There are a few general suggestions for sitting: 1 It’s best if the back is straight, but without forcing it. 2 You may find that the position of your pelvis dictates the position of your back, and often a small cushion under your backside will help to rectify any ‘hunching’.

When it comes to meditation, though, the goal and the journey are the same thing.

Meditation is simply the exercise that is going to give you the best conditions to practise being mindful of these emotions. And

Exercise 8: walking meditation

The application of moment-to-moment awareness into physical activity was to prove invaluable, in more ways than I could ever have imagined. Think of a circus act, whether it’s juggling, tightrope, acrobatics or trapeze, all of them require the perfect balance of concentration and relaxation. Try too hard and you make a mistake. Don’t try hard enoug

‘States’ however refer to those fleeting emotions that come and go in everyday life.

Traits are those emotions that seem to define a character.

On the contrary, it’s a way of stepping back and resting the mind in its natural state, free from the usual chaos.

Whatever it is that causes the mind to wander off, it’s a movement away from the present moment, away from the direct experience of life. It can sometimes feel as though we’re so busy remembering, planning and analysing life, that we forget to experience life – as it actually is, rather than how we think it should be.