You may be wondering if there is a right time for practicing morning meditation or any other type of meditation for that matter. In fact, the answer to that question is both “yes” and “no”. You can control exactly what your day is going to bring, but with morning meditation, you grounded your body and mind in peace, clarity and compassion. And you do not need an entire 30 minutes or an hour to accomplish this as well. Setting aside just ten minutes, you can already bring those qualities into your day with you.
The reason why some people feel they have to meditate an entire hour before their day starts is because it feels like too much. If you were going to meditate that long, you would probably feel exhausted the whole time, and there is nothing worse than being too tired to practice your morning meditation techniques. So, setting aside twenty minutes is sufficient enough time for you to begin your practice, but not enough time for you to feel drained out. The same goes for those who meditate for an hour before their day.
So, once again, the answer to the question of when to practice your daily morning meditation routine is: “it depends.” Of course, the one who is going to practice will know exactly how much time they have to devote to it. If you are a very visual learner (you read a lot, write a lot, watch a lot of television), then you may want to start your routine at night and gradually increase it over the next few days. If you are more of an absorbent person, then you may want to begin your routine early in the morning and keep it consistent throughout the day.
But if you find that you are just not able to get started on your morning routine when you wake up, or if you find that you don’t like meditating (that you just end up sitting in bed, staring at the ceiling), then you will want to start early and keep it consistent. Perhaps you want to go to sleep a little earlier so you are in a better mood for meditation. Maybe you like to do your ten minutes early in the morning, and then continue with your daily routine for the remaining part of the day. Maybe you prefer to make your ten minutes part of your morning routine, and then do your meditation when you wake up. Whatever suits you personally will work for you. You can even choose to start and end your daily ten-minute meditation routine any time that suits you, which means that you can meditate as soon as you feel ready.
Regardless of your personal preferences, most people find that it is best to begin their morning meditation session by being in a calm and relaxing state of mind. When a person feels refreshed and relaxed, they are better equipped to begin a session, and this also minimizes the likelihood of having any “stress” or other side effects from meditating, such as feeling jumpy or having shortness of breath. If you are the type who needs to be in a certain “zone” before you start your meditation sessions, then it might be a good idea to first clear your mind and body of all thoughts, until you feel ready to start your morning routine. You should also set a short time aside each day to focus solely on your meditation and take deep breaths regularly during your meditation, to ensure that your body and mind will be completely relaxed and stress free.
If you need a little extra help with starting and sticking with your morning meditation routine, there are many books and audio CDs available for purchase. Some even come with complete instructions written by professional instructors to guide you through the process. There are no guarantees that these methods will work for you, but they can definitely be helpful in getting you started. Just remember to be sure to clear your mind of any preconceived notions of what is required to have a “good” morning, and you will reap the benefits of meditating for a very long time.