What is Meditation?

Meditation is a mental discipline that helps you let go of your normal, reflexive thinking mind so that a deeper state of awareness, insight and relaxation can emerge.

There are many misunderstandings about meditation. For one thing, meditation is not an activity of the body: it is not simply a matter of sitting in a particular posture or breathing a particular way. Rather, it is an activity of the mind, and is done for the purpose of transforming the mind, making it more positive. Although the best results usually come when we meditate sitting in a quiet place, we can also meditate in a noisy environment, and while working, walking, etc. First, we learn to develop the meditative state in formal, sitting practice, but once we are good at it, we can be more freestyle and creative and can generate this mental state at any time, in any situation. By then, meditation has become a way of life.

Meditation is not spacing out or running away. In fact, it is being totally honest with ourselves; taking a good look at what we are working with in order to become more positive and useful to ourselves and others.

Meditation is profoundly beneficial for body, mind and spirit. For example, simply meditating on your breath can lower your blood pressure, slow your heart rate and reduce anxiety. Meditation can manage pain and illness by helping you stay physically balanced and healthy. It helps create mental contentment, peace and joy, too, which in turn helps promote health and longevity.

Meditation has been shown to cause physical changes in specific areas of the brain. The brain functions by using 4 kinds of brain waves. Beta waves dominate when we are thinking, working or conversing; alpha or theta brainwaves are present during relaxation, daydreaming and creative activities. During meditation, our brainwaves change from beta to the slower, more relaxing alpha or theta states.                           

Meditation encompasses a wide range of techniques that emphasize different goals. Among them are spiritual development and reaching a higher state of consciousness, better focus and concentration, creativity, self awareness and insight, physical and emotional healing, and stress reduction and relaxation.

Following are some of the kinds of meditations:

Using a focus:

This technique involves learning to focus and concentrate. By training the mind to focus on an object – such as a candle or an image, on the breath, or on a movement such as walking – you become aware of your normal uncontrolled thinking patterns and eventually learn to relax and quiet your mind. The ability to calm and stabilize the mind is a good beginning practice.

Using mindfulness:

This technique involves learning about yourself and the world around you. It is called mindfulness, insight or awareness meditation. In this type of meditation, you become aware of the content of your mind and the subtle feelings in your body. Then you begin to observe the mental habits and patterns that may be holding you back in life. Through mindfulness you learn to be mentally present – aware of what you are doing and thinking, and aware also of the world around you – while maintaining a non-judgmental and compassionate attitude.

Using a topic:

This technique involves contemplating a topic, for example; compassion, loving kindness, patience or generosity. This helps practitioners to sort out priorities and make good use of their time.

Using the senses:

This type of meditation engages the senses. Using sight to harness the mind’s ability to imagine or visualize you can create the kind of mind and reality you want to inhabit. Using your sense of hearing and your voice you can practice chanting and mantra recitation and listen to music and the sounds of nature to bring about meditative states that hasten healing and spiritual development.