Learning meditation is one of the best things I’ve done. I remember the weekend I was taught how to meditate, the premise was so simple.
The wonderful Norwegian lady sat us down, asked us to introduce ourselves and explain why we wanted to learn meditation. She made us feel lovely about ourselves and then explained what we would need to do.
- Sit upright in a chair in the quietest place you can find
- For up to an hour repeat in our minds a specific “sound” she would teach us all
Once she’d explained a few people had questions:
“Can you do it lying down?” asked the first. The trainer repeated that you ought really to be sitting up straight.
“Can you do it while listening to music?” came the second question. Very calmly, it was explained (again) that it should be as quiet as possible.
“Can you make up your own sound?” enquired someone, oblivious to the emerging pattern. With patience exemplifying the practice she teaches, the lady said it should be the specific sound she was about to teach us all.
“Can you carry on for more than an hour?”
I was baffled. How could so many not understand something so simple? Surely the whole appeal was in the simplicity. The greatest and most lasting results come from the easiest, most uncomplicated method.
I wondered about brewers you could put in place of the saintly Scandinavian. Somebody – perhaps from Chiswick or Brooklyn – bestowing wisdom and offering fulfilment via the most simple and elegant means. Perhaps they would sit and say…
- Consider what your audience might enjoy
- Create a balanced, enduring beer, inspired predominantly by your own thoughts and ideas
“Can I make a horribly unbalanced beer?” Hopwhack IPA Brew Co. might ask.
“What about one that’ll be popular for about six minutes?” would pose Mystic Stone, maker of the 7Up Gueuze.
“Can I make a copycat of what the US is doing?” everyone would say all at once.
We don’t have to follow the rules all the time, research and development is essential to ensure the best results. But why disregard so much experience and expertise? If you meditate lying down, listening to music, and repeating your own “sound”, you’ll get very little from it. It won’t be enjoyable and you’ll tire of it very quickly.
Listen to the lady, she knows what she’s talking about.
Please note that you shouldn’t meditate while under the influence of alcohol.
“Can I do it after a large glass of wine, though?”
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