid reader, podcast listener, and member of his community. As a long-time subscriber, I received a beta version of the Waking Up App. As I began to use it, I found that it offered a great introduction, especially for a skeptic of spiritual practices, like I was at the time. Up to that point, I associated mediation with devout religious beliefs or woo-woo occultism. I believed mediation was useless to the ‘educated’ scientific mind. After meeting my current wife Lili and discovering she was also a meditator, I began to use the app more. Through it, I explored what the various forms of practice had to offer. I still use it today, although not as much as I once had. I now opt for a practice of my own creation.

There is a long list of meditation modalities to choose from when starting, from ancient and traditional to more modern forms. I predominantly practice mindfulness meditation but I have also dipped my toes into loving-kindness meditation (aka Metta), chakra meditation, and a variety of guided meditations which included focused awareness, body scan, and resting awareness. The types of meditation practices seem endless. If you are getting started, I would suggest using an app like Waking Up, Insight Timer, or Headspace. They have great guided meditations and host many modalities to experiment with.

Over the years I have come to understand mediation as a personal experience. As such, it’s important to develop a praxis that works best for you. I have never been one to do anything ‘by the book,’ so my approach to mediation is no different. Mediation is a means to tap into the deepest sense of personal being and plumb the depths of consciousness. To do this, it is imperative that it’s done from a pure and genuine place. But it can be challenging to do so when concerned with the specific techniques of a particular type of mediation. 

To address this, I opt for an unconventional adaptation of mindfulness, heart-brain coherence, and quantum field manifestation meditations, adopted from Joe Dispenza, Gregg Braden, Deepak Chopra, and others. I also incorporate sound-bath-esque meditation practices, by listening to high-frequency sound waves mixed with ambient soundscapes on high-quality headphones. This helps me to enter a trance-like state. It also aids in the separation of consciousness from the physical body. It never ceases to amaze me how fast 30- 40 minutes will pass in this way. 

In the last couple of months, I have also taken up the practice of ending my meditations with a CE-5 protocol, including CTS. I’m sure you are thinking, “What the hell is all that,” but cool it, I’ll break it down for you in the next post.