"Your choice of meditation technique needs to comply with and suit your mental state or current mood.”

"Your choice of meditation technique needs to comply with and suit your mental state or current mood.”

- - -
Question: How do I avoid getting exhausted when I meditate? I focus on two things while reciting 

'Buddho' when I meditate: the solar plexus and the in-and-out breaths. Once my mind is concentrated, I would get tired from focussing on one thing and so I switch to the other.

Than Ajahn: It is actually better to just focus on one thing or use just one meditation subject. If your mind is full of thoughts, you should resort to reciting 'Buddho' first to calm it down. When your mind lacks energy and no longer conjures up all the thoughts, you should then stop reciting 'Buddho' and carry on with watching your breath.

Don't do two things at once. You're overtaxing your own mind unnecessarily. However, certain people who are used to doing both in tandem would be an exception. It depends on each individual—each one of us has a different approach to calming one's own mind. Don't think that someone else's approach would also work for you. Their mental capacity is likely not at the same level as yours, being possibly higher or lower.

So you should take note of your own technique and practice to see what suits you most. From my observation, if your mind is prone to thinking, following your breath alone would not cut it. You should start with reciting 'Buddho'; if even that doesn't work, you can start with chanting. Keep chanting to drain your mental energy to a certain extent so that it will stop proliferating, and then you can either recite 'Buddho' or observe your breathing.

And if chanting doesn't help quell your mind from thinking, you can listen to or read some Dhamma to begin with. It will help you focus on the present, pulling your mind away from random thoughts. Once your mind is calm from reading, you can then close your eyes and watch your in-breath and out-breath.

Sitting in meditation is like driving. When a car is parked, which gear is it in? When you start the engine, you have to start from the first gear. You can't jump right to the fourth or fifth gear as it will stop the engine. It will also stop the car if you shift straight to the first gear when it is at a certain speed. You need to be aware of the car's speed and the road and use its gears accordingly.

The same goes for meditation practice, or mental cultivation (bhavana). You need to observe your mental state—whether it is pliable or not and whether it is unruly or not. Your choice of meditation technique needs to comply with and suit your mental state or current mood.

“Essential Teachings.”

By Ajahn Suchart Abhijāto
www.phrasuchart.com

Latest Dhamma talks on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi_BnRZmNgECsJGS31F495g