If you’re one of those people who are bothered, distracted, irritated and annoyed by noise when you’re meditating you can take comfort in the fact that you’re not the only one. Many people including some long-term meditators still experience irritiation when confronted by noise. But here are some tips that will work for you.
Dealing With The Noise Outside
#1 - Acknoledge the noice and stop fighting it
Gurudev says, "What you resist, persists!". Which means that the more you fight the noise, the more you push it away, the more it will bother you.
Experience the depth by doing an online guided meditation.
You can also learn to meditate by joining the next Sahaj Samadhi Meditation Course near you.
So what do you do? You rather become aware of it and acknowledge it. You gradually take your attention towards the noisy environment and observe each sound and then return to your breath. This brings your mind to the present moment and helps your mind settle down. Then there comes a point when you transcend this noise, and it stops bothering you.
#2 - Slip Headphones Over Your Ears
If you are new to the meditation practice and find it hard to do the above initially, a ticck that might work for you is to simply slip headphones over your ears and turn on a guided meditation on your phone.
Dealing With Noise Inside Your Mind?
If you are the kinds who had a lot of thoughts during meditation then the below ways can help you shut down the noisy chatter and meditate peacefully.
#1 Physical Exersise
Doing a little bit of physical exercise such as yoga postures will help release the restlessness in your body and mind. This will bring stillness in the body, silence the mind.
Doing a few minutes of pranayama would also add to the positive effect.
#2 Food That You Eat
Eating a vegetarian diet full of green vegetables, fruits, pulses and grains is advisable for a better experience.
#3 Do Not Fight Back The Chatter
Once again, the key is accepting. Normally when our mind is full of endless thoughts, we either try to resist them or we get into a constant chatter with ourselves and we start judging them as good and bad thoughts. Resisting thoughts does not help because they keep coming back (What you resist, persists!). But when we accept the thoughts as they come, we transcend to the witness consciousness. This brings the mind to the present moment and helps it to settle down.
Follow the AOA!
So, the secret in a single line is become Aware, Observe and Accept. Then you transcend and emerge with an unshakeable smile.
Inspired by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's wisdom talks
Graphics by Niladry Dutta
