What does a white alien mascot have to do with meditation?

A whole lot, apparently!

In case you don’t know, lets take a moment to explain what Reddit is.

Often described to as “the front page of the internet”, Reddit is a social networking service and news website where people can submit content and others can then like or dislike it (upvote or downvote).

Another great feature is that people can create individual Reddit forums (subreddits) where people can share specific types of media or topics, like /r/pics, /r/news and /r/health.

And they have a mascot, which looks like this:

“That’s all fine, but where is this meditation FAQ you mentioned in the title?”

Here you go:

Reddit Meditation FAQ

This FAQ is from the meditation subreddit (/r/meditation), and is an extensive and excellent FAQ for meditation newbies.

Here is the description of this reddit community from the subreddit sidebar:

/r/meditation is a community of people dedicated to improving our minds and lives. While many of the practices discussed here have been inspired by ancient Buddhist, Hindu and other religious traditions, we are not particularly religious. Discussions of all kinds of secular and religious meditation practices are encouraged.

And here is the table of content from the FAQ, if you want to have a look at what questions are being answered, or start reading some of the answers straight away.

MEDITATION FAQ TABLE OF CONTENTS

• GENERAL
• • How do I begin?
  • What are the benefits of meditation?
  • Where can I read research on meditation?
  • What is a simple meditation technique?
  • Where does meditation come from?
  • Should I find a local teacher or centre?
  • What has meditation got to do with Yoga?
  • Can you suggest a book to introduce me to meditation?
  • Can you suggest some other books to read?
  • Is there a good online resource for vedic/Hindu techniques?
  • Why does meditation have a religious aspect?
• WHAT ARE THE MAIN TYPES OF MEDITATION?
• • Noting
  • Mindfulness of the breath
  • • Mindfulness during daily activities
    • Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction
  • Body scanning
  • Zazen
  • Two-player meditation
  • Choiceless awareness
  • Metta (loving kindness)
  • Mantra
• QUESTIONS!
• • Why am I seeing, hearing, feeling weird things?
  • Why can’t I sit still?
  • Why can’t I stop my mind racing?
  • Why do I get drowsy or fall asleep?
  • Am I forcing my mind to do this?
  • Why do my back or legs hurt?
  • Why can’t seem to get past x minutes?
  • How long/often should I meditate?
  • How should I sit?
  • Can I meditate listening to music?
  • Why am I experienced and going through a rough patch?
  • Why do I feel disconnected?
  • Why is this/that chakra blocked?
  • I have just started kundalini/chakra meditation, help!
• MEDITATING TO ADDRESS A SPECIFIC ISSUE
• • Chronic pain
  • Mental illnesses
  • • ADD/ADHD
    • Depression
    • Anxiety
  • What else can I to make myself more positive?
  • • Should I smoke weed and meditate?

Did you learn something new from this FAQ, or perhaps discovered a new meditation community you might be interested in?

Don’t forget to comment below, and share with friends and family!