Top 5 Reasons NOT to take a Meditation Challenge

While it feels like all the rage, attempting a meditation practice might not be for you. Here are five reasons to stay clear of the cushion.

1. You have no interest in how your mind works
   Sure this is where you spend all your time and the quality of your mind affects your experience of every moment of every interaction, but why bother understanding? More interesting to pay attention to the latest update of your favorite app on your phone than refining your perception to see more clearly. Besides, the clearing of the current mind’s cache takes a while and the fresh download even longer, and you are way too busy for that.


2. You are completely relaxed when things don’t go as planned
   When you get stuck in nasty traffic, you automatically and easily trust in the mystery. When your bag is lost by the airline, you laugh and forgive easily. When your best friend forgets a scheduled play date, you let it roll right off your back. When you suddenly lose your good health, you are grateful for the life you have been given and continue to pray for others who suffer more.


3. You have no anxiety and have never been depressed
   While the World Health Organization predicts that by 2030, the number one health concern will be depression, this has nothing to do with you. You easily get out of bed in the morning feeling purposeful and connected to the meaning of your life. And at night, when you turn out the light and lie down, your concerns and worries turn off as well. You’ve never woken up in the wee hours in the panic of a thought storm and you deeply and truly know you are a loved and wanted being of the Cosmos.


4. All your relationships are as you want them to be
   Your heart has no regrets or sorrows and you are in harmony with all those around you. You do not ruminate over past conversations that you wish had gone differently, nor do you prepare for imagined future interactions. You do not suffer pains of jealousy, envy or inflated superiority. Your relationship with your whole extended family is easy breezy and people with opposite political beliefs are welcome in your heart and home.


5. You don’t want to
   There is an old saying, “Unless you are like a woman with her hair on fire in search of a lake, do not begin the spiritual journey.” Self-awareness is not an easy practice and many obstacles are waiting for your discovery. Unless you really want the gifts that meditation has to offer, relax and let yourself off the hook. Unfortunately, because meditation has become something that we are supposed to be doing, we can feel guilty if we are not practicing. Feeling guilty about not meditating is worse for your health than not meditating! So, blow it off. The practice will be here waiting for you when and if you are wanting it.

If none of these reasons are true, then consider joining us this September for one of our meditation challenges to find out if the medicine of meditation works for you. 5 Minutes for 5 Days with Rosemary Garrison launches on September 7; 10 for 10 with Rosemary launches on September 14; and 21 for 21 with Nikki Estrada launches on September 21. We look forward to being together with ourselves.