The meditation sequence to stillness

Once you've been meditating a while, if you're a 'what next' person like me, you wonder: what next? Well, there is no real what next. You just go round and round the same loops until you start to see a pattern and then you feel yourself slipping into a different mode of mind. However, there is one well worn causal sequence in meditation that you go through that eventually leads you to a nourishingly calm place from whence you can observe many things. So, here's the sequence:

- relax every fibre of your body
- calm the mind down
- rest your mind on a neutral object (the breath)
- feel pleasantness arise (eventually). Let it be.
- pleasantness grows into something intense; bliss or rapture. Let it be.
- bliss gives way to massive plump cushions of contentment. Let it be.
- there is stillness. We feel gathered, together. Let it be.

That's it really. The techniques to get through this sequence are varied and opinions vary about the details.