Meditation—Keeping the Mind on Track

A talk by the Warden of Shanti Sadan leading into a meditation session

Those who meditate are well aware of the challenge posed by distraction, when our thoughts stray from the practice and turn to other things felt to be more interesting or pressing. This is not a conscious turning on our part; it just seems to happen! And our distractions are not necessarily attractions in the positive sense. We may find ourselves ruminating on something we fear as much as on something we want or love. Thus our practice may start well, but after some minutes, or sooner, our concentration may weaken and the distraction take over, itself being displaced by other distractions. When at last we realise how our thoughts have taken a by-road, we may feel a little frustrated, and this adds to our loss of focus.