What Is Meditation?

Meditation is a practice in which you deliberately direct your attention to a particular anchor, such as your breath, sounds, physical sensations, compassion, and so on.

The aim is not to stop thinking or reach a special state of consciousness. Instead, you practise noticing what is happening right now without having to react to it immediately.

Thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations are a perfectly natural part of it. They do not need to disappear or be changed.

Many people meditate to find greater calm or cope better with stress. Others want to understand themselves better or develop compassion. There is therefore no single right way to meditate.

Above all, one thing matters: meditation is a practice. With every session, you train your attention a little, regardless of whether the session felt easy or difficult. You can think of your ability to meditate as a muscle that gets a little stronger each time.