🧘 How can I deal with boredom when I meditate?

Rest assured that experiencing boredom during meditation is very common. Over time, the mind will go through periods of interest and boredom with the practice. While we are building curiosity in the present moment, we're also building the persistence and endurance it takes to stay with whatever is happening, even if it's boredom or restlessness.

As far as working with boredom, see if you can get curious about the mind state that is underlying the experience. For example, you might ask some questions about the boredom. How does it feel in the body? What thoughts accompany it? Is there aversion present? In this way, we develop curiosity with the boredom. Then we're not bored any more!

Using questions to inquire and investigate into what is happening for you each moment, and looking into the nature of awareness itself, is a great way to make meditation interesting and inspiring over the long-term.

Lastly, recognizing boredom in the practice can actually be a very powerful moment. When we see boredom arising, we can begin to glimpse the habit of mind that tends to lean into the future, expecting some future moment to be "better" or "more interesting" (or whatever adjective) than the moment we're in. So when we notice the boredom arising, it can be an opportunity to gently remind ourselves that the only moment in which we can engage is the present moment, and to move toward greater interest and intimacy with whatever we are experiencing right now.