[IOTD][#2] My definition of mediation

Originally published on Medium on August 30, 2018 · Written by hand, Pre-AI era.

I hate meditation. Because I can’t mediate, my brain is conditioned to hate the practice. Everytime the word came up I immediately thought of a quiet person sitting on a yoga mat with close eyes and crossed legs, surround by serenity. Isn’t that how we all are taught to believe, on mainstream media?

Meditation on a yoga mat — Aren’t we trained to define Meditation this way?

I decided to try anyway, via the popular Headspace and Calm app. I didn’t feel any effect, I didn’t know what the effect of Mediation is. Why wasn’t it being emphasized enough, for result-oriented people like me, I want to know what is the outcome that I might be able to get before getting into the practice.

Last week, by accident, I met an old friend just to catch up, and he happen to be the founder of Mindfi app — a new meditation concept with eyes open, as the way he put it. I then thought that it is super interesting, he actually defined his own meaning of meditation!

So why shouldn’t I define my own? Long story short, here’s my version of Mediation:

Meditation is the practice of getting in the state of being alone with your thoughts, just your thoughts and you, nothing else matter at that point of time.

How did I came up with that?

For a long time I knew that I love riding motorcycles and I love joyrides. I seldom told people that I can get from point A to B without even using my brain. I do that consistently regardless of traffic and weather conditions. I discovered that I ride my bike rather well with my subconscious, I don’t think about riding when I’m on a bike.

Riding motorcycle in the zone — definitely not what you imagine, but it’s my definition =/

This afternoon I was on a GrabBike, as a pillion. Somehow I got into the ‘zone’, the only thing I could think of was the ideas of starting IOTD and the fact that my body is on a bike. I recalled Mindfi and the conversation with the founder Bjorn Lee, and I suddenly knew what meditation is about.

I don’t know it’s right or wrong or just plain stupid. But at least now I know I don’t have to sit on a Yoga mat to mediate, I can simply do what I love: joyrides! Makes my commute much much nicer everyday!

On another note, doing repetitive house chores is another form of my meditation. I intentionally don’t wash my dishes and keep it as part of a morning routine: personal hygiene, wash the dishes, maybe taking in the clothes, check the fridge… All are mindless tasks but it sometimes get me out of the morning soreness. Not all the time though.

I hope that’s something, any comments from the mediation gurus out there?