{"id":61,"date":"2007-04-23T09:55:59","date_gmt":"2007-04-23T09:55:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/intromeditation.com\/Wordpress\/?p=61"},"modified":"2026-03-25T11:25:34","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T18:25:34","slug":"resources-for-beginner-meditators","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intromeditation.com\/Wordpress\/resources-for-beginner-meditators\/","title":{"rendered":"Resources For Beginner Meditators"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Over the years, people have often asked me for recommendations for mindfulness meditation resources for beginners. Here is some of what I have suggested:<\/p>\n

(1)<\/strong><\/span> I believe that breath meditation is the best place for people to start a regular meditation practice; it is the most basic, foundational, beginner meditation practice. Here are some breath meditation instructions for beginners.<\/a><\/p>\n

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(2)<\/strong><\/span> After some experience with meditating on the breath, meditation on body sensations is an usual second step for mindfulness meditators. The “Body Scan”\/”Body Sweep” technique<\/a> is one of the most popular mindfulness meditation techniques in the world, and “Labeling Body Sensations”<\/a> is my favorite meditation technique that I have done pretty much every day for three decades.\u00a0 And here is a short overview<\/a> of different techniques of body meditation, and their value.<\/p>\n

(3)<\/span><\/strong> The guided meditations that I have posted to Insight Timer<\/a> – Self-Friendliness, Finding a Solid Meditation Posture, and relaxing Forest Waterfall Visualization – are all great for beginners.<\/p>\n

(3)<\/span><\/strong> This blog post<\/a> helps people to understand meditation practice by seeing it as similar to the habit of physical exercise and working out, which is something that more people are more familiar with and able to understand.<\/p>\n

(4)<\/strong><\/span> If you plan to start an actual personal practice soon, then I recommend reading\u00a0this post about what time of day to sit, and for how long<\/a>.\u00a0 (Two shorter pieces that cover the same topics: what time of day<\/a>, for how long<\/a>).<\/p>\n

(5)<\/strong><\/span> This post<\/a> has suggestions for taking a healthy, comfortable posture when meditating in a chair.\u00a0 And this short post<\/a> is about sitting cross legged on a cushion.<\/p>\n

(6)<\/strong><\/span> This post<\/a> has helpful tips for what to do when feeling sleepy while meditating.<\/p>\n

(7)<\/span><\/strong> I wrote a brief piece that explains some core overview theory about the differences between cultivation meditations and mindfulness meditations, and about the fundamental aspects of mindfulness meditation. You can check it out here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

(8)<\/span><\/strong> One dilemma beginning meditators sometimes face is whether to practice sitting with our eyes open or closed. I wrote a short piece<\/a> with the goal of resolving this question.<\/p>\n

(9)<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0If you plan to buy a meditation cushion for\u00a0yourself,\u00a0then this blog post<\/a>\u00a0may offer you some guidance.<\/p>\n

(10)<\/span><\/strong> Two short pieces on the subject of choosing which meditation technique to do on a certain day: What Meditation Technique Should I Do Today \u2013 Some Heuristics For Choosing<\/a> and What Meditation Technique Should I Do Today \u2013 Parable of a Flooded Room<\/a><\/p>\n

(11)<\/span><\/strong> A few short pieces that I’ve written that may be helpful for beginners: Some tips for starting a personal home sitting practice<\/a>, Do I need to stop thinking when I meditate?<\/a>, Cultivating a concentrated mind<\/a>, Sitting still while meditating<\/a>, Can mindfulness be used to avoid pain and discomfort<\/a>, What if I don’t feel like meditating<\/a>, Strange but harmless experiences that can happen when we meditate<\/a>, and A metaphor of a ship cabin that helps explain the meditative journey<\/a>.<\/p>\n

(12)<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0A\u00a0book that I cannot recommend strongly enough to beginners is: “Mindfulness In Plain English”<\/a>. I love this book, I find it to be clear, simple, and powerful description of the basics of mindfulness meditation, easy to read yet comprehensively covers the important areas. The author, Bhante Henepola Gunaratana<\/a>, has,\u00a0as an act of generosity, allowed his book to be posted online at various sites for free<\/a>\u00a0(you can, of course, also give back and order a paper copy).<\/p>\n

(13)<\/strong><\/span> My main meditation\/spiritual teacher Shinzen Young has written and posted some insightful, comprehensive, clear, and otherwise excellent overview articles about the meditative path: What Is Mindfulness<\/a>, an introduction to his mindfulness system<\/a>, and more explanation of the core practice that he teaches<\/a> (if any of those links are broken, check out the top of this page<\/a> for working links). YouTube also features two channels containing\u00a0free videos\u00a0of his teaching (here<\/a> and here<\/a>), and\u00a0he recently released\u00a0an excellent book<\/a>\u00a0containing\u00a0an extended investigation\u00a0into\u00a0his teaching.
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(14)<\/strong><\/span> One of my other main teachers, Gil Fronsdal<\/a>, has free MP3 recordings of years of audio lectures online available for general download. \u00a0Here<\/a> for example, are links to audio recordings of an\u00a0introduction to meditation class series. \u00a0I usually find his lectures to be inspirational, clarifying, deeply informed by traditional teachings, entertaining, and easy to listen to.
\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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