Candle gazing mindfulness meditation

I’ve been teaching mindfulness at the Prince and Princess of Wales hospice for a year now, and the out-patients that come to my sessions have shared that mindfulness has helped them achieve a sense of calmness and peace.

Quieten your mind

It might be a bit daunting to you to sit in silence or meditation, although the premise of meditation is not to sit in silence with no thoughts... but rather to quieten the mind, notice the thoughts and let them go.

I can vividly remember the first time I experienced a guided meditation. I was at a Girl Guide camp, maybe in my early teens, and the leader took the Guides through an exercise where we did a body scan, tensing and relaxing our muscles. I felt like I was floating and thought it was just amazing!

My journey with meditation has been up and down - I fall in and out of my practice. However, when I make the effort to keep with it, I notice a huge difference in my mood and state of being.

How to do a candle gazing mindfulness meditation

A simple technique to get started with meditation is to try candle gazing.

• Find yourself a candle, it doesn’t matter the shape or size.

• Dim the lights in your room, so that the flame of the candle will stand out.

• If you can, sit with the candle at your eye level (maybe sitting on a chair, and having the candle on a breakfast bar or mantelpiece).

• Light the candle, and if it’s helpful you can set a timer for the meditation (the free app Insight Timer is useful).

• Take a few slow deep breaths, allow your body to relax and settle into stillness.

• Now turn your attention to the candle.

• Watch the flame flicker and dance.

• Notice if it changes colour and shape.

• If you find your attention wanders, gently bring it back to the flame.

If your mind gets distracted

Your mind is likely to wander, especially when you first begin a meditation practice. This is normal. The average person has 60,000-70,000 thoughts a day!

It’s ok & natural; the more you practice your focus will improve.

Be patient with yourself.

Start out with just 1 minute, and see how you get on.