Bliss More Book Summary - Bliss More Book explained in key points

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Name: Bliss More
Rating: 4.4 (210 reviews)
Author: Light Watkins

Light Watkins

How to Succeed in Meditation Without Really Trying

4.4 (210 ratings)

22 mins

What is Bliss More about?

Bliss More (2018) outlines a radical and effortless approach to meditation. Whether you’ve found yourself restless while sitting on your pillow or more mindful of your backache than your oneness with the universe, this book outlines easy steps to help you find your meditative groove.

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Bliss More
summarized in 7 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 7

What’s in it for me? Learn how to meditate without trying too hard.

If you’re anything like the author, Light Watkins, you kinda hate meditating. Guided by a stack of spiritual books and a handful of well-meaning yoga teachers, Watkins set out on a meditation journey, looking for serenity and bliss. Instead, he found lower back pain, aching boredom, and the feeling that he was doing it wrong.

In a way, he was. Although many meditation teachers say there’s no wrong way to meditate, Watkins now realizes that he, like many people, was simply trying too hard.

In these blinks, you’ll learn the same simple strategies that Watkins has been passing on to his students for years. Whether you’re just starting a meditation practice or are a frustrated expert, these strategies will help you turn meditation from a chore into a pleasure. Soon enough, you’ll look forward to your meditations, excited for the opportunity to find a little more bliss.

In these blinks, you’ll learn

the secret to quieting your monkey mind;
how to use a Settling Sound; and
what the relaxation response really is.

Meditation should be easy.

Ever tried meditating? If so, you probably sat cross-legged on the ground, hands palms-up on your knees, with your back straight. After about five minutes, your back was probably killing you.

So if it hurts so bad, why do we all keep sitting that way? Well, in the West, meditation is associated with Eastern monastic practice – the image is one of a serenely detached monk who seeks to be one with everything. That’s where we get that pose from.

However, in India, not every meditator is a monk seeking to renounce all his earthly possessions. Plenty of normal people with jobs, friendships, and even nicotine addictions practice daily meditation. In other words, acting like a monk won’t make meditation any easier.

The key message here is: Meditation should be easy.

Let’s say goodbye to that painful cross-legged position. To meditate right, you want to find a position that’s effortlessly comfortable. For instance, try sitting the way you do when you binge-watch television. The whole point is to sit so naturally that you don’t even think about it. Oh, and if you get an itch – scratch it! if you need to sneeze, then sneeze.

Figuring out where to meditate should be just as effortless; no matter what you see on the internet, meditation doesn’t require a mountaintop or a beach at sunrise. Life is busy, so meditate where you can – on your couch, in bed next to your partner, or on the subway heading to work. Ultimately it’s not that quiet, zen-inducing spot that gives you the serenity – it’s the meditation itself.

Lastly, meditate for only ten to twenty minutes twice a day, once after waking up and again in the afternoon. While you sit, time yourself with a watch or a digital clock – something you can peek at to see how long you’ve been going. That’s right! You can peek whenever you want. But don’t use an alarm – that’s too jarring.

As with learning anything – whether it’s swimming or playing the piano – meditation requires steady practice. And the best way to ensure that you practice is to make it as hassle-free as possible. As we’ll see in the next blink, getting into a daily meditation practice is far easier when you learn to take it easy.

To quiet the mind, stop trying to quiet the mind.

The Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky once mused that if you try not to think of a polar bear, you’ll find yourself imagining one all the time. In the 1980s, Harvard psychologist Daniel Wegner turned this musing into an experiment. Subjects were instructed to think about polar bears and then to not think about them. In both phases, they were asked to ring a bell whenever one came to mind. When they were supposed to avoid thinking about the bears, the bells really started going off.

Clearly, Dostoevsky was right – try to banish a thought and that’s all you’ll think about. So what does that say about meditation teachers and their well-meaning instructions to let go of distractions and focus on something soothing? Unfortunately, any meditation that asks you to focus actually requires more work, making really letting go all but impossible.

To help quiet your mind, use a Settling Sound.

You might be worried that the settled mind is too far out of reach. But here’s the good news: you’ve already experienced it. Ever take an afternoon nap? Or have that cozy feeling when you’re reading before bed and your eyelids start to droop? That’s the settled mind.

To help you get there easily during your meditation, you’ll need a mantra. There are many types of mantras – some sung, some whispered, and others chanted or simply just thought. They all have different effects, from aligning energy centers to increasing courage. Those used for meditation are what the author calls Settling Sounds. Over time, your Settling Sound will train your mind to quiet itself as it sinks down into that blissful settled state.

To make meditation work for you, make a serious commitment.

When Light Watkins met his spiritual teacher, he was asked to donate a sum of money in exchange for the teaching that he was about to receive. The amount, he was told, should be equivalent to the value he placed on the teaching. Though Watkins had just $900 in his bank account at the time, he gave $400 to his teacher the next morning.

Why? Well, there’s a long tradition of exchanges like this in India, where gurus propose them as a test of their disciples’ commitment. They do this because an exchange confirms your commitment, and that’s what the quality of your meditation practice hinges upon. Real commitment leads to greater consistency and, in turn, a stronger technique. In other words, the more committed you are to your meditation, the more likely it is that it will change your life.

Meditation leads to relaxation.

If you’ve read a magazine recently, you’ve probably seen some headlines about meditation. For instance, a couple of years ago, Psychology Today ran the headline “How Meditation Won the Super Bowl.” Is it really what helped the Seahawks beat the Broncos? Probably not. Yet clickbait headlines constantly put forward specious claims about meditation’s benefits – claims that, if you’ve tried meditation at all, definitely seem out of reach.

So what does meditation actually do? Well, it doesn’t fix codependent relationships, cure chain smokers, reform sugar addicts, or dispel anger issues. But it does lead to greater states of relaxation which, in turn, pay great dividends in terms of calmness. By sticking to your daily practice, you’ll be able to keep your cool in a lot of stressful situations, from serious accidents to infuriating traffic jams. In social situations, you’ll probably be more forgiving, empathetic, and insightful. And at night, you’ll sleep easier and wake up happy to face the day.

Don’t worry, you’re just de-stressing.

During a meditation, one of Watkins’s students, named Mona, began to smell cigarette smoke. She checked to see if it was coming in through the window, but no, it wasn’t; it was coming in through her mind.

After talking to Watkins, Mona remembered that for about six months when she was younger, she had been a smoker. Back then, she was living in New York, stressed out by the hectic environment and dealing with the insecurities of being twenty-one. All those stressful emotions were now coming out during her meditation as her body gradually de-stressed.

True mindfulness is a product of meditation.

In 2004, a massive tsunami from the Indian Ocean killed over 150,000 people across twelve countries. Oddly, though, only a small number of animals were reported dead. Eyewitnesses recalled that before the tsunami, elephants were running to higher ground, flamingoes abandoned their nests, and dogs wouldn’t go outside.

Many believe that animals can sense danger a mile away. While humans sometimes have this kind of intuition, too, they often attribute it to some outside force, like serendipity or divine intervention. Practiced meditators, however, report having such intuitions more often. Why? Well, these aren’t so much meditation-induced epiphanies as they are intuitive reactions. Yet they’re a direct expression of a byproduct of meditation: true mindfulness – that is, being so in the moment that you don’t even notice it.

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About the Author

Since 1998, Light Watkins has been a mindfulness and meditation teacher, as well as the founder of The Shine Movement. Through his courses, books, TEDx talk, and email newsletter, Watkins’s teachings have reached hundreds of thousands of people all across the globe.

Who should read Bliss More?

Restless meditators
Those looking for a new approach to mindfulness
Anyone hoping to bliss out a little more

Categories with Bliss More

Mindfulness & Happiness

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