There is an old saying that says “if you want something in life, you must be willing to work for it”. This is what meditation is about. Meditation is a process by which an individual applies a specific technique-like mindfulness, wherein the individual focuses his/her mind on a single thing, idea, or action, and attain a psychologically calm and mentally stable emotional state. Through this procedure, meditation can help the individual to develop self-awareness and higher consciousness.
Meditation has been practiced by people from different religions and cultures since ancient times. One of the most popular forms of meditation includes Yoga, which involves physical postures and breathing exercises. It has been found that meditation can help reduce stress and anxiety, which is also known as the “silent killer” because it is silent and can easily be overlooked. It is considered as a good remedy for depression, grief, fear, and anger; it helps people gain self-acceptance and confidence. Some of the effects of meditation include:
o To get started, inhale through your nose slowly and deeply and then exhale gradually, while repeating a word or thought. o Try repeating a short quote that gives you inspiration or some type of affirmation. o Start counting from one to ten while inhaling and exhaling. o You can start with a simple task like walking the arm, making a phone call, or playing with your dog. o When you are doing any repetitive activity, make sure that you do it carefully and deliberately so that you do not get distracted and lose focus.
o Experts suggest that before trying any new meditation technique, you should first build inner harmony. There are different ways to build inner harmony. One can go for Yoga meditation, which focuses on physical postures and breathing exercises. Another is Guided Imagery, which is the practice of drawing an ideal picture that represents your goals and aspirations. Another meditation technique is Pranayama, which is practiced in a room lit with dim lights and is specially designed to promote meditation.
o You can benefit from meditation by enhancing your spiritual awareness. Most of the spiritual meditation teachers recommend attending workshops or classes, which provide knowledge about the techniques. A workshop on mindful eating was recently organized at the Aspen Center for Spiritual Living in Colorado. The program is designed to help participants explore how meditation can help them transform themselves both spiritually and emotionally.
o A team found in Wisconsin has been doing mindfulness meditation in a more active form, such as hikes and long bike rides. The team members were very dissatisfied with the level of support offered by their retreat center. Most of the activities that they felt motivated to do were only briefly mentioned, if at all. One team leader said that he and the other members of the group often stopped because we were not given “the object of our focus” – meaning the thing that we were most interested in at that moment. This is important because it diminishes the opportunity for self-reflection that is part of meditation.
