Meditate 2 Hours Daily: My strategy here is very specific. I’m starting with what I know I’m already consistent with, and then from there moving up 5 minutes / day each month until I am consistently sitting 2 hours / day. So, starting in February I will be sitting 1 hour and 45 minutes each day. I’ll be keeping track of how much I sit each day, and will take the total time per month that I’ve actually sat and divide that by the total time I was supposed to have sat. This will give me a percentage out of 100. I will take that percentage and use the scale below to determine what to do the next month.
93% or higher: I will increase my sitting time next month by 5 minutes
85% - 93%: I will maintain my current sitting schedule
70% - 85%: I will lower my practice 5 minutes per day
Below 70%: I will re-think my strategy, and re-evaluate my life circumstances to see if this goal is still appropriate
So, for example… Say that my goal is to sit an hour a day, and there are 30 days in the month. That’s a total possible 30 hours of meditation in that month. Let’s say that at the end of that month, I’d missed 3 sittings, and sat a total of 27 hours (I’m not counting any time over what I’ve committed to sitting. So with this example, if I were to sit 1 hour & 30 minutes, I would NOT count that 30 minutes as extra time. It simply wouldn’t be counted. Also, I would count partial time spent. If I sat for 45 minutes instead of an hour, I would count those 45 minutes. This is to keep me from feeling that I can’t sit at all, if I don’t have time for the whole thing. The amount of time I sit is far less important than actually just using whatever time I have to develop awareness, and the spirit of this experiment is what is ultimately important: to wake up. Please keep that in mind as you read this!). So, for this example I sat 27 hours out of 30, for a total of %90. According to my standards above, this isn’t consistent enough to up my practice. I haven’t yet mastered this habit, and so I’m going to keep sitting this amount of time next month.
I know for some this may seem pretty rigid, but I’ve learned that when it comes to discipline and creating new habits, it oftentimes takes an initial period of rigidity—not in the sense that I feel the need to get mad at myself if I don’t “achieve” my stated goal. For whatever reason, this approach, both in meditation practice, back when I was a decent long-distance runner, and in many other areas, has always worked extraordinarily well. Here are my standards for knowing whether or not I’m on track. Notice I’ve given myself the entire year to develop this habit…:
- 1st Quarter (Jan-March): Having a consistent 1 hour & 45 min / day practice
- 2nd Quarter (April-June): Having a consistent 1 hour & 50 min / day practice
- 3rd Quarter (July-September): Having a consistent 1 hour & 55 min / day practice
- 4th Quarter (October-December): Having a consistent 2 hour / day practice
January 22nd, 2006 at 11:04 am
Hi Vince,
Better be careful you are sounding awfully ‘anal’ these days! ; o )
‘Member… not too tight… not too loose.
Genuinely,
David Jon
P.S. Hope you don’t lose sight of the ‘Big Goal’ Vince. Strict adherence to plans/agendas/goals can often have unforeseen consequences. So have fun once in awhile and try to remember life is not a race to some presumed ‘finish line.’
P.P.S. Would you be happy with B’s in school if your personal relationships were better? How much are straight A’s worth? How much are you willing to pay? What are the ‘hidden costs’ of your goals? Are there any? Or are they ‘pure’ in and of themselves?
January 22nd, 2006 at 12:48 pm
Yo DJP…
I wrote a short response to your comment above. I hope that it answers some of your questions. Also, feel free to keep challenging me… I do appreciate it.
January 22nd, 2006 at 5:39 pm
Maybe this little story (you’ve probably read before) is something to consider in light of Jon’s comment:
One day Master Huai-Jang visited Ma-tsu’s hut. Ma-tsu stood and greeted him.
Huai-jang asked, “What have you been doing recently?”
Ma-tsu replied, “I have done nothing but sit in zazen.”
Huai-jang asked, “Why do you continually sit in zazen?”
Ma-tsu answered, “I sit in zazen in order to become Buddha.”
Huai-jang picked up a tile and started to polish it using another tile he found by the side of Ma-tsu’s hut.
Ma-tsu watched what he was doing and asked, “Master, what are you doing?”
Huai-jang answered, “I am polishing this tile.”
Ma-tsu asked, “Why are you polishing the tile?”
Huai-jang answered, “To make a mirror.”
Ma-tsu said, “How can you make a mirror by polishing a clay tile?”
Huai-jang replied, “How can you become a Buddha by doing zazen?”
Just a thought …
January 22nd, 2006 at 5:45 pm
You are correct Sean, I have read that story (koan) before. This is my answer to that koan, which I shared in the most recent response to David Jon:
“The conditions of my life mean nothing in relation to the Unconditioned. Freedom is neither limited nor enhanced by any set of conditions. How could it be?”
Zazen is about changing the conditions, yes? I sit, but I don’t sit because I think it will have any effect on Freedom. Freedom IS. Because I know this, I sit. Because I know this, I strive towards mastery. And that might change (nay, will change), because it has to do with conditions, not with Truth. But for now, I sit.
January 22nd, 2006 at 5:51 pm
One more thing Sean: You have a really well designed site! Very pleasing to the eye…
January 22nd, 2006 at 9:42 pm
Excellent response and thanks for the complement. I wish you the best on the unending path of mastery
January 23rd, 2006 at 9:53 am
Thanks for the public articulation of your goals and strategies, Vince. I have found it hard to maintain a daily meditaion practice and it may help to learn your process.
January 23rd, 2006 at 1:41 pm
I don’t think it’s too rigid at all.
And I like that you’ve explicitly stated your intention to simply notice if your discipline happens to slack, without beating yourself up. Recently I’ve come to the realization that beating yourself up about falling off your plan is wasted time and energy that could be spent on getting back on track or re-evaluating!
January 23rd, 2006 at 3:23 pm
Thanks for the vote of confidence Duffster. My understanding with goals is that the more specific the better. That’s all I’m trying to do. If people interpret that as ‘anal’ what can I do?
And yes, why beat ourselves up…?