The Outline of the ABC’s of Mindfulness based meditation
Simply be Aware of your Breathing to Concentrating exclusively on it, dealing with Distractions by Experiencing them, not thinking about them as breathing sensations by Feeling them over and over, and again and again.
Awareness of Breathing to develop Concentration, dealing with expected Distractions by using the Experience of Feeling and Following the physical sensations of breathing over and over, again and again.
1. Become Aware of your Breathing by feeling is physical sensations and Concentrate on it exclusively, over and over and again and again staying in the present
2. When Distracted, note the distraction whatever its, and return back to breathing, Experiencing by feeling the breathing sensations over and over, and again and again.
Expanded discussion using the ABCDEF’s
1. also a definition of mindfulness A = get off Auto-pilot and develop mindful Alert conscious intentional Awareness of everything, a present moment awareness and then moment by moment, Accepting whatever and anything as it is, without changing it, controlling it, expecting anything from it, comparing it with anything, Allowing its wavelike nature to unfold, as you allow it to come, allow it to be, and then let it go, over and over and Again and Again.
2. B = now apply this mindful awareness to the Body and its posture and the Breath with emotional Balance
3. C = Concentration exclusively on the object of meditation starting with the body and breath, to develop increasing Concentration and Calm, as you relax the body and stabilize the mind
4. D = Distractions, no matter how hard you try, and this normal and to be expected, and is part of the process, something anything will pull your focus off the object of meditation, for our purposes the breathing. The distraction will be a thought, or thinking, feelings or emotions, a body sensation, coming internally, or from the outside through the senses, something visual, hearing something, some touch or posture or movement sensation, a taste, a smell. Deal with Distraction by noting, it Labeling it if needed, “ a thought or thinking, or a feeling or whatever” and giving it some temporary attention and then gently escorting your mindful awareness back to your primary object of meditation for example your breathing.
5. E = Experience by feeling rather the thinking about the object of meditation and everything else including the Distractions, that is feel and sense whatever it is, for example Experience the Breathing by feeling the physical sensations of the Breathing only in the present , nothing from the past or the future, staying perpetually in the present, moment by moment. Experience by feeling and sensing by using just Enough Effort, not too relaxed, not to tight, just Enough Effort, as you Experience the sensations of the Breathing with no Expectations, and free of any Emotional reactions, not being Distracted by the emotions, hanging on longer because it feels good, or avoiding or resisting because it feels bad or negative, and or ignoring something because it feels neutral, boring or uninteresting, but treating, all Equally with an Emotional Balance, staying mindfully Aware , in the Present Perpetually, Accepting whatever, for example the Breathing sensations for what they are as they are, letting them come, letting them be, and letting them go, Breath after Breathe, Allowing its wave like nature to unfold, over and over, and again and again.
6. F = Find the Breath and then Feel and Follow the Flow of the physical sensations of the breathing, Floating your Awareness, on the Breathing, Following the Flow , being Free of any thinking processes like controlling, comparing, changing, expecting, base on the past or the future, staying in the Present, not Emotionally reacting based on positive, negative or neutral feeling, but Accepting all Equally, allowing each Breath to come, Accepting it as it is, Allowing to unfold and be as it is, and then Allowing it to go, Letting it come, letting it be, and then letting it go for the next Breath, over and over and Again and Again. When you are Distracted Find the Breath Again and Again.