Two primary forms of meditation

Two forms of meditation

There are countless forms of meditation and pretty much all of them are dividable into two primary kinds of meditation:

1: Mind-focussed meditations
2: No-Mind Meditations (mindless meditations)

In the end, all of the mental exersices, all of these mind-focussed meditations have the same purpose: to get you to the point of concentration, but mostly to the point of understanding and readiness, from which you can start doing the no-mind meditations; true meditations. These are of a very different order. Exercise is for the mind, meditation is mindless. Basically you got thousands of meditations that fall under the concentration meditations. The mindless meditation is only one form(less) of meditation, for it is no longer a practice, but a state of beingness. Practices can differ in nature; mindless meditation can only differ in approach and explanations but never in nature. The true meditation without mind is one state.

Mindless meditation, or the no-mind meditations, are the deeper purpose of any authentic concentration meditation. Only in the mindless meditation can we make the real transformation; the shift to pure consciousness. The no-mind meditation or any other approach that takes you towards mindless meditation immediately is where our enlightenment blossoms. Here are the two forms of meditation explained in more depth:

Mind-focussed Meditation:

Most meditation practices that are taught belong to this category because every practice is mind-based. Forms of meditations that belong to this category are all mental exercises, such as: concentration exersices, mantra meditations, visualization meditations, pranayama, chakra meditations, etc. All of these forms of meditation are executed by the mind, for mind-improvement purposes.

The purpose of these mental meditations appears to differ, but the real purpose is always to get to the point of absorption, of mindlessness. Their only true function is that of being a pre-meditation. A lot of people get lost in them as if they are true meditations. They become so fascinated by all these different forms and experiences and their minds mis-take the form, the pre-meditation, for the real meditation which is mindless. With this knowledge in mind, you can safely start to practice these mental exercises untill you feel ready to let go of the form and mental exercises and start meditating for real. But always keep your eyes on the purpose of what you are doing, or you'll risk becoming lost in the illusion of form and preparation.

Concentration Meditations include every practice that involves the controlling or guiding of mental activity. I could spend a webpage naming all the different forms of meditation but you can figure out for yourself what meditation belongs to Concentration Meditation: every practice that involves mental activity.

These different forms of concentration meditation are designed to suit different kinds of situations and different kinds of people. Some are designed to generate certain beneficial characteristics and qualities in your personality that help you on the journey to Self Realization. Some practices are designed to establish a mind capable of deep concentration so that you can transcend the mind through concentration. Some are designed to heal the subtler energy bodies, etc. All of these different purposes have one deeper purpose: To make the mind suitable enough for you to transcend it completely.

Mindless Meditation:

Mindless Meditation includes only one meditation: a state of pure beingness. It is possible to achieve this state of no-mind, this state of pure beingness through different approaches. The difference between these 'approaches' and the approaches of concentration meditation (mental-activity meditations) is that the mindless approaches are very immediate in moving consciousness beyond the mind. They are not about dealing with the mind or controlling the mind or concentrating the mind per se, they are about transcending the mind immediately.

Mindless meditations often include a form of witnessing as in witnessing the mind. An example of an approach to mindless meditation in which witnessing plays a lead role is: mindfulness meditation. Witnessing is the most essential element of every mindless meditation. It is all about becoming the pure, non-judgemental witness that lies ever-present beyond the understanding of the mind. It is all about letting go of and dissolving the identification with the mind and ego. This is done only by witnessing without being involved in what is witnessed. In mindless meditation you don't think about what you witness, you don't judge what you see; you remain true to your source and retain the purity of your awareness.

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