Feeling Abit Stuck In Meditation

[rorghee]

Aight I'm 16 and I started meditating around 9-10 months ago (around June 2016) and Started with 20mins now I'm up to 30 mins, I also haven't missed a day and I'm mainly doing the technique Leo explained in his no-bullshit guide he made in 2014. So during the first 2 or 3 months I could clearly see benefits in my life and I was more focused (I think I had a jhana), even more than I was expected to be, then slowly I started getting frustrated and these benefits kinda went away during the following months, but I was expecting there to be ups and downs so I kept at it. Since then I've seen little to no signs that I'm improving and it's been this way for about 6 months and it's annoying and I've been tempted to give up. My guess on why this happened is because I remember experimenting with different techniques around 6 months ago like do-nothing, labelling, and many others and I think because I kinda half-assed each of these techniques it made my meditations more complicated as I'm taking bits of each technique and moulding them into one. This has made me a bit frustrated because i feel like I'm not getting far and every time I sit to meditate I don't feel like I know what to do and I end up just sitting there trying to figure out what technique works. I get tempted to just be a normal 16 yr old and strive for building up my ego and going out and not paying too Much attention to looking inward, and instead doing this personal work later on in life because I feel like meditation is making me more stressed atm (nearly every day is a bad meditation day). Is this just a phase I'll get through soon and become more peaceful in the near future or...?

tldr; I'm hell not seeing any sign of peace and any benefit even tho I did at the start of mediation, pls help.

Also pls share any relateable experiences/ how you felt when you were this far into meditation 

Edited April 25, 2017 by rorghee

[AstralProjection]

Highly recommend Leo's recent video which might tie is to your problems.

 

Concentration vs Meditation - How To Develop Concentration

https://youtu.be/sSxtR4psOoQ

[zazed]

Who is frustrated, where is this frustration within you, can you find it?
I feel you, i started around your age, and it's hard to keep up with school and life.

Watch some more video's about enlightenment. And try to learn more about its concepts.
Without some knowledge, you are just sitting. With some teachings it becomes a great transformative process.
The reason it went easy in the beginning, is because it was fresh after seeing Leo talk about it. He has many great talks, and some like his on meditation should be rewatched. You will find new nuances in Leo's teachings, i've watched some up to 4 times.
Also, take your practice further than meditating. Every spare moment you have, try to think of nothing, and just be there. Meditation should become your default state of mind, when on the bus, cooking dinner, paying attention in class(listening and mindfulness are very compatible).

Watch these, in this order for better comprehension. Mooji feels it, and explains it through the heart. Rupert knows it, and explains it most logically of all. Paul is so abstract, you need to know some things to even understand him, but i find him most helpful of all. They are essentially talking about the same things.

 

 

 

 

 

[Shin]

Meditation isn't an activity, it is a constant "doing".

If you're only meditating while doing your sitted meditation, don't seek further, that's your problem.

The only way to really increase your consciousness is to be mindful as much as you can throughout your day, even when you do something (and obviously when you do nothing).

Unless you increase drastically your meditation to 2 hours per day or more, you won't get any huge gain from your sitted meditation, it's just maintance at this point.

Tips

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Already means that Presence-Consciousness can be realized without meditating for years, removing your ego and sin, working out your karmic debt first, eliminating thoughts, or surrendering your will to a special deity.

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Already means that your essential purity has remained untouched and unaffected by the stream of experiences that you call “my life” and is ever accessible, no matter what.

 

Edited April 25, 2017 by Shin

[SOUL]

Expectations lead to disappointment.

It may be that it became a bit too complicated and that was a distraction so simplify it again.

Even if you want to try a different focus or method of it still stay simple with it.

Although, expectations often are a stumbling block in our progress.

Approach mindfulness in neutral, open or "empty" disposition.

Another way to describe it would be an undetermined mindset.

Let the experience be what it will be.

 

[Max_V]

I am 17 and I have been meditating since december 2015, nice to see someone my age who has benefits from it too. 

What I have learned is that you will have to accept that not every meditation will be all beautiful and full of comfort. When you cease to cling to any experience, acceptance hits. Try saying to yourself  when you notice you are not focusing on the process but rather the results: "I don't want anything from this experience." and "I don't need anything to change" when you keep repeating this to yourself and keep detaching you will find that you become very accepting of the whole experience and this will get you very deep.

Good luck

[Capethaz]

@rorghee Read the book called "The Mind Illuminated" by Culadasa.

[WelcometoReality]

@rorghee When the frustration appears during meditation focus in on it. How does it feel in the body? Watch the thoughts that appear and disappear. Let yourself be in that frustration totally. 

Please tell me afterwards what was experienced.

[rorghee]

Thankyous ^ and I I think I realised why I was frustrated is because Im a very judgemental person (there's another judgement for ya) in my day to day life and my meditations was just me judging how I feel a lot instead of just being in the moment, so I've started to be aware of my judgements, and also I started doing concentration exercises along with my meditations and so yeah 

[Max_V]

That's really good. Good luck!