I sat in the bathroom, my mind racing, boiling with anger. Why did I sign up for this?! I’m the only guy! Two days of complete silence! What was I thinking?! The bell signaling the start of meditation sounded. Struggling to regain my composure, I put on my spiritual face and made my way to the meditation hall. I looked oh so zen on the outside as I carefully constructed my meditation seat and sat awaiting the entrance to hell, but on the inside I was screaming bloody murder.

Two days later I bounded to my car followed by a trail of harmoniously singing songbirds, feeling like a young Jesus. My thoughts had literally stopped and I bet if I had concentrated hard enough I could have briskly jogged across a lake whilst shooting laser beams of pure enlightened consciousness! Ok maybe not, but I felt good. I felt as though a heavy weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

What did I learn in those two days that created such a massive mental transformation? I learned one incredibly simple meditation technique that anyone can learn in two minutes. It’s called Anapana Meditation.

Basic Meditation: Anapana Technique

This is one of the easiest yet most powerful techniques for quieting the mind, eliminating mental chatter, and cultivating deep inner peace..  Here’s how to do it:

1. Sit Comfortably: Sit in any position that’s comfortable to you. If you can sit cross legged great but if you would be more comfortable sitting in a chair, thats fine. The key is to be comfortable.
2. Breath naturally. Do not try to control your breathing. In this technique the breath is merely used as a point on which to fix the attention. Just breathe :)
3. Focus your attention. Direct your total attention on the tip of the nostrils. Be aware of the incoming and outgoing breath– on the sensation of air passing through the nostrils. Try to not let this focus waver. If it does, bring it back to your breath.
4. Let go. Meditation isn’t the practice of stopping thoughts but merely the practice of becoming aware of them. By removing resistance and letting go of trying to control them, they fade away naturally.

Your only job here is to watch your breath with all your attention. At first, you may be faced with many thoughts and a seemingly untamable mind. But if you persist, if you simply direct your attention back to the breath every time it wavers, you can reduce the frequency and intensity of your mental chatter and begin to cultivate a calmer, more peaceful mind.

Also, the simple act of becoming aware of your thoughts creates separation between yourself and your conscious mind and immediately decreases their power. By doing this you realize that you are not your thoughts. You are the awareness, the consciousness behind the thoughts. You are being.

But don’t take my word for it. The only real way of discovering this truth for yourself is through practice.

My challenge to you

Starting today, begin practicing Anapana technique for ten minutes right when you wake up and/or right before you go to bed. Do this for one week. You may not walk on water, but you will feel a little clearer, more focused, and better able to deal with the little bumps in the road life tosses your way. Keep at it and you may radically transform your mind and the way you look at consciousness, spirituality and life.

Let me know how it goes.

Be peaceful, Be centered, Be free.