How to meditate: a simple, permissive, breathing meditation. A nearly-identical form of this meditation can be found in most 'meditation-based' systems. Its pre

How to meditate: a simple, permissive, breathing meditation. A nearly-identical form of this meditation can be found in most 'meditation-based' systems. Its pretty universal. What you do: 1) Sit in a comfortable position, without shifting around, in a quiet place, with your eyes closed 2) Primary Focus: to constantly feel yourself breathing 3) Do this for about an hour Likely Contingencies: a) You "need" to shift around. Nothing wrong with that. What happens if you don't? Keep feeling your breath! b) You will start thinking. Nothing wrong with that. But can you think while constantly feeling your breath? Or are you multi-tasking now? Keep feeling your breath! c) a+b: You think about needing to shift around. Nothing wrong with that. Keep feeling your breath! d) You might wonder if the hour is over or not. Alternatively, if you set an alarm, you will wonder if its properly set, and if maybe you should check it. Keep feeling your breath! e) You might need to do a million little things, check the dog's water, the task queue, the pot on the stove, whatever. Keep feeling your breath! f) You will find yourself thinking about how you are now 'feeling your breath'. Oops, you probably just stopped feeling your breath to think that thought. Keep feeling your breath! What does it mean to "constantly feel yourself breathing"? a) It means your attention/focus is completely on the feeling of breathing. Your conscious existence is the sensation of being 'a breathing thing'. b) Corrolary: you probably aren't 'thinking in language'. In my experience, its not common to multitask thoughts 'in language' with a focus on physical sensation. c) As you begin meditating (first several times? more? less? depends...) You will context switch back and forth constantly between 'thinking in language' and 'feeling your breath'. Why is this meditation interesting? The best reply I can give is, "Isn't it interesting enough that you can't just do such a simple thing as watch your breath without thinking about a bunch of other things?"