Daily Routine of Practice

The Gnostic approach encourages the student to become attuned to their own needs, while also avoiding the development of mechanical, habitual patterns. Since each of us has totally different circumstances and problems, it is best that we develop our practice intuitively, modifying it according to our ever-changing circumstances.

That said, it is recommended that beginners at least begin practicing meditation daily. The time of day and length of practice is up to you. If you want to follow a program, you can study one of these courses:

https://gnosticteachings.org/courses/meditation-essentials.html
https://gnosticteachings.org/courses/practical-spirituality.html

Of course, you can add more practices, if you are inspired to do so. The chief consideration is to practice consciously, with tremendous awareness.

Is it ideal to meditate all night when one is resting and sleeping too?

Thanks Alexis!

You can practice any meditation style you wish. However, the point is that if your attention is focused on physicality, it will remain there, ie. focused on physical sensations, incapable of perceiving beyond them. If you wish to perceive the deeper levels of nature and the mind, one has to let go of physical sensations. That is why Mahayana and Tantrayana teachings introduce and emphasize the use of imagination, which Sutrayana strictly avoids. (Goenka's interpretation corresponds to Sutrayana level instruction).

The easiest way to understand this is to meditate in the manner prescribed in our courses and books. Through experience it becomes radiantly clear.

This may digress a little bit from the original topic, but on the subject of meditation...

I have read some of this recently: https://gnosticteachings.org/courses/beginning-here-and-now/3854-beginning-meditation-theory-and-practice.html

I've practiced Goenka Vipassana which deals solely with features of the body as objects of meditation. In this article linked above there is much talk about Samatha and Vipassana. In the section addressing anapanasati (concentration on the breath) the article says:

"There are many different ways that it is taught. Sometimes it is taught to pay attention to certain sensation of the nostrils, the lungs, etc. Again, it’s very good but it also needs to be understood that it is foundational, because from our perspective, we do not want to get locked inside the body. If you are paying attention to the body, you are going to stay there, and that is not a terrible thing, but just know what the practice is going to give you."

Isn't the body a micrcosm of the macrocosm? Can't the entire macrcosm be "found" in the microcosm, in the body? If this is the case, why is it that should not get "locked inside the body?" Wouldn't it be so that the way out of the body is inside of it, if this microcosm-macrocosm conjunction is true?

I am only asking this toward the goal of discerning what form of meditation is (and isn't) best or appropriate for a Gnostic of this tradition to practice daily.

Thanks.