Why Now Is the Time to Meditate (and How to Get Started)

Right now, to overcome the dense and heavy energies we are all experiencing, we must return back to our true essence – that we are all beings of light sent to this earth on our own personal missions. We chose to come here and experience the year 2020 for a much greater reason than posting on TikTok and hoarding toilet paper. We are here for the Great Awakening.

In the words of the French philosopher, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, "You are not a human being in search of a spiritual experience. You are a spiritual being immersed in a human experience." Discovering this truth is not easy, and for many spiritual seekers, it may take a lifetime to figure out this truth. What the world needs right now, more than ever, is to shift into higher states of consciousness. To leave our three-dimensional reality as we know it. The labels, the drama, the materialism, and, in turn, shift dimensional timelines. To create and curate your reality every day.

The best way I know how to do that is to sit in my meditation. When you practice meditation, you can connect to higher dimensions of reality where there is only peace, ease, abundance and joy. This is what we are fighting so hard for right now and may not even know it. The nervous, fear-driven and anxious energy is a wakeup call to your soul. We are laying down the foundation for this next phase of our reality to expose itself. We are fighting for the Age of Aquarius. This is not just come song from Hair or the ending of The 40 Year Old Virgin. This is a real era we are living in and will continue to live in for the next 2500 years. The Age of Aquarius is all about the death of the patriarchy and the rise of the divine feminine. It is about unity, consciousness, freedom, humanitarianism, idealism, modernization, non-conformity, rebellion, equality, philanthropy, and perseverance. This is a time of love, truth and understanding – a true expansion of a higher consciousness. A totally opposing ideal from what we (and our ancestors) have experienced. The divine feminine is rising, and we must harness that power to make the life we have right now as happy, wonderful and meaningful as we can. By being joyful, purposeful, and filled with divine power, we can help heal the wounds of Mother Earth.

Humanity is having an expansion of consciousness, and this will be a time where, if we desire to do so, we will rise like no other generation has done before. This time, the changes will stick. Although we may be feeling that this time is nothing but chaos, it is through the chaos we will achieve the enlightened state we are seeking – but only if we, as a collective, decide to do it together.

Taking time every day to practice entering a meditative state may seem frivolous right now, but it will help you master yourself. If we all master ourselves first, then the world will be shifted for our highest and greatest good. Leo Tolstoy once said, "Everyone thinks of changing the worlds, but no one thinks of changing himself." We must be the change we want to see in the world, and one of the first steps you can take it to take the time each day to make this practice a part of your life.

You may be saying to yourself, "Yes, this is nice, but I don't know the first thing about starting a meditation practice." And that's okay! Here are my cliff notes:

• You can meditate anywhere. Make sure the space is sacred, comfortable and high-vibrational.
• If you are feeling spiritually adventurous, you can meditate holding some crystals. I love rose quartz for times like these to help heal the heart, or black tourmaline to ward off and transmute negative energy.
• Start by taking in three deep, cleansing Ujjayi breaths. Ujjayi is a breath that uses the diaphragm, which activates the chakras. Inhalation as well and exhalation is done only through the nose.
• Call in your posse. I say, "God, Universe, Archangel Metatron, my guides, my guardians, my ascended masters and loved ones who are no longer on Earth – be with me now. Help me today to find peace, serenity, unity, and a higher expansion of consciousness. Help me to live in my truth and my purpose. Help me do your work and be the best I can be. And so it is." If that's too much for you, no biggie. Do your own thing! Just set an intention and say the words you need to say.
• Use a mantra. You can say "I am enough" and repeat those words over and over for whatever length of time you so choose. I personally like twenty minutes.
• Use a nice, soft alarm to signal the end of your session. Something that's not jarring. You never want to be ripped out of a meditative state. Like my guru, Amita Chopra says, "…it can make you rough for the rest of the day."
• Keep at it. They say it takes 21 days to form a new habit and actually make a new groove in your brain.

After a few weeks of this, your entire world will change for the better. Maybe even the whole world will do the same.

Katie Boyd is a world-renowned fitness, nutrition, spiritual, and lifestyle coach. Her book Ambitchious comes out this summer.