Meditation,
a process to control your mind and soul. Someone
said that if your mind is in your control,
you can do anything. Meditation is a process
by which one can give extra relief to his
mind. It is a process to get in touch with
your self. The height of meditation is a state
called samadhi where the mind is completely
merged with worlds of perfect light. Meditation
recharges you and helps you get in touch with
your inner self. It brings clarity and insight
into daily life - you can more easily determine
what is really right for you.
Meditation is one of the proven alternative
therapies. It can be broadly classified under
the mind-body medicine.
More and more doctors are prescribing meditation
as a way to lower blood pressure, improve
exercise performance in people with angina,
help people with asthma breathe easier, relieve
insomnia and generally relax the everyday
stresses of life. Meditation is a safe and
simple way to balance a person's physical,
emotional, and mental states. It is simple;
but can benefit everybody. The importance
of meditation is discribed in every religion
and culture, however the techniques are different
but the goal is same.
The Buddhists have made it a part of their
daily lifestyle, they believe that practicing
meditation is essential for their wisdom and
understanding towards reality. Buddhists believe
that our ordinary consciousness is both limited
and limiting. Meditation makes it possible
to live life to the full spectrum of our conscious
and unconscious possibilities.
In spite of its rich history and traditions,
it is only during the past three decades that
scientific study has focused on the clinical
effects of meditation on health. During the
recent past a number of researches carried
out on the effect of Meditation on human health
and well being of our society. Now it is proved
that a good practice of meditation can give
you extraordinary feats of bodily control
and altered states of consciousness. It has
shown great results in treatment for mind
and body stress related disorders.
Types of Meditation
There are various types of meditation according
to personal need of performer. But prayer
is probably the best known way to Meditation
in everybody knows. In general, all the meditation
techniques can be grouped into two basic approaches
these are called as Concentrative
meditation and Mindfulness
meditation.
Concentrative Meditation
: This type of meditation mainly focuses on
the attention on the breath, an image, or
a sound (mantra), in order to still the mind
and allow a greater awareness and clarity
to emerge. This is like a zoom lens in a camera;
we narrow our focus to a selected field. The
simplest form of concentrative meditation
is to sit quietly and focus the attention
on the breath.
For example, when a person is anxious, frightened,
agitated, or distracted, the breath will tend
to be shallow, rapid, and uneven. On the other
hand, when the mind is calm, focused, and
composed, the breath will tend to be slow,
deep, and regular. Focusing the mind on the
continuous rhythm of inhalation and exhalation
provides a natural object of meditation. As
you focus your awareness on the breath, your
mind becomes absorbed in the rhythm of inhalation
and exhalation. As a result, your breathing
will become slower and deeper, and the mind
becomes more tranquil and aware.
Mindfulness meditation :
this approach of meditation involves opening
the attention to become aware of the continuously
passing parade of sensations and feelings,
images, thoughts, sounds, smells, and so forth
without becoming involved in thinking about
them. The person sits quietly and simply witnesses
whatever goes through the mind, not reacting
or becoming involved with thoughts, memories,
worries, or images. This helps to gain a more
calm, clear, and non-reactive state of mind.
Mindfulness meditation can be likened to a
wide-angle lens. Instead of narrowing your
sight to a selected field as in concentrative
meditation, here you will be aware of the
entire field.
Some Good Tips to
General Meditation
