I was first introduced to meditation apps by a fellow traveler in my solo travel era. She was from Taiwan, and I looked up to her for her dedication to yoga, meditation, and self-care. She wanted to make her own guided meditation audio when I met her.
I started with simple meditation techniques like focusing on my breath, followed a few online courses, and took a Vipassana course a year ago. So, the apps I used changed with this timeline.
I’ve used only three apps or tools, and this is a quick review of them. I hope this blog helps you if you’re thinking of starting to practice meditation.
Insight Timer
Insight Timer is a good app for different types of meditations. I’m not a huge fan of guided meditations. I struggle to imagine the things they usually narrate. So, I went with their gong-only option, and they let me know the time was up at the end of my session.
They also have different features for logging in to your meditation routine, setting goals, and more. The paid version has more features.
This was the initial stage of my meditations when I was exploring what meditation was. I set a 15-minute timer and used to focus on my breathing. That was all I knew about meditation back then. The app was good and worked well for me.
I used the timer with the gong sounds at the start and end of the meditation. The bells’ sound was soothing, especially at the end of the session.
Dhamma app
After attending the 10-day Vipassana course, I started using the Dhamma app by the Dhamma organization. You get the password for old students after attending the course.
Here’s the official link for the app if you’re interested. The Dhamma app has different types of sessions, discourses, and pretty much everything else you need for your Vipassana practice.
I use their “1-hour sitting with Metta with no instructions” recording, which uses only gong sounds. Occasionally, I use the one with minimal instructions. If I keep the “participate in counter” option on, I can also see the number of people using the app at the same time, which gives a sense of group meditation.
I can also create a schedule for my meditation routine with custom periods. I like that the app has a logbook that records all my meditation sessions.
However, the app crashed many times during meditation. So, I started using an additional timer along with the app, which is my third tool for meditation.
Phone clock app timer
This has been my go-to app for meditation now. It works smoothly almost all the time, hardly failing or crashing. So, now I have different timers set for 1 hour, 5 minutes, and so on. I always keep these timers on, even while using another app.
These are the only tools I’ve used so far, and they worked well for me. All the apps are either free or have a free option. So, if you’re confused about how to start meditating, maybe this is useful to you 🙂
Topics #Meditation #meditation apps #vipassana mediation
