Three Exercises For Specific Learning Types – Tom Campbell

Starting on page 174 of Tom\’s book, MBT… he relates three exercises for learning to meditate.  Each method focuses upon one of our major methods of learning:  Auditory, Visually and by Touch.  He uses those as a means of quieting and focusing the mind away from the physical.

You can read the book and the associated pages here for free: My-Big-Toe
It\’s a link that is fully endorsed by Tom himself… so feel free to read the whole thing should you choose to. 

The auditory exercise is about repeating a mantra.
The visual exercise is about allowing objects to appear before you in the blackness (sound familiar?) or creating a simple \”scenario\” and playing it out allowing yourself to perceive all the sensory input from it (also sounds familiar, eh?).
The touch exercise is about creating the sense of you touching something, like running your hands over a fur coat.

So yeah… you\’re to keep doing the chosen exercise and bringing your attention back to it whenever you notice that it\’s wandering.  However he mentions that when the image/sound/scenario begins to slip away (aka your mind begins to wander), but no extraneous thoughts appear, then just let the image/sound/scenario go and drift in the still oneness of your consciousness.  <– That\’s the point consciousness state.

Once you\’re in that state where you\’re experiencing that \”drifting oneness of consciousness\” you have *ALREADY* phased.  It\’s just a matter at that point to place your Intent towards what you want to do, and allow it to happen.

And this part is of UTMOST IMPORTANCE:

Be careful not to try too hard, and do not struggle with high resolution, image quality, or anything else.  Images may be felt as well as seen.  Struggling to make your meditation be how you think it should be is always counterproductive.  No expectations.  No struggle.  No demands.  The point is not to force your will on the process, but to let the process unfold naturally as it captivates your attention.