One of the most common questions that come up for beginning meditators is something like: “although I want to establish a regular daily meditation practice, I start out great at first but then after a while it fades away. What can I do?”

Actually, it isn’t all that hard to establish a lifelong habit of meditation, but it does take a little time to build it up.

By following these five easy steps, our meditation practice will gradually become an effortless habit. Guaranteed!

There’s a standard American joke that goes, “A man walks into a bar…” and proceeds to have a short story ending with a punch-line. To get this post started right, I’ll finish the joke:

There is not one but four delightful, fresh roses on the table. They are glorious buds; a superb pink, and they smell divine. I am sitting having lunch while my wife Ruth and I are leading a meditation retreat. I find myself marveling at the attention to detail and then my mind turns to wondering how long it will be before people are paid to come to these programs?

If you’re already on your cushion and working to tame your wild mind through meditation, then please congratulate yourself because you have already accomplished quite a lot.

If not, then you might want to read this…

Meditation whilst sitting upon one’s cushion is all well and good but that’s not what meditation is about…at least not for me. When I practice formally, I’m working on learning how to bring my “meditative mind,” or “meditative awareness” into my life. For me, no aspect of life is better for testing my meditative abilities then the experience of fear.