I think everyone's practice is a little different, and I highly recommend finding people IRL who meditate and ask them about their practice. I sorta have my own thing that I've made up in my routine. Happy to expand on it but not sure HN is the right place. Foundational books that got me going in order of importance for me:

15 Laws of Growth: https://www.amazon.com/15-Invaluable-Laws-Growth-Potential-e...

The Bhagavad Gita: https://www.amazon.com/Bhagavad-Easwarans-Classics-Indian-Sp...

The Four Agreements: https://www.amazon.com/Four-Agreements-Practical-Personal-Fr...

(Note: grew up Christan in rural Scotland now agnostic chilling in Manhattan, so no religious slants)

> not sure HN is the right place

I see meditation coming up so frequently in discussions here, I wish some high karma person would post a "Ask HN: What's your personal meditation routine/journey, and what has it done for you?"

There are also meditation classes given all over the place. Try a web search for "meditation" and your geographical location, and you're bound to find something. You can also look at physical bulletin boards in libraries and coffee shops. Those often have fliers for some meditation centers or courses. You can also look for meditation-related meetups on meetup.com or on craigslist. Finally, you can try asking around at your local religious establishment. Though it's mostly associated in popular consciousness to the Eastern religions, meditation has played important roles in all the major religions.

One thing to keep in mind is that there are lots and lots of different approaches to meditation. An approach that has been mostly de-religionized called "mindfulness meditation" has been very popular in the West in recent years, but there are many, many other methods too. Unfortunately, I know of no one comprehensive guide to all the different types. The information tends to be scattered all over the place.

Your local library, or nearest equivalent is a good place to start. Read some books on the subject. Meditation is one of those things that you can get to from a lot of different, equally valid directions. Just be careful that you're getting into meditation for its own sake, and not something culty/religious.

You still get the benefits if you are religious and approaching it from that angle, though!

Yes, definitely, I realize that I what I said could be misconstrued. I meant, more or less, that you can run into some pretty shady/silly practices out there attached to meditation. Most religions do have a tradition of meditation, whether or not their adherents are aware of it.

I liked _Mindfulness in Plain English_: http://www.vipassana.com/meditation/mindfulness_in_plain_eng...