1. Meditation timers

Do you keep sneaking looks at the clock? Or maybe the end of your meditation is signalled by a screeching alarm? Try a gentler exit from your meditation practice with these chime timers from Wildmind meditation. The start and end of your practice is signalled by three chimes, and there are chimes at regular intervals throughout to keep you on track without being jarring. Choose from 20, 30, 40 and 60 minutes and simply download the free mp3.

2. Meditation podcasts

There are lots of high-quality free guided meditations on the web. Meditation Oasis creates guided meditations to help with a variety of problems and to cultivate specific mental states. Try everything from ‘flowing with change’ to ‘intuitive self-healing meditation’ and from ‘gratitude meditation’ to ‘accessing intuition’.

3. Meditation forum

Despite the name, this Vipassana forum is open to those coming from any meditation tradition and those who practise secular meditation. The emphasis is on community – sharing experiences and assisting each other with the meditation journey. In their words: ‘No one is the teacher and we are all the teacher’.

4. Guide to meditation posture

The discomfort of sitting for long periods can really distract and detract from the practice of meditation. Another resource from the Wildmind site, this is a really comprehensive guide to different sitting postures for meditation.

5. Free meditation classes

And finally, as useful as the web is, it is invaluable to have the guidance of a good teacher and the support of meeting regularly with a local group. There are many free classes and courses available through various schools. Sahaja Yoga Meditation provides free classes and courses in the public, community and business sectors in over 80 countries.

Know of a useful meditation resource on the web? Please share it in the comments.