Starting with this chapter, I'm going to lay out the different purely secular methods of achieving a meditative state. Now, a lot of people might argue whether these methods are “classical" meditative techniques. But as I've mentioned in chapter 4, we really couldn’t care less about whether it's traditional, classical or what have you.
Instead, our focus is to learn the basic practical, doable techniques that enable people to focus on the present moment. This is the key to relieving stress and removing unnecessary life pressures. The first method I'm going to teach you is the SEAL quick stress relief method. This method was pioneered for the US Navy SEAL program.
SEAL stands for Sea, Air and Land teams. These are highly trained, mission critical military units run by the United States Navy. These are the seasoned military specialists that often see action first in any kind of armed conflict. In other words, you have to have your wits about you.
Usually, they get sent in to clear out an area, they plant bombs, they do sabotage, they do all sorts of highly stressful military work. It follows that the US Navy invested a tremendous amount of money to enable these military specialists to achieve instant or almost instant peace of mind right before they do a task.
Also, if they're in the middle of a firefight or they are in the middle of a very sticky situation that can be fatal, they get the US Navy invested in this training to help them calm down and remain focused on the task at hand.
The SEAL Method
The SEAL method is actually pretty straightforward. You breathe for a few seconds. It could be 4, it could be 10, as long as it's not too long for you to be uncomfortable. You breathe, and then hold. And then you release, and then you hold.
Basically, you breathe in, and then you hold it for however many seconds. You then release your breath, and then at the end of that stage when all the air has left your lungs, you hold it for the same number of seconds when you we’re breathing in. You repeat this about 3 to 8 times. Again, as long as it's comfortable.
Guidelines
When you're doing this, you don't think. You know you’re doing it wrong when you're thinking. Instead, you should just focus on what you're doing. Focus on the air coming in, focus on holding your breath, then focus on the air going out. If you keep repeating this with your focus solely on your breath and what your body is going through; the relaxation will come. Your mind starts to unclench.
You're no longer worried about stuff at work. You're no longer worried about your relationship. You're no longer worried about your childhood. You're no longer obsessing about that person you can't forgive. None of that matters. Instead, you focus on the here and now. That's when the relaxation comes.
Ideally, you should start with the SEAL method for quick stress relief. This is the easiest meditation method and it delivers the quickest results. Once you learn to de-stress using this technique, you should then go deeper by adopting the methods described in the following chapters of this training.
