Thinking of meditation as a ritual can help you make it a daily habit


I say it three times every morning but would never post it on social media.

It’s one of those inspirational quotes people get printed in cursive and hang in their living room.

“Never wait for a special occasion. Being alive is a special occasion.”

“Never wait for a special occasion. Being alive is a special occasion.”

“Never wait for a special occasion. Being alive is a special occasion.”

After meditating, I say it low and slow like how monks recite mantras at Zen monasteries.

What this little ritual does is it allows me to learn what’s most important each day. As I say it, I listen for which part of me reacts the loudest.

Sometimes it’s the part that hustles to get the most out of life. Never wait, seize the day!

Sometimes it’s the part that savors the mystery of it all. Slow down and enjoy it.

Sometimes it’s the part that can’t stand cheesy bullshit, and I move on with my day.

A ritual’s value isn’t necessarily to remind us of anything in particular. It can simply be something to count on, a landmark in a journey we weren’t given a map for, a mirror to see how we’re doing.

If you’re cringing inside, just realize that capitalist society is filled with rituals—we just don’t think of them that way. That first cup of coffee in the morning. Happy hour after work. Sleeping in on weekends. These help us get through the grind.

But when I found mindfulness meditation, I found what I’d always been looking for: a ritual that could reliably connect me with myself and the life happening around me.

Because, let’s face it, capitalism causes disconnection. We hustle for the next paycheck, fantasize about our next vacation—if we’re lucky to be allowed to have one—and bide our time until we retire (again, if we’re lucky) to finally start doing what we’ve always wanted to do.

Meanwhile, those at the top of the food chain try to turn us against our coworkers and neighbors using racism, sexism, etc., to keep us fighting each other rather than fighting back.

Before I say that inspirational quote each morning, I meditate, usually on a cushion called a zafu (I like Carolina Morning brand) or at the edge of my bed.

There isn’t much to it. I’m sitting and doing nothing rather than doing something. I might watch the movement of my breath, listen to sounds, and feel my body’s sensations. Or I might just sit there.

But what emerges—most days—is an inner landscape of thoughts, emotions, sensations, judgements, opinions, voices, and personalities. I simply sit back and listen. I rest as the witness who is witnessing it all, who some might call God or consciousness or being one with everything.

I finally stop following my mind’s dramatic, contradictory whims, which allows me to connect—with what’s happening right here, right now, inside and out.

“What is a ritual?” Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho writes in The Witch of Portobello. “It means transforming something monotonous into something different, rhythmic, capable of channeling the unity.”

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On Meditation for the 99%, I take meditation out of faraway monasteries, expensive retreat centers, and Corporate America, and bring it to work, relationships, and, especially, politics. Listen everywhere podcasts are available.