With meditation, often comes clarity.
Imagine shaking up a bottle of water that’s half full of sand; the constant motion creates a murky cloud of sediment, making it impossible to see anything. Now imagine setting down that same bottle and pausing for a moment as the sand sinks to the bottom.
In stillness, you are able to see clearly the distinction between the water and the sand. Meditation provides the same stillness, allowing us to observe the distinction between our thoughts and our true nature. (Learn more in Find the Mind's 'Off Switch': 3 Ways to Rein In Your Brain During Meditation.)
Because of this clarity, it's important that you don't immediately rush off to the next thing after meditation, that you take some time to mindfully integrate what has come up for you.
Any kind of creative expression, journaling and goal-setting can be particularly rewarding after meditation, as the practice tends to put the mind into sharp focus. You may become more intimately connected with thoughts, feelings and emotions and find it easier than usual to express these with precision.
If you don’t have much time after you meditate, at the very least try to be clear in your intention of what you will do next. Engaging in mindful movement or walking after meditation can be a continuation of the practice, helping you to become truly present in your actions.
This will slowly merge mindfulness with your day-to-day life, shifting the perception that it is a distinct and separate practice to be hurried away from once it’s done.
However you do it, taking some time to transition out of meditation helps you to truly understand and experience the benefits of the practice. What’s more, over time you may even find it easier to transition into the practice as a result.
Meditation will undoubtedly be having a positive impact on your everyday life, but you’re unlikely to be able to see this if you’re always rushing away from it. The more time you dedicate to coming out of this practice, the greater the clarity of mind will be. (Learn more in 7 Steps to Take Your Meditation Practice to the Next Level.)
The more you stop to pause and reflect, the clearer the distinction thoughts and true nature will become.