It is important to refrain from indulging in lazy, nebulous, speculative brooding because this will not bring meaningful results. You should follow the meditation outline in a wide awake, alert fashion and not permit your mind to lead you down any by-paths, no matter how interesting or beautiful. Slovenly meditations are always counterproductive and they can be dangerous. A thorough meditation ought to take somewhere between fifteen and thirty minutes. The method of using and expanding the seed thought during meditation is left largely to your own discretion.
Individual minds work differently.
For example, the circumference of the manifested solar system is the periphery of the influence of the sun. By adhering to the form of the meditation outline, the meditator draws a circle in consciousness beyond which he will not let his mind wander and thereby dissipate his thought power. Above all, remember that the initial objective of meditation is concentration , and when successfully carried forward it results in the meditator's capacity to hold the mind steady upon a chosen image, idea, or theme. Capacity for sustained concentration upon, and expansion of, a thought or idea is meditation . So, if the mind wanders, keep bringing it back to the intended point in the meditation with tireless patience.