What is Meditation

By: Mike Garrett
Submitted: 2007-01-17 16:20:35
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher |

Rating:

 

Mediation is a relaxing activity that can help you de-stress and collect your thoughts any time of day. Many world religions use forms of meditation for prayer and ritual, but even if you are non-religious, you can enjoy the many spiritual and physical benefits of the practice. Meditation is an easy activity for all to learn to enjoy, whether you wish to devote lots of time to the practice or you can only spare a few minutes every day.

On any given day, at any given moment, our minds are concerned with a number of things. Does the boy I like, like me back? Are the kids being polite at a friend’s house? What is my wife making for dinner? Do I have enough money for bills this week? What am I going to do this weekend?

It isn’t hard to see why we often forget things, and why many people need tools like day planners to stay organized. Meditation can help you clear away all of these fears, questions, doubts, and complexities, giving you a calmer outlook on life in general and a happier state of being.

If you are religious, you can use this time as a time to reflect and concentrate on a divine being. Otherwise, you may wish to concentrate on another idea, such as love. The many benefits to mediation include:

* Increased ability to control your temper
* Spiritual religious connections
* Higher sensory perception
* Surfacing of memories
* Better physical health

Mediation has been practiced since ancient times, and has more recently become popular with the Westernization of the Hindu practice of Yoga, which combines mediation with exercise techniques.

Mediation can be done in a variety of positions, such as sitting on a chair, sitting cross-legged on a mat, lying down, or kneeling. While some extremely religious or health conscious people may order their lives around meditation and is varied techniques, most people chose to make meditation a very small part of their daily routine. However, even if you can only meditate for a short time, the results, over time, become evident. Regular practice is more important than length of time spent each day doing it.

The goal of meditation is to turn the mind to itself, rather than thinking of outside things. Essentially, it is to not think about anything at all. This is extremely difficult to do, even for a few minutes. Those who learn to meditate do not resist outside thoughts violently, but rather slowly push them away. Inner quietness comes from meditation, it cannot be forced. With regular practice, you should find less and less outside thoughts invading your mind during your periods of meditation. Because of this, meditation has become a great way to reduce the amount of pain you feel, both mentally and physically, and doctors have also begun to note the great benefits of meditation.

If you think meditation is right for you, your first port of call could be your doctor. He or she should be able to talk to you about the advantages and disadvantages of meditation, and may be able to direct your further questions to an instructor. Meditation is a private practice, but many find classes a useful way to get started. Remember to consider meditation if you are looking for a way in which to decrease the amount of stress in your life.

Article source: Expert Articles