Meditation

Meditation.

There are many types of meditation though it is not sure as to how many. Each offering a means to entering complete awareness, peace and understanding of your self, mentally, emotionally and physically. A way of turning our negatives into positives, our un-ease to ease and unhappiness to happiness. Reaching a meditative state is a disciplined achievement in which the practitioner can reach beyond the thinking mind, falling into a deep relaxing state of awareness. Different levels of meditation require different levels of consciousness to achieve different goals, the more self disciplined the individual, the deeper or the higher the state of consciousness. It is said that the higher the level reached, the more spiritually attuned one becomes. As mentioned earlier, there are different types of meditation practised to suit the need of the individual it all depends on what you wish to focus on the most or what your final goal is. It is always best to research on each type. Meditation is being recommended by some G.P's as an alternative to medicine because of its effectiveness in relieving stress and aiding relaxation. There are various ways in which to reach a meditative state, again it depends on what feels right for you. One way is to concentrate on an object, this is known as "Concentrative" meditation. Another method to use is to mindfully be aware, there is no need to select an image or background, anything that appears or what ever sounds you hear are all allowed, just listen, take it all in and analyse the effects, this is known as "mindfulness" meditation.


* Concentrative meditation to begin with make sure you are sitting comfortably preferably in an upright position, if you become too comfortable this encourages sleep which means you would not be meditating. Try to plan a time of the day when you are less likely to be disturbed by anyone, choosing a quiet room. Try to focus on an object, this can be a physical object of your choice as long as it catches your attention or something you can concentrate on freely, or you may just want to use your breathing techniques as a means of a focal point. The object of this technique is to keep your mind on the object, don’t worry if your mind wonders, just be aware and bring your attention back, try to look at the object in a positive light, this will make focusing easier. By concentration on that object you enter a meditative calmness, be aware of what is taking place. Concentrate on your breathing, because regulating your breathing is important as it speeds the meditative state of mind and body. As you practice with concentrative meditation more and more, the more beneficial for you, your concentration improves not just in meditation but in other areas of our lives also.


* Mindfulness meditation also known as "insight" and is quite different from Concentrative meditation. It is not necessary to concentrate on just one thing for a start, rather, anything and everything can wander freely through your mind, you can allow images and events from the day run freely in and out of your thoughts, even distracting noises are beneficial. Every sound you hear can be listened to intently and be analysed, try to recognise the noises and identify its source. Meditating in this way allows you to be fully aware of your surroundings. Mindfulness meditation is about embracing and appreciating everything in existence.

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