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 Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 7:27 pm
I'm curious who else finds this more comfortable than meditation while your eyes are closed.
I find it much easier to focus on things like cleansing and grounding when I have my eyes open and staring into nothing or just having them open in complete darkness as opposed to having them closed.
I'm fairly sure that this isn't a wrong way to meditate but rather one of the many alternatives. But just in case, I'll ask the typical newbie question: Am I doing it wrong?
Comments? Suggestions?
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 7:37 pm
I would think that if it works for you then there isn't anything wrong with it. I believe that generally having your eyes closed is considered the "proper" or usualy way to do it because most people may find it easier to concentrate that way.
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Posted: Thu Apr 08, 2010 8:59 pm
I'm guessing you're talking about some specific type of meditation? Like Zen or something similar?
Usually when I meditate I am running or riding a bike. It would be dangerous for me to close my eyes, I keep them open. Other times it is helpful for me to stare at what I am meditating about, especially if it's mathematical (most of my meditations are about mathematics). And yet other times I stare blankly into space. It feels unnatural for me to hold my eyes closed when I am not sleeping or making out. The only meditations I generally close my eyes for are the ones I use to assume a role when I am acting.
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Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2010 5:58 am
zyzzva I'm guessing you're talking about some specific type of meditation? Like Zen or something similar? I mean meditation in general. From guided ones to things like shielding and cleansing. I find when I close my eyes, I tend to either fall asleep or get off task a lot faster.
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Posted: Mon Oct 25, 2010 1:00 pm
I find that when meditating, I prefer the room to be as dark as possible. I also prefer to lie down and close my eyes. Apparently this is a good way to fall asleep, but it's never happened to me.
The way I've learned to ground uses a mix of visual imagery (I picture things as if I'm actually seeing them) and mental imagery (the pictures are in my head), so I ground with my eyes open. Same goes for shielding. I almost never do either of those two things anymore, though.
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Posted: Fri Oct 29, 2010 7:31 am
I meditate with my eyes open or closed depending on if I am trying to visualize something or not.
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Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2010 1:27 am
CilverCyanide I find it much easier to focus on things like cleansing and grounding when I have my eyes open and staring into nothing That is a type of meditation called gazing, it's common to do. smile I use it if I'm having trouble getting into an elemental visualization, like staring into a flame to get into fire meditations. Sometimes I just kind of check out while looking at something and go into a trance unintentionally.
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Posted: Sun Nov 07, 2010 7:38 am
Kashaku-Tatsu That is a type of meditation called gazing, it's common to do. smile Isn't gazing what people do to scry?
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 9:11 am
I prefer with eyes closed; I'm naturaly a visual person, so the level of concentration needed to meditate is hard for me when I look at things. I may open my eyes a few times, if someone enters or I need to do something, but mostly I prefer closed during the actual meditation.
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Posted: Sat Feb 26, 2011 7:12 am
I find meditation easier when I have something that fills the general purpose of a mandala.
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Posted: Sat Feb 26, 2011 1:31 pm
I have done some meditative work with my eyes open. To me it is not as effective. Though the effectiveness of the meditation and the eye open or closed depends on what I am meditating on.
Deep trance work is always done with my eyes closed. That way I can fully immerse myself in meditation. Most of my meditations that are done for my training in the Temple tradition are done with my eyes closed to aid the visualization.
Any meditating I do while in a car (as a passenger) is typically done eyes open as I am looking at the world as we pass it. It starts to just let me drift. Sometimes its a dream and other times its just different outcomes of what has been on my mind.
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Posted: Sat Feb 26, 2011 11:36 pm
In total darkness there's not really much difference between eyes open and eyes closed. You just have to remember to blink to keep your eyes moist.
I can meditate either way, even in broad daylight, but it depends on what I'm trying to accomplish. If I'm trying to do something other than clear my mind or focus on my breathing then I find it helpful to close my eyes as it cuts down on sensory input and allows me to focus on whatever I'm trying to do internally. I've done some energy work with eyes open before.
Really, I think it's whatever works for you unless the specific method says otherwise.
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Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2012 6:05 pm
I meditate with my eyes open as well. I find it so much easier. Like how you said, it's easier to look into nothing than look into darkness. I also find it more comfortable. Although I'm somewhere deep inside myself I can still see whats going on around me and that makes me feel much more comfortable than if my eyes were closed. I raise energy with my eyes open as well.
For some reason I'm also not as twitchy with my eyes open. If I close my eyes I move around a lot more and I can feel my eyes wanting to peel open.
I have been told that meditating this way is wrong. Very wrong. But I don't care. I will do as I please and you should as well.
It's good to see I'm not alone in this way of meditation.
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Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2012 11:06 pm
I have to either have it be total darkness, or my eyes have to be closed. When they're open I'm too curious about things around me. If I close them I can focus on what I am sitting on and envision myself melting into it, which helps. Can't do that if my eyes are open.
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Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:04 am
I think there are times at work where I am doing such meaningless tasks that I go into a meditative state my body is still moving but my mind is free and focused. The other day I was near a coi pond with a waterfall and became a fish. All while doing remedial janitor tasks.
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