In ancient times meditation was adopted as a way of life. It wasn’t a separate thing that one did on top of daily things, it was one of the daily duties of life.
When we embark on a practice such as meditation, it may be hard to find the motivation to practise it every day, even though we would recognise the need for it. At the first sign of difficulty we may feel like giving up. ‘Oh there are so many thoughts, it is too difficult to make this mind still, meditation is not for me’.
But when we take the first step and just start doing it at the same time every day, then it can become natural to us.
Just like we may get up, shower, have breakfast then start our work or chores, you would get up, shower, meditate, have breakfast then start work. So then it becomes part of your daily life.
We won’t have expectations; ‘this must happen in meditation, my mind must become peaceful every time’. All our job in meditation is just to keep putting in efforts in the technique that has been recommended, then our mind goes into the practice.
At work we don’t give up at the first hurdle if something doesn’t happen as we wanted. No matter, we keep trying, we keep putting in efforts because we recognise the need for it – we need to earn our livelihood. Just like that, when we recognise the need for our mind to be under our control, for that elusive peace and contentment, then we would keep going with it and not be fazed by the obstacles that may come in our way.
Without thinking or analysing, if we can go on practising every day, not minding what happens in our meditation whether there are many thoughts or not, then the real benefits of meditation come, the purification happens. And before we know it meditation will have become part of our lives.