Meditation and You

Lifestyle has a great impact on our health. All the activities one does in his or her day to day life determines his personality, his mood and even his bliss. Over the decades, the concerns to improve mental health are rising. Various professionals have recommended thousands of techniques, based on both culture and science. Here, we are going to discuss one of them- meditation.

Meaning

“Meditation is a process of lightening up, of trusting the basic goodness of what we have and who we are, and of realizing that any wisdom that exists, exists in what we already have. We can lead our life so as to become more awake to who we are and what we’re doing rather than trying to improve or change or get rid of who we are or what we’re doing. The key is to wake up, to become more alert, more inquisitive and curious about ourselves.” – Pema Chodron

Meditation is much more than a technique, it’s a lifestyle. It is not some actions or exercise which you can follow, rather its based-on belief, spirituality, mindfulness and much more. Meditation is a practice where an individual uses a technique, which essentially involves focus of mind on an object, thought or activity, to train attention and awareness and attain mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state. It is basically regulation of mind and thoughts and being in charge of it. Though these techniques, one works with its own mind, but not try to control it. One detaches oneself from the external world and try to find the answer and solution within itself.
There are various approaches to meditation, but the core remains the same. As mentioned above, it is based on belief and spirituality, and hence major approaches emerges from dominant cultures. Yoga from Hinduism and Mindfulness from Buddhism are two examples.

Elements of Meditation

“We must experience the Truth in a direct, practical and real way. This is only possible in the stillness and silence of the mind; and this is achieved by means of meditation.” – Samael Aun Weor

Different meditation techniques vary among themselves. Yet, there are some basic elements on which all the types of meditation are based on:

Focussing of Attention – Focus is the most important aspect of meditation. A person needs to invest all his energy and consciousness at a single point, known as ‘Dhyana’ in yoga.
Relaxation in breathing – Breathing plays an important role in meditation as it helps in physical relaxation of the whole body. The stiffness of body smoothens, and all physical tension is released.
Calm external environment – Meditation is always regulated in a quiet calm environment. External distraction can lead to loosening of attention. Ancient Yoga practice believed that difference between concentration and meditation is the awareness of the external world.
Clear mind – Another important aspect is the clearance of thought. The meditation should be uninterrupted not only from external world, but also from the internal thoughts.

Meditation and Spirituality

Meditation has a very deep rooted and strong connection with spirituality. To understand that connection, lets first understand what spirituality is. Well, spirituality has many traditional definitions. In general, it is the sense of connection to something bigger than ourselves, something more to being human than sensory experience and it typically involves a search for meaning in life. It is often associated with a religion, but does not necessarily be led by religious beliefs. The idea of spiritual meditation lies in the fact that mediation believes in understanding and awareness of consciousness and spirituality believes in the infinite limits of consciousness. A healthy mind is the prerequisite for spirituality, which is obtained by meditation. Spirituality makes it easier in the meditation to devote yourself to forces of nature, and achieve a sense of relaxation and mental calmness. Hence, it is both ways.
Benefits

“Meditation is like a gym in which you develop the powerful mental muscles of calm and insight.” – Ajahn Brahm

Although meditation emerges from culturally dominant societies, it has several scientifically proven benefits. Some of them are stated below:

Awareness of Self- Self Awareness is the core of meditation. Through meditation, you can take a stock of feelings and emotions and be able to put them in a clear vision, which will lead to better understanding of self. No matter how difficult the situation might be, person will always have calm mind to embrace it.
Increased Creativity and Imagination- According the book, ‘Mindfulness for Creativity’, meditation enhance three skills essential for creativity, naming divergent thinking, attention span and resilience for setbacks. It also helps to process though clearly with more efficiency.
Increased level of Patience and Tolerance- Meditation helps us understand and realize various events which led to impatience. These realizations help us to grow deeper because we understand our realities and ourselves. We develop a resistance against such events through mental peace.
Better Attention and Memory- One essential aspect of meditation is concentration of a single point. This slowly builds attention and focus in a person.it also increases blood flow in the brain leading to improved memory.

Mental Health and Meditation

As the concern for mental health is rising day by day, professionals are suggesting various techniques to improve. One of the most effective technique is meditation. With simple set of techniques, we can achieve a true sense of happiness, defeating all the stress, anxiety, insomnia and many other problems. Meditation also imbibes positive feelings of hope, optimism, love and care in you, which will help to overcome all kinds of mental problems. A positive outlook towards a problem is half problems. But, most of all it relocates the locus of control back to yourself. You feel complete in yourself.

Conclusion

“The goal of meditation is not to control your thought; it is to stop let them control you.”

Meditation helps us to understand ourselves. Within a world full of thousand of problems, it is meditation that helps us to fight these demons and reach true and ultimate happiness in the world. The thing about meditation is; you become more and more you – David Lynch.