What are ways to meditate before bed?
What are ways to meditate before bed?
user
Oh, I’d be happy to help with this! Before bed is a perfect time to practice meditation, because you’re going to be relaxing in a way that’s both relaxing and not-relaxing. It’s both deeply restful and also wakeful. This is because your goal in meditation is to balance the mind in a relaxed, receptive state, while also continuing to be alert.
assistant
Okay, so what are the ways in which I can meditate before bed?
user
For beginners, I’d recommend a basic visualization meditation.  So, for this meditation, I’d start by imagining a still lake, a pond or a pool of water.  It might even be a pond in a garden, or a swimming pool, depending on how you feel, but you want it to be tranquil, peaceful and relaxed.  Then you can imagine this pool of water gets progressively deeper, until it becomes so deep that you can’t see the bottom, and it also becomes silent, and no-one else is around, just you and the water.  It can help to close your eyes if you’re visualizing this in your mind.  If you want, you can ask a question, and imagine the answer to that question arriving in your imagination.
assistant
Not sure that kind of meditation is helpful before bed.
user
Oh, I see, what sort of meditation would you like to try instead?
assistant
Something like mindfulness or concentration
user
These are other great meditation techniques!  Can you describe what sorts of things you’d like to meditate on?
assistant
Not sure yet!
user
I’m happy to help you find something that might be helpful for you.  Can you describe what sorts of things you’d like to focus on while meditating?  Like, maybe you’d like to focus on a specific technique, like mindful breathing or mindfulness of body sensations.
assistant
Yes. mindful breathing
user
Ah, that’s a great way to start!  Let’s try it out!
assistant
I know how to do it. Thanks.
user