Recently, I received an email from one of my best college friends after a long time. He reached out with a very specific purpose — he wanted to start meditation. Knowing that I have been meditating regularly for quite some time, he asked me a simple yet powerful question: How do you start meditation?
I was genuinely happy to help. Below is the email I wrote back to my friend, sharing my personal understanding and experience with meditation.
I meditate on a regular basis.
The idea of meditation is to train your mind to focus and to put your mind under observation.
(You can choose any subject to focus on. Some people focus on the power of the word “Om”. I prefer to focus on my breath, which is the source of life.)
By doing this, you essentially train the mind and strengthen its natural ability to focus. This training of the mind is similar to physical exercise. Just as you go to the gym to build muscles or biceps, meditation helps build mental strength, awareness, and discipline.
Over time, this practice helps you become aware of your breath at will. You naturally slow down, gain control over your thoughts, and develop the ability to focus your mind on any subject whenever required.
In the beginning, to form a habit, practise meditation with discipline for 21 consecutive days, for 15 minutes daily. Research suggests that it takes around 21 days to form a new habit, and meditation is no different.
How is meditation useful?
Whenever negative thoughts or emotions arise, meditation helps you become aware of them in that very moment. Once awareness develops, you gain the ability to consciously redirect your mind towards positive thoughts and emotions.
This process preserves your mental and emotional energy, allowing it to be used constructively. Meditation helps reduce negative emotions such as anger, pride, greed, and envy — emotions that drain energy and disturb mental peace.
I sincerely believe that regular meditation leads to clarity in thinking, better decision-making, and emotional balance.
While meditating, do not expect any outcome. Simply sit in silence and observe. Initially, you may feel that you are not meditating at all because your mind is filled with thoughts. This is perfectly normal.
Thoughts will arise and disappear continuously. The key is not to get carried away by them. Gently bring your attention back to your breath. Observe the thoughts without judgement, allow them to fade, and redirect your focus to breathing. This cycle will repeat — and that is part of the process.
With time, the experience of meditation becomes deeply enriching — something that cannot be fully expressed in words.
By the way, I am still a student and learning every day. There is always scope for improvement.
Enjoy meditation. You will begin to enjoy life.
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Meditation is a simple yet powerful practice to build focus, emotional balance, and clarity of thought. Learn how to start meditation with discipline and awareness.
