We're always taught the more effort we put in the more we'll get out of life
but of course it isn't always true
Take falling asleep for example
You can prepare in the right way, put yourself in the right position and get yourself comfortable
but after that, you can't force it to happen
In fact, it works exactly the other way around
The harder you try, the less sleepy you become
It's only when we stop trying that we finally let go and drift off
and before we know it
we're waking up the next morning feeling refreshed, relaxed after a good night's sleep
It's a very similar story when we're training the mind
A nice metaphor for this is the idea of taming a wild horse
If you look at how a wild horse is tamed, rather than pinning it down in one place
The horse is let out on a very long rope
and put in a big, open, spacious field
The horse runs around feeling like it's got all the space in the world
But very slowly, the rope is pulled in
and the horse adjusts to this feeling
until it comes to a natural place of rest
We're looking to do just the same thing with the mind in meditation
Not trying to pin it down in one place but bringing it to a natural place of rest
So let go of any idea of needing to achieve something or get somewhere
And instead, enjoy the opportunity to sit back, relax and be present in the world