Does Meditating Require A Truly Emptied Mind?

Have you ever felt the need to clear your head? Or was there ever a time you felt the need to get rid of all the clutter in your mind? 

For many, clearing the head is just impossible. In fact, the very thought of sitting themselves quietly in one corner with an empty mind is just impossible. Oftentimes, the pressure to empty the mind from worries is the very barrier for some who attempt to meditate. It has become impossible for some to try mindfulness exercises because they feel that they could not even pass the first step—the need to free the mind. 

What Does It Mean To Empty The Mind?

It is quite challenging to teach yourself how to empty your mind when you know that you just can't. With so many things on your plate, you can't even begin to think about letting go of them and telling yourself not to worry. 

While the goal of meditation is to free you from worries so you can focus your energies on the most important aspects of life, the practice of mindfulness does not require you to empty your mind. Focus meditation is all about learning to put your focus on the right object or idea. 

This mindfulness practice does not come with instructions or tenets that you need to follow to help clear your thoughts, so don't worry about it. 

Instead, the mindfulness practice serves as your guide in the process of choosing what to focus on. This training allows you to be your own observer. Up to what extent can you not worry? Up to what extent can you focus your attention on your own thought process? 

How Can Your Focus Liberate You?

What usually happens when you focus your attention on your walking or breathing, you will begin to realize that every time you think about it, there are far too many distractions running inside your head. Your thoughts and your worries keep you from truly focusing. 

The process of attempting to focus but realizing that you are too distracted is one of the invaluable things to learn about yourself. It is only through this process when you are able to recognize that the worries that you have are just thoughts inside your head. They are nothing more than just thoughts. Although this may seem like a simple revelation, realizing that your thoughts are just that can be very liberating. It gives you back the power to be one with yourself. 

Once you discover that these thoughts can come and go, you can control them as you please. This is the best part about trying to empty the mind, and you begin to see what you can actually do. 

How do you gain back control?

Because thoughts pass through your mind, then you can decide which ones to keep and which ones to let go of. Which ideas would you like to entertain and interact with? Which views would you like to change? 

Some thoughts inside your head are essential. There is no doubt about that. However, some of them make you feel anxious, angry, or afraid for no reason. With greater awareness of who you are, how you feel, and what you think, your thoughts will fall under your control. The control will be back to you. Your thoughts can no longer make you believe in things like, "You are not worth it" or that "you cannot stand it!" 

You simply have to let go of those thoughts and let them pass by. You don't need that negativity in your life. You don't have to be ruled by these negative notions of who you are. 

One meditation myth that makes a lot of people disheartened is this—mindfulness or meditation requires an empty head. 

But the truth is this: meditation does not require you to empty your head. It does not require you to suppress your thoughts. You know you can't do it, so don't do it. You'll only end up frustrated and sad. 

The practice of mindfulness is all about observing the mind. It does not matter if your mind is calm or busy at the moment. The focus is on noticing what is happening inside your head. Awareness of what is happening within is the first step to proper meditation. 

What Does Mindfulness Require?

The practice of mindfulness is straightforward. It is not as complicated as other people think it is. Mindfulness is not about finding quiet time in your busy day to be able to quiet the mind. Instead, it is about finding the time to meditate so you can focus on what is truly valuable of your time. 

Mindfulness is about being present. It is about your awareness of the moments that happen in your life. 

The challenge for you is not how you can bring calmness to your daily chaos. Rather, it should be about how you can manage yourself to survive your everyday life. This means that you need to be mindful whenever you are frustrated or angry. You need to know what is causing the feeling so that you can deal with it properly. 

Mindfulness of your daily life also includes the pressure that you feel whenever you are stuck in traffic, and you are late for your meeting. This is knowing what to do and how to manage your emotions at this time. Mindfulness is knowing what you do with your time every single time you use it. 

Mindfulness is not about forgetting what it means to get hurt or avoiding problems. Instead, being mindful requires you to face your problems and worries head-on, believing that they are just thoughts that you can control. 

Some of the activities that you do every day may require more of your attention, and that's okay. What you need to do is to manage your time well. Know your priorities and put the focus on the most important aspects of your everyday living.