Make Meditation a Joyful Habit

Spring Lake, Santa Rosa, CA Summer 2016

To meditate a short time with depth is better than to meditate for long hours with the mind running wild. In the beginning, therefore, don’t force yourself to sit for a long time. Strive for shorter, but deeper, meditations. Then gradually, as you become accustomed to going deep, lengthen the time you sit in meditation.
~Paramahansa Yogananda

In the quiet of the mind, beyond thought, is where we find the peace and calmness that is at the core of our being.  Returning again and again during our time of meditation will allow us to re-claim the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual benefits that we are seeking. The great meditation masters have guided us to meditate for twenty to thirty minutes a day to achieve those benefits. At first we may have difficulty sitting for that length of time. When we start out, meditating for a shorter period of time and working our way up to twenty or thirty minutes will support us in making meditation a joyful, everyday habit.