How To Learn Meditation Course

6 Simple Meditation Steps For Beginners – Lesson 12

Lesson 12 of 12: 6 Simple meditation steps for beginners, your real meditation journey truly begins here.

It all starts today with you wanting to change your life. Start taking action and create the life you have always dreamed of. I believe in you.

Are you ready to completely change your life for the better? I believe you are and you always have been. The difference is that now you are taking action on your dreams.

Meditation allows you to live in the now, moment by moment, enjoying things as they unfold, or as you mindfully experience eating ice cream, holding hands with your partner, or playing with your children in the park.

Let’s get one thing clear, part of the reason why we’re all so stressed out and anxious is that our memories are not emotionally neutral. When we perceive certain things, we tend to react in a certain way because we have been “trained” by past experiences to respond that way.

How To Meditate Properly In 3 Minutes Or Less…

What if I told you that, in many cases, we respond in a very unproductive or downright negative way? We could be responding in more neutral or more positive ways and our lives could be more productive.

Instead of wasting a tremendous amount of emotional and mental resources feeling negative, angry, frustrated, guilty, upset, you name it, we can focus more on feeling appreciated. It’s all a choice. But unfortunately, if we hang on to these past memories and we judge them in a predictably negative way, we lose sight of the fact that we can always choose our judgments. We feel that our negative analysis is just who we are. It’s part of our identity. It’s part of our personality.

Well, it isn’t. It’s always a choice. With this technique of simple meditation steps for beginners, you gain some freedom from the emotional roller coaster ride that you feel just takes you to negative territory like clockwork. Here’s how it works.

Meditation Steps For Beginners #1: Count your breath

Meditation is an excellent way to relieve anxiety and regain your center. However, many have trouble achieving a totally clear mind. Meditating on breath refers to the technique of focusing on the pace and depth of your inhalation and exhalation. This will not only help prevent distraction but also improve your breathing.

Meditation For Beginners: 20 Practical Tips To Quiet the Mind

By preparing for your simple meditation steps for beginners and understanding breath awareness techniques, you will be on your way to peace of mind in no time

Meditation Steps For Beginners #2: Close your eyes

Once you feel that you have reached a certain level of relaxation, close your eyes. Everything should go black. Allow yourself to relax even deeper. Allow yourself to slow your thoughts down. Just focus on the calmness of the darkness. There’s nothing to prove here. You don’t have to be somebody that you’re not. You have nobody to impress. This is just you and your thoughts. It’s just calm, pure darkness. No light, no color, nothing to get worked up about.

Meditation Steps For Beginners #3: Focus on your thoughts

Once you have relaxed, pretend that you are in some sort of movie theater and you’re sitting back and you’re seeing scenes. These are your thoughts. When you assume that perspective, you would realize that you’re thinking a lot. If you’re a normal person, a lot of mental images flash through your mind. In fact, we go through so many mental images, oftentimes we’re not aware of them all. So sit back and just see your thoughts play out.

Meditation Steps For Beginners #4: Make sure not to judge or analyze your thoughts

Here’s the thing that you will be doing differently. Most people have no problem seeing mental images flash through their minds. But the problem is, once that happens, they get all emotionally caught up.

For example, you had an ex who cheated on you, stole from you, or otherwise did bad things to you. How do you think you would feel when you see something that reminds you of him or her? You probably don’t feel all that good. Now, with this technique, when the mental image or the picture or the likeness of your ex comes to your mind, your rule is that you let the image flash, but you will hold judgment. You’re not going to analyze it.

Self-Love Meditation: How To Truly Love Yourself

You’re just going to acknowledge that “This is the image of my ex,” “This is the image of my boss,” “This is a scene from my childhood,” “This is a scene where I was let go at work,” “This is a scene at the jail.” Whatever the case may be, you’re seeing all these mental images, but you’re not judging.

You are acknowledging. It’s very important that you know the distinction. You’re not engaged in pretending to not see something. For example, if there was a fire in your childhood, you’re not going to say, “Well, this was a happy moment in my childhood.” No. “This was a fire in my childhood.”

But this is going to be different from “This is a very traumatizing childhood memory that basically destroyed my life because I lost both my parents.” Do you see the difference? There’s no judgment here. You just say, “This is a fire that happened when I was a child.” It’s stripped out of all emotional baggage. It’s stripped out of all emotional trauma.

Acknowledge, and describe in a very objective, flat, and neutral way. This is not going to happen overnight. If you are carrying around very heavyweight, maybe child sexual abuse, maybe you were unjustly punished. Whatever the case may be, you just need to focus on what you see. Do not judge. Do not analyze. Just acknowledge it, and then move on to the next step.

Meditation Steps For Beginners #5: Let your thoughts pass like clouds

One of my fondest childhood memories involves me and my cousins just going up to this little hill and, for what seemed like hours, we would just lay back on the grass and watch the clouds pass by.

My cousin would say, “That’s a bicycle.” I would say, “No, that looks more like a dog.” There was, of course, no right or wrong answer. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. Every person’s guess was as good as all others. It was a lot of fun because we were exercising our imaginations.

We were, after all, just watching clouds pass by. There were countless clouds before them. And there will be countless clouds after them. They are here one moment and gone the next.

I want you to do the same with your thoughts but let them pass like clouds. Just like clouds, your thoughts just pass through. Let them pass.

Don’t deny them. Don’t pretend they are something else. Don’t argue with them. Don’t bargain with yourself. Just observe the ‘thought clouds’ honestly. In other words, putting to use these simple meditation steps for beginners, when the mental image flashes, acknowledge it.

For example, “This is a fire that happened when I was 3 years old.” “This is an image of my parents about to leave for the United States when I was 3 years old.” Whatever image you have from the past, strip it of all emotional judgment or analysis. Make sure you empty the mental image of any emotional content that might trip you up or set you off into an emotional analysis.

Compare “this is the fire that happened when I was 3 years old” to “this is that devastating fire that made my family homeless for 3 years. My father was very angry during that fire and he has not stopped being angry since. We lost it all. I was only 3 years old.”

See the difference? The first case involved just describing the facts. Nothing more. Nothing less. The other case includes a lot of analysis and commentary. These lead to you getting thrown off track. Learn to spot the difference. Recognize the point when you’ve stopped objectively describing and started emotionally reacting.

It doesn’t make it any less real, mind you, but you’re just acknowledging it because we’re not engaged in self-delusion here. We’re not trying to trick ourselves with these simple meditation steps for beginners or hypnotize ourselves into thinking that these events, which ultimately are very traumatic and hurtful, did not happen.

Instead, you’re just acknowledging. And then the next step is what makes it really powerful. When you acknowledge, you then let it pass like a cloud. Just like a cloud, it’s going to zoom over your head. It’s going to linger slowly, depending on how strong the wind is. But you just let it pass. Eventually, it will pass.

Meditation Steps For Beginners #6: Enjoy the emotional distance

When you repeat this over several weeks, you start noticing the emotional distance. Mental images, memories, or what have you, that used to throw you off track no longer do. Maybe there was a memory that used to make you cry like you were on autopilot, now you don’t do that. You just say, “Well, that happened to me when I was 4 years old and my housekeeper was in that memory,” then you let it pass.

“Well, that happened to be, and my boss said something and I was let go and I found another job.” You let it pass. “Well, that was my best friend and my ex-girlfriend.” You let the memory pass. You do this over and over again, and the more successful you become at these simple meditation steps for beginners, the greater the emotional distance. Eventually, all that stuff that used to drag you down and hold you back is left in the past. Congratulations.

Meditation is not weird or freaky, and it is not a religion, mind control, vegging out, or running away from the world.

It is an active practice that improves alertness and clarity, through which you can achieving a state of observing your thoughts rather than just letting them swing from tree to tree like a monkey. You don’t have to judge good or bad, just watch what happens in the same passively active way you might watch a movie or TV show. That is, you are choosing to pay attention to what you wish when you want.

You start your meditation journey with these simple meditation steps for beginners in this online meditation course. If you don’t like the movie, you can turn it off. If you don’t like the show, you can switch the channel.

Meditation Is Like Working Out

When you work out, you put a lot of stress on your muscles. That’s how they get bigger. That’s how they get leaner. That’s how they get stronger. The same applies to your mental muscles. Because that’s what meditation is. It’s a mental workout.

Physical muscles get soft if you don’t challenge them or you don’t put pressure on them. With these simple meditation steps for beginners, you’re going to challenge and put pressure on your mental muscles. Believe me, it is quite a workout to let a mental image just pass over your head like a cloud without judging it.

For example, there was an episode of your childhood that used to burn you through your core because it was really humiliating, it was disgusting. Whatever it was, it takes an effort to do that. But that’s how you challenge your mental muscles. And the more pressure you put on it, the stronger it gets.

Practice Meditation Daily, But Don’t Spend All Day

The good news here is that you don’t have to spend all day meditating with these simple meditation steps for beginners. In fact, if you’re doing that, you’re overdoing it. That’s probably going to do more harm than good. Instead, focus on spending no more than 15 minutes a day. With meditation, a little bit of consistency goes a long way. So focus on your meditative practice for no more than 15 minutes every day. 15 minutes is plenty.

Associate Your Meditative State with Certain Stimuli

This is for advanced students. Usually, by this point, it will probably take months, if not years. But most people, if they’re consistent, will reach this point. When you perceive any new stimuli, allow yourself to focus on your meditative state. You’re basically linking the meditative state of peace, calm, inner serenity, and harmony with stimuli that normally upset you.

For example, if you work with an ex, it can be quite uncomfortable, awkward, and frustrating. This person broke your heart, this person cheated on you, or you’re embarrassed because it didn’t work out. Whatever the case may be, it’s going to be very hard to handle that stimulus.

After you’ve meditated, and you’ve gained some emotional distance, allow yourself to look for that stimuli and link it with a meditative state. In other words, you are replacing the stress, discomfort, and embarrassment that you normally feel when you perceive that stimuli, maybe it involves seeing the face of your ex or hearing his or her voice, whatever the case may be.

Now, you’re replacing it with a meditative state. The meditative state, of course, involves a sense of calm, being in control, clarity, peace, healing, restoration. So instead of that person’s voice or image just stressing you out, upsetting you, now, it calms you down. You say to yourself, “I’m okay. There’s nothing to get hung up about. I can deal with this situation, this person, these memories at a certain level. And I’ll be okay.”

Sure, in the beginning, this is going to be difficult because of your mental habits. When you are just starting out, the urge to go back to your old reactive patterns, with its rush of negative emotions, seems to be all but irresistible. This is the hardest part. But you can overcome this.

Choose to override this ‘natural tendency and it will get easier and easier to respond to life’s stimuli based on your highest values instead of your feelings or whatever is convenient or easy.

The more opportunities you seek to practice your newfound power over your emotions, the stronger your mind becomes. It also makes the link between certain ‘positive’ stimuli and positive emotions or positive mental states. Of course, none of this happens all at once.

It takes time. Still, every time you successfully choose to focus on these simple meditation steps for beginners and being calm and successfully recall the mental calmness of your meditative state, the easier it gets.

The Secret Meditation Ingredient Is Practice

Interestingly enough, to get the practice you need, you actually have to seek out situations or stimuli that normally stress you out. That’s the only way you can test our ability to recall a calm inner peace.

Usually, people do not need help recalling stressful, embarrassing, traumatic, or painful memories. Start there. Since these are thoughts, you have a lot more control over the thought and the outcome. Compare the above to testing out your meditative recall skills on actual people.

People can be quite random. You might have a very sticky situation on your hands and unlike memories, there’s no ‘rewind’ button if you end up saying or doing something that harms your relationship or takes it to a much lower level.

Regardless of how you do it, give yourself the opportunity with these simple meditation steps for beginners to constantly test out your ability to recall that state of mental calm, serenity, and peace. In that special space you have built for yourself within your mind, there is no need to prove anything. You don’t have to be somebody else. There are no painful memories. There is no worrying future. Instead, you just have calm in the here and now.

Powerful 5 Minute Guided Gratitude Meditation With Script

Understand that you always have this available. Get some hope from this fact. Call this link at will. Once you have trained yourself to remember that meditative state when situations present themselves, the next step is to call it at will. Meaning, you yourself will trigger that meditative state.

You no longer need stimuli. That’s when you have reached a higher level of practical simple meditation steps for beginners because that sense of calm, release an objective distance that you feel with your emotions pretty much persists on a 24/7 basis. You only need to choose to call that meditative state into being and it happens. You now know it like the back of your hand.

Meditation Is Not A Form Of Mind Control

All sorts of thoughts will arise when you start to look within your own mind in the course of these simple meditation steps for beginners. Some might surprise and even shock you, but one stray thought is nothing to feel guilty about. It is not ‘you’. You are not your thoughts. They arise and fall. You choose whether to follow them or not.

You’re not trying to stop ‘bad’ thoughts, you’re just observing them if they pop up, and watching them as they fade again. If they keep popping up, like recollections of an incident from childhood or a recent conflict with your spouse, take the time to look at them deliberately to see what ‘teaching moments’ are contained within.

These simple meditation steps for beginners can be an effective form of stress reduction and has the potential to improve the quality of your life and decrease your health concerns and the costs that usually go with them. Best of all, it can liberate you from being stuck in the past, and be fixated on the future.

These Simple Meditation Steps For Beginners Start With A Single Step

All the things that I’ve taught you here are the product of over twenty years of meditation and mindfulness practice. There are lots of pitfalls, there are lots of dead ends, there are lots of false leads and false positives.

I’ve weeded all those out and I’ve presented to you simple meditation steps for beginners that work. However, these materials will not work for you until and unless you commit to doing them. This way, you will be able to fully benefit from the techniques that I have described in this training.

It Is Also Important That You Focus On Consistency

A lot of people think that these simple meditation steps for beginners are just another activity that they engage in because they’re looking for a result. They are looking for some sort of solution.

While that may ultimately be the truth, please understand that you must look at meditation and mindfulness as ends in and of themselves. In other words, they’re not just means to an end. They don’t just enable you to go to where you really want to go. Instead, meditation must be your destination. You must find some sort of value in doing meditation. That value must be in the act itself.

If you’re able to do these simple meditation steps for beginners, then it becomes part of you. It becomes part of your personality in addition to your daily routine. You will then be able to put yourself in a position where you will level up your ability to focus, stay in the present moment, achieve emotional distance, and emotional clarity. Ultimately, it’s all a choice. You have to exercise that choice. You have to be responsible for yourself, your thoughts, and your actions.

Do Meditation Today and Every Day – It’s That Simple

One of the most common problems I’ve noticed people experience with meditation is the fact that they feel that they would be able to only do it when things are right. They feel that they have to feel a certain way. They think that certain conditions have to be present in their life for them to do this.

What you’re doing with these simple meditation steps for beginners is you’re just giving yourself excuses to not start. I’m telling you, if you don’t even get yourself to start, you are failing. You’re not dealing with your stress, you’re not getting your life back, you’re not setting things in order as far as your mental peace and tranquility are concerned.

You’re achieving nothing. You might be thinking that you’re researching book after book about meditation, but what you’re really doing is you’re just giving yourself an excuse to not start. You have to understand that when it comes to any kind of profound personal change, our number one enemy is ourselves.

The Paradox of Meditation and Self Sabotage

I know it sounds kind of weird. You know how frustrated you are. You know that you feel that something is missing in your life. You know that you’re not fully content. You understand that these simple meditation steps for beginners can help you achieve some sort of balance.

You understand that these simple meditation steps for beginners can lead to a greater sense of inner peace. Why in the world would you want to get in the way of that? Why in the world would you want to sabotage that? Well, it’s actually quite simple. We’re all creatures of habit.

We get accustomed to things. We grow attached to things. Once you do things a certain way and you think about things a certain way, you feel that you’re stuck in that pattern. You feel that you’re not capable of going outside of that pattern.

I know it sounds weird, but you know that you’re not really all that happy. But ultimately, at some level or another, most people would rather deal with the devil they know rather than roll the dice and take chances with something better.

They know they’re not happy. They know that things could be so much better, but they are afraid of trying something new. These are the issues that you have to confront. They will crop up sooner rather than later. I share them with you and I shine a light on them at this point in the training, so you can spot them a mile away.

Understand that when you start bargaining with yourself about why you should not meditate at the appointed time, you’re basically giving in to this. This is all too predictable. This is to be expected.

Now that you know that you’re going to be playing all sorts of games with yourself, stick to your resolve. Stick to the simple meditation steps for a beginner’s game plan. Understand that there’s a lot at stake. You are trying to get your life back. You’re trying to gain control of your emotional and mental processes. You can be so much more productive, and you can be so much more effective if you overcome your old patterns.

Unfortunately, if you allow yourself to make all sorts of excuses and justifications to go back to your old way of thinking, you give up a tremendous future for convenience. You’ve grown to love your chains.

One of my favorite philosophers in college was the French Enlightenment thinker, Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Rousseau said, “Man was born free, but everywhere he is in chains.” This quote, of course, is all about political philosophy.

But Rousseau was absolutely right on a personal level. We are born free. We are born with a tremendous amount of possibilities. We are born with a tremendous amount of personal power. We have it in us to do great things. If you are doubtful of this, just think of the great thinkers, builders, and innovators of this world. Think about people who managed to build vast fortunes even though they were born with nothing.

People have potential. All of us do. If successful people can succeed, you can too. How do I know? Well, each choice you make is an exercise of power. You have all this unlimited potential in you. And it all flows from the fact that you have a choice. Your choice gives you the power of the things you think about, talk about, and the things that you think you are capable of doing.

But the reason why you feel so powerless, so limited, so small, is because you have allowed yourself to live in a neat, tidy little box. This box indicates what you can and cannot do. This box indicates what you are, what you’re about, and what you are not. Nobody put you in that box. You chose to be in that box. You chose to live in a mental prison.

It’s as if everybody’s walking around with this tremendous amount of personal potential, but they’re looking at their chains. They’re saying to themselves, “I’m a victim. I’m wearing these chains.” Little do they know that the key is in their hands.

Understand what is at stake. You have no excuse. You only have choices. I wish you nothing but victory!

Look within as you read this sentence, and observe what you are thinking, what your body is feeling. With these simple meditation steps for beginners comes to focus and awareness, and through awareness, the path to developing your best self.

To your success in meditation!

Don Weyant/Founder

CLICK HERE for The Top 25 Meditation Resources To Meditate Effectively…

by Don Weyant/Meditation Life Skills

29 Frequently Asked Meditation Questions You Must Know…

LESSON 11 OF 12: Frequently Asked Meditation Questions You Must Know!

HERE YOU WILL FIND ANSWERS TO SOME FREQUENTLY ASKED MEDITATION QUESTIONS AND SOME OF THE CHALLENGES YOU MAY ENCOUNTER.

– WHAT IF YOU FALL ASLEEP?
– CAN ANYTHING BAD HAPPEN?
– CAN IT DEVELOP MY PSYCHIC ABILITIES?
– SHOULD I MEDITATE WITH MY EYES OPEN OR WITH MY EYES CLOSED? AND MUCH MORE…

YOU CAN ALSO ASK ME QUESTIONS ABOUT MEDITATION HERE. I WELCOME ALL INPUTS, SUGGESTIONS, AND QUESTIONS ABOUT MEDITATION. THANK YOU. DON WEYANT/FOUNDER OF MEDITATION LIFE SKILLS

1. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT IS MEDITATION?

THE DICTIONARY DEFINES MEDITATION AS “CONTINUED OR EXTENDED THOUGHT; REFLECTION; CONTEMPLATION.” IT IS NOT THINKING. IT IS THE VEHICLE THAT CONNECTS US BOTH WITH OUR TRUE SELF AND WITH THAT WHICH IS BEYOND YOURSELF. MEDITATION IS THE THING THAT NOURISHES OUR SPIRIT. IT IS THE FUEL FOR OUR FOR OUR SPIRITUAL GROWTH AND THE KEY TO OUR ASCENT. SIMPLY PUT, IT IS OUR CONNECTION WITH THE DIVINE.

2. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHERE DID MEDITATION COME FROM?

AT ITS ROOTS, MEDIATION CAN BE TRACED BACK TO ANCIENT TIMES. RESEARCHERS SPECULATE THAT EVEN PRIMITIVE SOCIETIES MAY HAVE DISCOVERED ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS AND MEDITATIVE STATES WHILE STARING INTO THE FLAMES OF THEIR CAMPFIRES. MEDITATION TECHNIQUES CAN BE FOUND IN INDIAN SCRIPTURES DATED AT FIVE THOUSAND YEARS OLD.

OVER THOUSANDS OF YEARS, MEDITATION EVOLVED INTO DIFFERENT STRUCTURED PRACTICES AND STYLES, SPREADING ACROSS ASIA, ITS CONTINENT OF ORIGIN. IT WAS ONLY IN THE 1960S AND 70S THAT MEDITATION BECAME AS POPULAR IN THE WEST. FROM THAT POINT, MANY VARIATIONS HAVE SPREAD ACROSS THE GLOBE.

3. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF MEDITATION IN MY DAILY LIFE?

THE BENEFITS GAINED FROM MEDITATION INCLUDE A HEALTHY DISTANCING FROM THE STRESSFUL THINGS OF LIFE AND A TRUST IN THAT FORCES THAT SHAPE YOUR EVERYDAY EXISTENCE. LIFE CAN BE VERY DEMANDING. IT IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE BOTH THE WAYS AND MEANS TO COPE.

IT’S EASY TO GET INTO A STRESSFUL AND IRRITABLE MOOD THINKING ABOUT THE PRESSURES OF WORK AND FAMILY LIFE. THERE IS ALSO A RISK OF LOSING FOCUS ON ALL THE GOOD THINGS OF LIFE. MEDITATION HELPS YOU TO WITNESS THAT WHICH IS STRESSFUL. IT HELPS YOU TO SEE THINGS CLEARLY, AS IF FROM A DISTANCE.

4. MEDITATION QUESTION: CAN MEDITATION HELP MANAGE STRESS AND ANXIETY?

COUNTLESS MEDICAL STUDIES HAVE PROVEN THAT MEDITATION IS VERY BENEFICIAL FOR STRESS AND ANXIETY. PHYSICALLY, IT LOWERS BLOOD PRESSURE AND HEART RATE AND GIVES YOU AN AWARENESS OF YOUR BODY. MENTALLY, IT GIVES RESPITE FROM DAUNTING CONCERNS. PUTTING DISTANCE BETWEEN YOU AND YOUR PROBLEMS OFTEN ALLOWS YOU TO VIEW SITUATIONS WITH GREATER PERSPECTIVE.

THIS CAN PROVIDE SOLUTIONS THAT WEREN’T PREVIOUSLY APPARENT. EMOTIONALLY, MEDITATION GIVES YOU THE MEANS TO CONNECT WITH YOUR FEELINGS AND THOUGHTS AND RECOGNIZE THE TRUTH THROUGH THE CONFUSION. IT WILL NOT HELP EVERYBODY ALL OF THE TIME, BUT COMPARED TO OR USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH PHARMACEUTICAL MEDICATIONS IT IS DEFINITELY AN AVENUE WORTH EXPLORING.

SPEAK WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE PRACTITIONER TO DISCUSS YOUR SPECIFIC CIRCUMSTANCES IF YOU ARE HAVING CONSTANT STRESS AND/OR ANXIETY.

5. MEDITATION QUESTION: HOW IS MEDITATION DIFFERENT FROM RELAXATION, THINKING, CONCENTRATION, OR SELF-HYPNOSIS?

MEDITATION IS INDEED DIFFERENT FROM ALL THESE TECHNIQUES BECAUSE IT NOT ONLY RELAXES US, NOT ONLY ENRICHES US WITH PEACE, JOY, AND OPTIMISM, BUT IT ACTUALLY TRANSFORMS A HUMAN BEING, GRADUALLY AND DEEPLY, INTO A BEAUTIFUL AND HAPPY INDIVIDUAL. THIS HAPPENS WITHOUT GREAT EFFORT, THOUGHT, OR CONCENTRATION.

6. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT IS THE BEST TIME OF DAY TO MEDITATE?

AT SUNRISE, EARLY IN THE MORNING IS USUALLY THE MOST IDEAL TIME TO MEDITATE. AT THAT TIME, ONE IS ABLE TO FEEL THE SILENCE WITHIN IN A COMPLETE SYMPHONY WITH NATURE. IT ESPECIALLY WORKS IF THE PERSON FEELS WELL RESTED AFTER A GOOD, NORMAL SLEEP.

EVENING IS ALSO A TIME OF THE DAY WHEN WE CAN EASILY BRING OURSELVES INTO MEDITATION. IN THE MORNING, WE FEEL THE NEED TO START OUR DAILY ROUTINE IN A COMFORTABLE WAY.

IN THE EVENING, WE WANT TO FIND RELAXATION AFTER HAVING COMPLETED OUR BUSY DAY. THE EXACT BEST TIME TO MEDITATE DEPENDS ON OUR LIFESTYLE, OUR JOB AND THE VARIOUS TASKS WE ARE DEDICATED TO EVERY DAY.

7. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT IF I FALL ASLEEP DURING MEDITATION?

IF YOU FALL ASLEEP DURING A GUIDED MEDITATION YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS MIND IS STILL AWARE. IT IS ALWAYS ALERT AND LISTENING TO WHAT IS HAPPENING AROUND YOU AND YOU WILL AUTOMATICALLY RECEIVE THE INFORMATION.

IF THE MEDITATION IS ENCOURAGING YOU TO BE HAPPIER AND HEALTHIER, YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS MIND WILL START TO GENERATE THE HEALTH AND HEALING MESSAGES THAT WERE IN THE MEDITATION TO REDUCE YOUR EVERYDAY STRESS, EVEN THOUGH YOU ARE NOT CONSCIOUS OF IT.

8. MEDITATION QUESTION: SHOULD I MEDITATE WITH MY EYES OPEN OR WITH MY EYES CLOSED?

BASICALLY, IT IS MORE PLEASANT AND USEFUL TO MEDITATE WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED.

IN THIS WAY, YOUR PERCEPTION OF YOUR INNER BEING CAN BE MORE INTENSE. HOWEVER, IN CASE YOU HAVE SOME UNUSUAL SENSATIONS, SUCH AS YOUR INNER BODY TURNING AROUND OR THE SEEING OF COLORS, IT IS HIGHLY ADVISABLE TO OPEN YOUR EYES.

THESE PHENOMENA MEAN YOU ARE EITHER TOO MUCH ON THE RIGHT OR LEFT SIDE AND NOT IN THE CENTER. A QUALITY MEDITATION IS ONLY POSSIBLE IN THE CENTRAL CHANNEL.

9. MEDITATION QUESTION: HOW LONG SHOULD MY MEDITATION SESSIONS LAST?

IT IS GOOD TO GIVE OURSELVES THE TIME WE NEED TO FOCUS AND TO FIND THAT SPECIAL SILENCE INSIDE. TO THIS END, IT IS GENERALLY BEST TO MEDITATE NO LESS THAN FIFTEEN MINUTES.

OFTEN THE FULL TIME OF THE MEDITATION WILL NOT HAVE THE SAME QUALITY OR DEPTH, ESPECIALLY IF WE HAVE NEVER TRIED MEDITATING BEFORE, THEREFORE FIFTEEN MINUTES OF QUALITY MEDITATION IS THE GOAL.

IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE A TRULY MEDITATIVE STATE, IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO ACCEPT AND FORGIVE THE THOUGHTS WHICH MAY INTERFERE. THEN THE REAL MEDITATION WILL TAKE PLACE AND YOU WILL BE ABLE TO ENJOY.

10. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHERE SHOULD I MEDITATE?

WHEN YOU FILL A SPACE WITH ARTISTIC PIECES, YOU CREATE A BEAUTIFUL ROOM AND YOU FEEL DELIGHTED EACH TIME YOU STEP INTO IT. WHEN YOU KEEP A REGULAR PLACE FOR YOUR DAILY MEDITATION, YOU BUILD A CONDUCIVE ATMOSPHERE THAT EASES YOU INTO A MEDITATIVE MOOD.

WHILE THERE IS NO STRICT RULE ABOUT WHERE TO MEDITATE, KEEPING AN ASSIGNED MEDITATION AREA IN YOUR HOME IS IDEAL. ALSO, ATTENDING A GROUP MEDITATION AT A MEDITATION OR YOGA CENTER WILL STRENGTHEN YOUR STATE OF SILENCE. AS YOU GROW IN MEDITATION, YOU WILL FIND YOURSELF IN PEACE NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE.

11. MEDITATION QUESTION: DO I HAVE TO SIT CROSS-LEGGED DURING MEDITATION?

WHILE SITTING CROSS-LEGGED ON THE FLOOR FOR MEDITATION IS GOOD, IT IS NOT THE ONLY WAY TO DO IT. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SIT CROSS-LEGGED. SITTING ON A CHAIR IS FINE. REMEMBER THAT YOU MUST BE COMFORTABLE IN THE WAY THAT YOU ARE SITTING, OTHERWISE ONE CAN GET EASILY DISTRACTED AND NOT BE ABLE TO GO INTO A MEDITATIVE STATE.

THE MOST IMPORTANT OBJECTIVE OF YOUR POSTURE IS THAT YOUR SPINAL CORD SHOULD BE FAIRLY STRAIGHT.

12. MEDITATION QUESTION: CAN PEOPLE GET BY WITHOUT A MEDITATION TEACHER?

WITH MEDITATION YOU CAN BE YOUR OWN TEACHER. THE MEDITATION UNLOCKS THE KNOWLEDGE WHICH IS WITHIN EACH OF US. YOU WILL KNOW WHAT IS RIGHT AND WHAT IS WRONG. YOU FEEL WHAT TECHNIQUES TO TRY AND WHICH TO AVOID.

BUT, AT THE SAME TIME, YOU WILL ALWAYS BENEFIT GREATLY FROM THE EXPERIENCE OF OTHERS. THROUGH THE GROUP MEDITATION AND CONTACT WITH THOSE WHO PRACTICE MEDITATION, YOUR GROWTH CAN BE ACCELERATED TENFOLD. WE GROW THROUGH COLLECTIVITY, HUMILITY, AND SURRENDER.

13. MEDITATION QUESTION: CAN ANYTHING BAD HAPPEN DURING MEDITATION?

WHEN YOU ARE MEDITATING, YOU ARE SITTING WITH THE INTENT TO GO ON AN INWARD JOURNEY. RELAXATION IS ACHIEVED AS YOU WITNESS, AND THEN LET GO OF OR RELEASE THE STRESSES AND THE STRAINS OF THE DAY.

CALMING THE MIND ALLOWS THE BODY TO ENTER A REFRESHING AND REJUVENATING STATE OF BEING. WITH THIS SIMPLE INTENT, YOU ARE NOT CALLING IN ENERGIES THAT ARE STRANGE; YOU ARE NOT TRYING TO CONNECT WITH BEINGS THAT HAVE PASSED INTO OTHER REALMS OF UNDERSTANDING. NO OTHER-WORLDLY ENTITIES CAN AFFECT YOU.

MEDITATION IS A SAFE INWARD JOURNEY OF PEACEFUL DISCOVERY AND RELAXATION.

14. MEDITATION QUESTION: SHOULD I USE MUSIC WHILE MEDITATING?

THE DISTRACTIONS OF DAY-TO-DAY LIFE MAKE MAINTAINING OUR ATTENTION EXTREMELY DIFFICULT. MUSIC IS AN AID TO MEDITATION. WHILE LISTENING TO GENTLE MUSIC, WE OBSERVE A POSITIVE SHIFT IN OUR ATTENTION. THE ATTENTION THAT WAS INVOLVED IN WORRIES AND PROBLEMS, NOW GETS SUBTLER AND STEADIER.

MEDITATION THUS BECOMES SPONTANEOUS AND EFFORTLESS. HOWEVER, THE RAGAS AND NOTES OF THE INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC HAVE BEEN DESIGNED TO STIMULATE THE SUBTLE ENERGY SYSTEM WITHIN US. BY JUST LISTENING, YOU CAN FEEL AN INCREASED FLOW OF VIBRATIONS WHICH CAN TAKE YOU EFFORTLESSLY INTO A DEEPER SPIRITUAL STATE.

15. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT’S A MEDITATION MANTRA AND DO I NEED ONE?

THE WORD “MANTRA” IS DERIVED FROM THE ROOT WORD “MAN” MEANING TO THINK OR TO MEDITATE. A MANTRA IS THAT WHICH IS UTTERED IN MEDITATION.

IT IS THE SPEAKING OF THESE VIBRATIONS INTO SPECIFIC SOUNDS, WHICH HAVE A DIRECT EFFECT ON THE INNER BEING. WHEN A REALIZED SOUL UTTERS A MANTRA, HE OR SHE MEDIATES THE SPIRITUAL ENERGY FOR THE SPECIFIC PURPOSE FOR WHICH THE MANTRA IS INTENDED.

MANTRAS ARE MOST EFFECTIVE WHILE SITTING IN MEDITATION. DURING MEDITATION, WHEN A PROBLEM OR A BLOCKAGE IS FOUND IN A PARTICULAR SUBTLE ENERGY CENTER, MANTRAS CAN BE USED TO CLEAR THEM OUT AND ACHIEVE THE STATE OF THOUGHTLESS AWARENESS WHERE A PERSON’S SPIRITUAL NATURE BEGINS TO MANIFEST SPONTANEOUSLY.

16. MEDITATION QUESTION: CAN I LEARN TO MEDITATE FROM A BOOK/DVD?

YOU CAN LEARN MEDITATION FROM A BOOK, MP3 OR A DVD, BUT YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT THE BOOK OR DVD CAN ONLY TAKE YOU UP TO A POINT. IF YOU WANT TO GROW DEEPER IN YOUR MEDITATION, YOU WILL EXPERIENCE MORE GROWTH BY ATTENDING A MEDITATION CLASS.

THE ADVANTAGE OF A CLASS IS HANDS-ON ADVICE FROM INSTRUCTORS AND IMMEDIATE ANSWERS TO YOUR PERSONAL QUESTIONS.

17. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT IS A GUIDED MEDITATION?

GUIDED MEDITATION IS A SIMPLE FORM OF MEDITATION THAT EVERYONE CAN DO EASILY AND EFFECTIVELY.

JUST AS AN ADULT OR A TEACHER READS A STORY TO A CHILD, THE WORDS OF THE GUIDE ENTERTAIN YOUR LOGICAL MIND AND LEAD YOUR IMAGINATION TO A PLACE THAT PROVIDES BENEFIT. EACH GUIDED MEDITATION ASSISTS YOUR PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL, MENTAL, AND SPIRITUAL ASPECTS.

THE GUIDE STARTS THE MEDITATION BY RELAXING YOUR STATE OF BEING. THIS IS USUALLY ACHIEVED BY FOCUSING YOUR THOUGHTS ON YOUR BREATH AND SCANNING YOUR BODY FOR TENSE MUSCLES AND AREAS HOLDING STRESS. WITH JUST A LITTLE PRACTICE YOU CAN VERY QUICKLY ACHIEVE A VERY RELAXED STATE OF BEING.

THE GUIDE THEN TAKES YOU ON A JOURNEY IN YOUR IMAGINATION. THIS IS THE EASIEST FORM OF MEDITATION AS THE MIND HAS LESS CHANCE TO WANDER ONTO REAL-WORLD THOUGHTS OF CHORES, WORK, AND LOVED ONES.

INDIAN YOGIS AND TIBETAN BUDDHISTS SPEND A LIFETIME TRAINING TO SIT IN SILENCE, BUT FOR THE REST OF US WHO HAVE TO SCHEDULE RELAXATION INTO OUR BUSY LIVES; GUIDED MEDITATION IS THE EASIEST AND MOST PRACTICAL WAY TO REAP THE BENEFITS.

18. MEDITATION QUESTION: HOW IS GUIDED MEDITATION DIFFERENT FROM OTHER MEDITATION FORMS?

MEDITATION IS AN ANCIENT PRACTICE THAT HAS EXISTED IN MANY FORMS. IT IS NOT RIGHT TO GENERALIZE AND SAY ANYONE FORM IS BETTER OR WORSE THAN ANOTHER. THE BEST FORM OF MEDITATION IS UNIQUE TO THE INDIVIDUAL. IT IS FAIR TO SAY MOST HAVE A SIMILAR INTENT; TO GET THE MIND AWAY FROM ‘THINKING’ INTO A DEEPER STATE OF SIMULTANEOUS RELAXATION AND AWARENESS.

GUIDED MEDITATION USES WORDS TO CONTROL THE PROCEEDINGS. IT IS JUST LIKE SOMEONE READING YOU A STORY.

THERE IS A BEGINNING, MIDDLE, AND END AND YOU CAN CHOOSE A TOPIC THAT DRAWS YOUR INTEREST. OTHER FORMS OF MEDITATION REPEATEDLY CHANT A MANTRA OR PRAYER, WHILE OTHERS STRIVE FOR THE COMPLETE SILENCE OF THOUGHT. SOME FOCUS PURELY ON THE BREATH OR FOCUS ON OBJECTS SUCH AS A CANDLE FLAME.

ALL LIST SIMILAR GOALS AND BENEFITS SUCH AS ACHIEVEMENT OF A HIGHER STATE OF CONSCIOUSNESS, GREATER FOCUS, AND PERSPECTIVE, DEVELOPED CREATIVITY AND SELF-AWARENESS, AND A MORE RELAXED AND PEACEFUL FRAME OF MIND.

IT IS A RECOGNIZED COMPONENT OF MANY RELIGIONS BUT ALSO PRACTICED FOR SPIRITUAL GROWTH AND PRACTICAL PURPOSES.

19. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHY IS GUIDED MEDITATION GOOD FOR BEGINNERS?

THE WORDS AND STORY IN A GUIDED MEDITATION WILL ENTRAIN YOUR MIND, ALLOWING YOU TO IMAGINE A REALITY DIFFERENT TO THE ONE THAT YOU LIVE EACH AND EVERY DAY. WHILE CONSUMED BY THE IMAGERY THERE IS LESS NEED FOR LOGICAL AND PROGRESSIVE THOUGHT.

THIS ALLOWS THE MIND TO RELAX – TO LET GO OF CONSCIOUS CONTROL. IN THIS STATE YOU CAN REFRESH YOUR SET OF OPERATING PRINCIPLES.

AFTER THE MEDITATION YOU WILL BE LESS STRESSED, WITHOUT THE HIGH LEVELS OF THOUGHT AND MEMORY ACTIVITY THAT CLOUD YOUR JUDGMENT AND PERSPECTIVE. YOUR THOUGHTS AND ACTIONS WILL HAVE LESS ATTACHMENT TO THE EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER OF YOUR AVERAGE DAY, ALLOWING YOU TO HEAR YOUR TRUE INNER VOICE, AND LIVE MORE INTUITIVELY AS YOU BECOME MORE SPIRITUALLY AWARE.

GUIDED MEDITATION IS GREAT FOR THOSE NEW TO MEDITATION BECAUSE THE BENEFITS CAN BE ACHIEVED WITHOUT STRICT PRACTICE. GUIDED MEDITATION IS EASY. FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, YOU WILL START TO EVOLVE IN AN EMOTIONAL WAY, IN A PERSONAL WAY, AND YOU WILL START TO EVOLVE AS A SPIRITUAL BEING AS WELL.

20. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT DO I NEED TO GET STARTED FOR MEDITATING?

TO GET STARTED WITH MEDITATION, YOU NEED TO FIND A QUIET PLACE WHERE YOU CAN MEDITATE. YOU WILL ALSO NEED A SMALL TABLE ON WHICH YOU PUT A LIT CANDLE AND A PICTURE OF A SPIRITUAL GURU OR SYMBOL.

THE ELEMENTS ARE USED TO HELP US IN OUR MEDITATION. THE CANDLE CARRIES THE FIRE WHICH RELIEVES US OF OUR PROBLEMS. THE PICTURE OF A SPIRITUAL GURU OR SYMBOL IS ALSO INTEGRAL TO OUR MEDITATION. IT EMITS VIBRATIONS WHICH THE KUNDALINI RECOGNIZES AND SO IT BECOMES EASIER FOR US TO MEDITATE.

IF YOU CHOOSE TO SIT ON THE GROUND, YOU MAY NEED A MAT. IF YOU PREFER TO SIT IN A CHAIR, MAKE SURE THAT IT IS COMFORTABLE. THE KEY IDEA IS TO TRY TO MAKE YOUR SURROUNDING RELAXING SO THAT YOU CAN MEDITATE PEACEFULLY.

21. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN I MEDITATE?

WHEN YOU MEDITATE THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL HAPPENING WILL BE THAT YOU WILL FEEL THE COOL BREEZE OR VIBRATION AT THE TOP OF YOUR HEAD – OR AT LEAST ON YOUR HANDS. SOME HOT OR COOL SENSATION MIGHT ALSO BE FELT.

THE MOST AMAZING PART OF MEDITATION IS THAT YOU WILL BE IN A THOUGHTLESS STATE, WHICH MEANS PEACE WITHOUT THOUGHT. IN THIS STATE, YOU ENJOY THE PRESENT AND, THROUGH EVERYDAY MEDITATION, YOU WILL SEE YOUR WORRIES ABOUT THE PAST AND FUTURE WILL BE REDUCED.

YOU WILL BECOME MORE EFFICIENT, ALERT, AND HEALTHY AS THE SEVEN CHAKRAS ARE CLEANED AND NOURISHED – THE RESULT OF DAILY MEDITATION.

22. MEDITATION QUESTION: CAN MEDITATION DEVELOP MY PSYCHIC ABILITIES?

YOU COULD SAY, ‘MEDITATION IS THE BEST WAY TO DEVELOP PSYCHIC ABILITIES AND SPIRITUAL CONNECTION.’

WITH REGULAR PRACTICE, MEDITATION CALMS THE BUSY MIND AND CENTERS YOUR ENERGY IN YOUR HEART THROUGHOUT YOUR DAY. IT REMOVES US FROM OUR LOGICAL LIVES AND CONNECTS US WITH OUR INTUITION. WHEN THE NEEDLESS CHATTER OF YOUR MIND IS QUIET, IT GIVES BETTER OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR THE GUIDANCE OF YOUR HIGHER SELF.

23. MEDITATION QUESTION: WHAT IS AN OUT-OF-BODY EXPERIENCE WHEN MEDITATING?

WE HAVE A CONSCIOUS AWARENESS THAT WE ARE IN A 3-DIMENSIONAL BEING. WE ARE LOOKING OUT OF OUR EYES, WE ARE LISTENING, WE ARE AWARE OF WHAT IS GOING ON AROUND US. WE HAVE PERIPHERAL VISION AND HEARING TO GIVE US A PERSPECTIVE OF THE SPACE AROUND US.

WE USE OUR PHYSICAL SENSES TO FIND OUR PLACE. WHEN WE START TO GO DEEPLY INTO MEDITATION, OUR AWARENESS IS ABLE TO ADD ANOTHER DIMENSION TO WHAT WE USUALLY HAVE – AND THAT IS LOOKING DOWN ON OUR BODY.

IT’S AS IF WE ARE PROJECTING AWARENESS OUTSIDE OF OUR PHYSICAL BODY. IT IS SOMETIMES POSSIBLE TO CLEARLY SEE YOURSELF SITTING IN A CHAIR OR LYING IN BED. SOME PEOPLE SAY THAT IT HAPPENS TO THEM WHEN THEY ARE DREAMING, OR EVEN THAT THEY COULD SEE THEMSELVES ON THE OPERATING TABLE WHILE UNDER ANESTHETIC.

AN OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCE, IS HAVING YOUR AWARENESS SOMEWHERE OTHER THAN CENTERED WITHIN YOUR PHYSICAL BODY.

IT IS COMMON FOR PSYCHICS, HEALERS, AND MYSTICS, FOR EXAMPLE, TO USE OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCES WHEN TRYING TO TRACK SOMEONE WHO IS LOST. OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCES ARE ALSO FREQUENTLY ENCOUNTERED DURING DEEP HYPNOSIS, WHERE ONE IS RELEASED FROM THE PHYSICAL BODY AND THE NOW, ND IS ABLE TO MOVE INTO ANOTHER DIMENSION OF AWARENESS.

24. MEDITATION QUESTION: DO I HAVE TO MAKE MY MIND BLANK WHEN MEDITATING?

THIS IS PERHAPS THE BIGGEST OBSTACLE FOR THE HUMAN MIND: TO STOP THINKING. TO MAKE THE MIND GO BLANK IS TO TELL THE THOUGHTS TO GO AWAY. IT IS TO PUT THE BRAIN OUT OF BUSINESS.

YOU NEED ONLY TO FORGIVE THE THOUGHTS FOR BOTHERING YOU AND TO TELL THEM, “WE WILL DEAL WITH THIS LATER.” TO ATTAIN THOUGHTLESS AWARENESS IS THE GOAL OF MEDITATION. TO SWITCH OFF THE MIND IS TO SURRENDER. YOU ARE SAYING “I AM NOT DOING THIS.”

25. MEDITATION QUESTION: DO I HAVE TO CONCENTRATE WHILE MEDITATING?

YOU DO NOT NEED TO CONCENTRATE WHILE MEDITATING, SO MUCH AS YOU NEED TO PURIFY YOUR ATTENTION. IF YOU FIND YOURSELF HAVING DIFFICULTY FOCUSING YOUR ATTENTION ON PURE THINGS, SUCH AS BEING CONNECTED WITH GOD, THEN YOU MAY NEED TO UTILIZE OTHER TECHNIQUES TO HELP SLOW DOWN YOUR THOUGHTS.

PRACTICING FORGIVENESS IS ONE WAY TO PURIFY ONE’S ATTENTION. ANOTHER WAY IS TO RAISE YOUR ATTENTION TOWARDS THE LAST ENERGY CENTER AT THE TOP OF THE HEAD. WHEN YOU NOTICE YOUR THOUGHTS DRIFTING DURING MEDITATION, SIMPLY BRING YOUR ATTENTION BACK TO YOUR BREATH AND SAY IN YOUR HEART, “I FORGIVE EVERYONE AND I FORGIVE MYSELF.”

26. MEDITATION QUESTION: IS THERE ANYTHING DIFFICULT ABOUT MEDITATION?

THE ONLY GENERALLY KNOWN DIFFICULTY ABOUT MEDITATION IS HOW TO GET INTO THE MEDITATIVE STATE, HOW TO GET RID OF ANNOYING THOUGHTS. SOME TECHNIQUES, SUCH AS FORGIVING EVERYONE AND ONESELF OR WATCHING THE THOUGHTS FLOW AND NOT FOLLOWING THEM, CAN BE VERY HELPFUL.

ANOTHER GOOD WORKING METHOD IS TO LISTEN TO MEDITATIVE MUSIC (SUCH AS INDIAN CLASSICAL RAGAS). BUT WHEN YOU HEAR THE MUSIC, LISTEN NOT THROUGH THE EAR, BUT ACTUALLY BY WAY OF THE HEART CHAKRA. SELF-DISCIPLINE MAKES MEDITATION EASIER. THE ROUTINE OF TWICE-DAILY MEDITATION IN ITSELF MAKES MEDITATION EASIER WITH EACH PASSING DAY.

27. MEDITATION QUESTION: CAN CHILDREN MEDITATE?

YES, CHILDREN CAN MEDITATE. ACTUALLY, THEY ARE THE BEST CANDIDATES FOR MEDITATION BECAUSE THEY HAVE MUCH LESS CONDITIONING AND PROBLEMS THAT MAY PREVENT OTHERS FROM RELAXING. CHILDREN ARE ABLE TO GO “INTO” MEDITATION QUICKER FOR THIS REASON.

28. MEDITATION QUESTION: WILL I NEED TO MAKE LIFESTYLE CHANGES FOR MEDITATION?

NO LIFESTYLE CHANGES ARE NECESSARY WITH MEDITATION UNLESS THEY HAPPEN NATURALLY WITHOUT YOUR EFFORT. THE MEDITATION LIFESTYLE ADJUSTS ITSELF TO THE REAL NEEDS OF OUR BODY AND SPIRIT, MAKING OUR LIFE TRULY COMFORTABLE AND EASY. YOU WILL FIND WITH TIME THAT UNWANTED THINGS JUST FALL AWAY.

29. MEDITATION QUESTION: HOW DO I LEARN TO MEDITATE?

THE BEST WAY TO LEARN MEDITATION IS TO DO IT. YOU MIGHT SAY IT IS ON-THE-JOB TRAINING – LEARNING BY DOING. IT IS LIKE LEARNING TO WALK. HEARING OTHERS DESCRIBE IT OR OBSERVING THEIR FOOTSTEPS DOES LITTLE TO ACCOMPLISH THE TASK. MEDITATION IS SOMETHING WE ALL KNOW HOW TO DO. IT IS INSIDE US LIKE BREATHING OR SLEEPING OR WALKING.

IF YOU HAVE THE DESIRE TO BE PEACEFUL, TO BE CENTERED AND SILENT AND TO BE IN THE PRESENT, YOU CAN MEDITATE. YOU WILL BE IN MEDIATION BEFORE YOU HAVE TIME TO THINK ABOUT IT. IT IS YOUR DESIRE THAT IS THE KEY.

Click HERE to go to your last lesson! Simple Meditation Steps For Beginners – Lesson 12

by Don Weyant/Meditation Life Skills

6 Meditation For Beginners Videos You Can Do – Lesson 10

Lesson 10 of 12: 6 Meditation For Beginners Videos For You To Learn How To Meditate. Let’s Go!

What is the goal of meditation? The Answer? None. Meditation is the practice of being fully immersed in the present moment by not indulging in the thoughts of the ego. It is more training of the mind to direct focus and concentration on one element.

This single element may be a single sound, a single word or thought, a single image, or even the person’s own breathing. The breath in meditation is the single gateway to improving everything in your life.

I know this sounds ridiculous, to say the least. However, for three thousand years plus, the breath has been found across all religions, cultures, and disciplines to be the key to self-realization.

Calmness and peace are brought into the mind’s focus, and thereby replace feelings of worry, stress, and depression. Negative thoughts can be replaced with positive ones in this manner.

Below are 6 meditations for beginners videos that you can use to expand and explore different meditation techniques. These are some of the best videos for explaining these very important meditation concepts. Enjoy the journey!

VIDEO: Meditation Advice For Beginners – Mingyur Rinpoche

Don’t worry about the quality of your meditation, says Mingyur Rinpoche.

Here are 6 simple meditation techniques for beginners that anyone can do…

Start with mastering breathing meditation, and then try the others once you have reduced your mind chatter.

Meditation For Beginners Video #1 – Mastering Breathing Meditation

Focus on the breath only, trying to not follow any conceptual thoughts. Breathe in and out, counting 1, 2, 3, and so on up to 10 without getting distracted. This may sound easy, but it is only when you start to meditate that you will discover just how full of (not very important) thoughts your mind is.

You may not get past 1 in your first session before getting distracted, but that’s fine. Keep up the practice. Start for 5 minutes each day and gradually add on a minute or 2 each week, until you are able to meditate for 20 to 30 minutes without getting distracted and fidgety. This is your best place to start meditation techniques for beginners.

VIDEO: 3-Minute Mindful Breathing Meditation (Relieve Stress)

Feel more settled and calm by spending a few minutes focused on your breathing. A 3-minute Mindful Breathing mindfulness meditation created by Stop, Breathe & Think.

Meditation For Beginners Video #2 – Scan Your Body Meditation

As we continue on with this meditation for beginners videos. Focus attention on different parts of your body as you sit. Become aware of your body’s various sensations, pain, tension, warmth, or relaxation. If there is pain, imagine that the area is being bathed in healing white light. You can also use it as part of your breathing meditation, breathing in healing, breathing out the pain.

VIDEO: Body Scan Meditation

Life can be challenging. Taking time to be mindful – to stop and notice what’s going on within you and around you – can help with recognizing and reducing stress, anxiety, and other intense experiences. This mindfulness resource for meditation techniques for beginners is available to support you in exploring, establishing, or further deepening a mindfulness practice.

Meditation For Beginners Video #3 – Repeat A Mantra Meditation

You can create your own mantra, whether it’s secular or religious. A secular one might be the word “peace,” or the phrase “live in the present.” Examples of religious mantras include the Lord’s Prayer in the Christian tradition, the holy name of God in Judaism, or the om mantra of Hinduism, Buddhism, and other Eastern religions. This can be done as one part of your breathing meditation techniques for beginners, or for an entire session.

VIDEO: Mantra 101 – How To Choose a Mantra

Looking for more insight on how to choose a mantra that can best support you in your meditation practice and life?

Meditation For Beginners Video #4 – Prayer/Blessing/Loving-Kindness Meditation

The word prayer in Tibetan means ‘wish path’. You are wishing for something to change in your life. The word blessing in Tibetan means ‘waves of transformation’. Again, you are not praying to an external deity, you are working towards transforming your life for the better. And how much better would it be to do this work not just for yourself, but for all living beings?

Imagine that when you breathe in, you are taking away all the pain and suffering in the world in the form of black smoke, and sending out love and blessings in the form of pure white light bathing everyone in love and enlightenment. These meditation techniques for beginners can be done for the whole of your meditation or one part of your breathing meditation.

You can also set an intention, for example, you can dedicate your practice for the day to everyone suffering from cancer, or caught in a terrible hurricane. If you’ve ever met anyone you feel has ‘positive energy and lights up a room when they walk in, you will get an idea of just how powerful caring for others can be. Of all the meditation for beginners videos, this is one of my favorites. Enjoy.

Metta Loving Kindness Guided Meditation

Metta loving-kindness guided meditation: Would you like to be more kind toward yourself? Want to increase self-love? Awesome, this is the perfect practice for you!

Metta or Loving Kindness meditation allows you to increase self-love and love of others by opening your heart.

It will even increase your love for irritating or difficult people!
You want to be less irritated, right? 🙂
Metta aids in forgiveness as well.
Metta Loving Kindness makes you kinder, friendlier, and more compassionate.

It is a meditation practice that transforms your heart & life by repeating simple phrases in your mind.

The phrases you repeat in this meditation are:
May I be safe
May I be healthy and strong
May I be happy and peaceful
May I live with ease in this world

VIDEO: Metta Loving Kindness Guided Meditation

Meditation For Beginners Video #5 – Attitude Of Gratitude Meditation

As you sit breathing, think of all the people who contribute to your life each day. Start with the closest people to you, family, friends, colleagues. Gradually widen out the circle to include other people like the man who delivers your groceries.

Think about your lettuce, the person who put it on the store shelf, the person who drove it to the store, the one who picked it, the person who planted it, the farmer who owns the land, and so on. You can also list all the things you are grateful for in your life such as good health, a job that pays you money, etc.

There is a wonderful story about a wise teacher living in a poor village that is hit by an earthquake. The foundation cracks in one of the houses, revealing a treasure chest full of gold and jewels. Everyone points in amazement and says, “Look! They’re rich!” The wise teacher shakes his head. “They were ALWAYS rich. They just didn’t know it.” If you’ve been taking everything for granted, or feeling discontent, it’s time to become aware of just how rich you really are.

VIDEO: Gratitude Meditation

It is impossible to feel stressed and tense when we feel grateful. Here is a gratitude meditation that will help you foster feelings of gratitude When we feel grateful on a regular basis, our mood improves, we feel content and we tend to live life with a fuller appreciation of all the blessings that we have!

Meditation For Beginners Video #6 – Mindfulness Meditation

These meditation techniques for beginners can be done anywhere. To be mindful is to pay attention, not just be on autopilot as you wash the dishes or eat your dinner in front of the TV. As you wash, pay attention to the feeling of the water, the soap, the smoothness of the dish, the coarseness of the dish scrubber. Take pleasure in the little things that all make up this otherwise mundane task most of us rarely think about.

When eating a meal, eat slowly, chew thoroughly, note the taste of the food, the way it feels in your mouth, compare and contrast textures and tastes, and so on. Understand, this one meditation for beginners video is so vital, being mindful is one of the most important concepts that you need to focus on and bring into your daily life.

VIDEO: Mindfulness Guided Meditation – 5 Minutes

This is a mindfulness video that is a guided meditation by Dr. Robert E. Dinenberg and has been layered with ocean waves. This video is used for Experimental Research and should not be considered original material or works by Dr. Robert E. Dinenberg.

Meditation For Beginners Video #7 – Candle Flame Meditation

This helps you focus and is a great lead-in to any of the other meditation techniques for beginners. Just be sure to keep out of reach of children and pets, and to blow it out when you are done. An electric candle will also work, though you won’t get the same degree of flickering.

A Candle Meditation can be used to help clear your mind and increase your ability to focus. You can do this is by lighting a candle and focusing directly on the flame.

You can download and use the guided candle meditation audio mp3 below to learn how to perform a guided candle meditation. This is a great meditation for beginners video to get started on your practice.

CLICK HERE for an excellent mp3 download: “Guided Candle Meditation – Step By Step Guide” on Meditation Life Skills.

VIDEO: 20 MINUTE Candle Meditation For Health And Abundance – Guided Meditation

A 20 minute guided meditation with a candle, for deep relaxation, health, and abundance. This meditation will be done focusing on a candle, either on the screen or one you light yourself. By concentrating on the candle-flame, your breathing, and repeating a single word you choose, you will find yourself entering a place of calm and peace of mind.

TOP TIP: Avoid Judging Your Meditation Sessions

Don’t judge your meditation sessions as good or bad. Distraction is natural and practice will make things easier over time. Your mind will wander during meditation, no matter how long you’ve been practicing. If you’re meditating to calm your mind and your attention wanders, slowly return to the object, sensation, or movement you’re focusing on. Return to the breath.

There are many methods of meditation techniques for beginners, as we have discussed above. Once you have mastered these 6 simple meditations, you will find which ones work best for you in terms of improving your life, and which you enjoy doing.

A good meditation teacher will tell you to, “Practice like a child at play,” in other words, to be absorbed in what you are doing, yet having a lot of fun.
Another wise teacher once said, “Practice like your hair is on fire.” Don’t waste time. Make the most of each opportunity you have to practice, and see what a difference it can make in your life.

As a beginner meditator, it’s natural to have questions. Let’s look at a few you will no doubt wonder about as you progress on your meditation journey.

CLICK HERE for Lesson 11, Frequently Asked Questions About Meditation…

by Don Weyant/Meditation Life Skills

Scientific Benefits Of Meditation For Better Health – Lesson 7

Lesson 7 of 12: The Scientific Benefits Of Meditation as we have mentioned, meditation offers many health benefits. Did you know it physically and mentally alters your brain for the better?

A growing body of research on the scientific benefits of meditation and meditation as part of yoga practice has demonstrated some very clear physical changes. One study showed that meditation produced denser gray matter in the hippocampus in the brain, the seat of memory, learning, self-awareness, and compassion.

Another study has shown it can improve the health of the caudate nucleus, a part of the brain that controls both motor functions such as breathing and movement, and non-motor functions, including certain forms of learning.

Those with Parkinson’s disease have issues with this part of the brain, and could, therefore, benefit from meditation. Meditation also improves the connectivity of the caudate with other parts of the brain when done in conjunction with yoga.

Starting with this lesson and the scientific benefits of meditation, I’m going to layout the different purely secular methods of achieving a meditative state. Now, a lot of people might argue whether these methods are “classical” meditative techniques. But as I’ve mentioned before, we really couldn’t care less about whether it’s traditional, classical or what have you.

Instead, our focus is to learn the basic practical, doable techniques that enable people to focus on the present moment. This is the key to relieving stress and removing unnecessary life pressures.

The first method I’m going to teach you is the SEAL quick stress relief method. This method was pioneered for the US Navy SEAL program.

SEAL stands for Sea, Air, and Land teams. These are highly trained, mission-critical military units run by the United States Navy. These are the seasoned military specialists that often see the action first in any kind of armed conflict. In other words, you have to have your wits about you.

Usually, they get sent in to clear out an area, they plant bombs, they do sabotage, they do all sorts of highly stressful military work. It follows that the US Navy invested a tremendous amount of money to enable these military specialists to achieve instant or almost instant peace of mind right before they do a task.

Also, if they’re in the middle of a firefight or they are in the middle of a very sticky situation that can be fatal, they get the US Navy invested in this training to help them calm down and remain focused on the task at hand.

VIDEO: The Navy SEAL Quick Stress Relief Method

The scientific benefits of meditation using the SEAL method is actually pretty straightforward. You breathe for a few seconds. It could be 4, it could be 10, as long as it’s not too long for you to be uncomfortable. You breathe and then hold. And then you release, and then you hold.

Basically, you breathe in, and then you hold it in for four seconds. You then release your breath, and then at the end of that stage when all the air has left your lungs, you hold it for the same number of seconds (four) when you were breathing in. You repeat this about 3 to 8 times. Again, as long as it’s comfortable.

SEAL Method Guidelines

When you’re doing this, you don’t think. You know you’re doing it wrong when you’re thinking. Instead, you should just focus on what you’re doing. Focus on the air coming in, focus on holding your breath, then focus on the air going out.

If you keep repeating this with your focus solely on your breath and what your body is going through, relaxation will come. Your mind starts to unclench.

You’re no longer worried about stuff at work. You’re no longer worried about your relationship. You’re no longer worried about your childhood. You’re no longer obsessing about that person you can’t forgive. None of that matters. Instead, you focus on the here and now. That’s when the relaxation comes.

Ideally, you should start with the SEAL method for quick stress relief. This is the easiest meditation method and it delivers the quickest results. Once you learn to de-stress using this technique, you should then go deeper by adopting the methods described in the following lessons of this training.

VIDEO: Dr. Oz Shares The Scientific Benefits of Meditation

Dr. Oz explains how you can reduce stress and anxiety by taking a few minutes each day to concentrate on your breath. Learn how important your breathing is.

Proven scientific benefits of meditation can prevent age-related cognitive decline and alters alpha waves in the brain, for better mental function. It changes cortical thickness, resulting in improved attention and a clearer perception of one’s own body. Meditation improves breathing and makes the body less sensitive to pain.

Scientific benefits of meditation and brain mapping with MRI have shown significant structural changes in the brain after only a few weeks of meditation for less than 30 minutes per day.

Since we know scientifically that something is being profoundly altered within the body as we map the brain, it will come as no surprise that those who meditate report observing or experiencing certain things they feel to be unusual.

Some say their head feels cooler, lighter. Others report that their body feels as though it’s floating. Many people feel energized, and/or as if their breathing is more effortless and fills their lungs and body with enriching oxygen.

Some report headaches after meditation, or too much meditation. Some reports show that meditating with a hat or other head covering as a bandana or shawl can help. Others report a sore back or stiffness. It will depend on how you sit, and for how long. Generally speaking, stretching a little bit and keeping warm, but not too hot, can eliminate these issues. A shawl, light-weight jacket, or blanket can help.

Some scientific benefits of meditation studies have reported a change of perspective, such as viewing themselves as if they were outside of their bodies. Others have seen flashing lights, colors, or patterns. Some people have reported sudden recollections from their past, or even from past lives.

Hindus and Buddhists believe in reincarnation, that is, that what they term your continually residing mind moves from body to body as we would move from house to house.

When you die, your root mind, as it is called, transfers to another living being at the moment of conception. If we are lucky, we get precious human life. If we are unlucky, we might end up in the animal realm as a pig or cow, destined for only a short, brutish life before death and rebirth all over again.

Reincarnation may be a strange concept for Westerns and completely rejected by people who follow religion like Christianity and Judaism, but if we meditate about it, it may not seem so unlikely, and that people can, therefore, remember experiences from one or more past lives.

For example, when you were 10 years old, your body and mind were derived from the body and mind you had when you were 9. The body and mind you have at 9 years of age are derived from the body and mind you had at 8, 7, 6, 5, and so on, down to infancy, and even prior to your birth. Studies have shown that babies can even hear sounds and listen to music while they are still inside their mother.

If you have ever had any dealings with a newborn baby or puppy, you will know that they have a ‘personality of their very own from the moment they are born. Where do John or Mary’s likes and dislikes come from? A tendency in a past life?

Why do some dogs love to play ball, and others can’t be bothered? A tendency in a past life. This is an important point because it can also help you to explain the very strange thoughts that might pop into your head as you are meditating, things you can’t even imagine ever having thought. There is no reason to be ashamed of them.

They arise because of tendencies in previous lives. It is a question of what you do with the precious human life you have now that can help cut the cycle of suffering and negative thoughts and replace them with the scientific benefits of meditation such as a positive, peaceful mind that will benefit all.

The Link Between Meditation and Your Body

When we experience stress every day, it causes physical damage to our bodies. Meditation could be the answer to this problem. Meditation affects the body in the opposite way that stress does. Not only it calms down the body, but it also helps the body to repair itself and prevents new damages to the body too. So what is the link between the scientific benefits of meditation and your body?

Meditation can reverse your stress response and thus protecting you from the effects of chronic stress. According to research which compared a meditating group to a non-meditating group, they found that the nonmeditating group has worse stress responses such as high blood pressure, pain syndromes, and other conditions compared to the meditating group. Experts have said that any condition caused or worsened by stress can be alleviated through meditation.

When you are meditating, you are actually relaxing your body. This helps decrease metabolism, lowers blood pressure and it also improves heart rate, breathing, and brain waves. You start using oxygen more efficiently and you also sweat less. When you do it daily, your immune functions start improving. Once your mind is cleared of its stress, your creativity also increases.

In people who are meditating, brain scans have shown that there is an increase in activity in areas that control metabolism and heart rate. Buddhist monks have shown that the scientific benefits of meditation produce long-lasting changes in brain activity areas involved in memory, attention, learning, and perception.

Meditation also helps ward off illness and infections. It is an immune booster. When you are relaxed, you are less prone to suffering from infectious diseases. Whereas for stressed people, their bodies are already physically damaged and their immune function is already low, so it does not take much to get them sick.

Although meditation is a little difficult to start, it is not difficult to learn. All you need is practice. Over time, you will be able to meditate properly, and to clear your mind, you too will be able to enjoy the benefits that meditation has to offer.

Meditation Using Your Body And Brain

There is constant two-way communication going on between your body and your brain. Do you remember a time when you may have thought of something that was just terrible or maybe you had a “sinking feeling” in your stomach area? That is the kind of communication that goes on between your brain and your body. Meditation can help relax your mind so it can help train your body to relax and your brain to be clear.

Recent research on the scientific benefits of meditation has found that not only does your brain communicate with your cells, but your cells will also communicate with your brain and also with other parts of your body. In fact, a scientist has recently discovered that we think with not only our brain but our bodies as well. Meditation can help us to also understand our brain. It is not inaccurate to look at your entire body as being part of your brain.

That may be a new fact that may startle you, but do not reject it. Many scientists are now starting to believe that we are actually a “body-brain”. You can communicate with your body and brain through meditation.

A key part of your body’s incredible communication system involves your cells’ receptors. This means every call in your body can have millions of receptors on its face, and each cell has perhaps seventy different types of receptors.

While meditating as I learned more I discovered that in the early 1970s, Candace Pert, PhD.D, was the first scientist to prove that the existence of these receptors with her own discovery of the opiate receptor. These receptor molecules float on the cell’s oily outer part of the membrane and also have roots that can reach deep inside the cell.

I’m sure that Dr. Pert had to do a lot of meditating as she wrote her wonderful book The Molecules Of Emotion, Dr. Pert says that “the life of a cell, what it is up to at any moment, is determined by which receptors are on its surface, and whether those receptors are occupied by ligands or not.

A ligand is described as a small molecule that will bind itself to a cellular receptor. Still using mediation to keep my mind clear I learned that there are three chemical types of ligands. They are the neurotransmitters, the steroids, and the ones that we are most interested in at this time, the peptides. According to Dr.Pert, as many as 95 percent of all ligands may be peptides.

The receptors and their ligands have come to be seen as “information molecules’- the basic units of a language that are used by cells throughout the organism to communicate across systems such as the endocrine, neurological, gastrointestinal, and even the immune system.” I would say as much knowledge as Dr.Pert has on this subject meditation would be what kept her mind in focus.

A positive, peaceful mind is the main goal of all meditation, but there are different methods of scientific benefits of meditation that strive to attain different ultimate goals. Let’s look briefly at some of the most common meditation challenges you are likely to encounter, and the ultimate goal of each in the next lesson.

CLICK HERE for Lesson 8 to begin exploring the different types of meditation each also having its own ultimate goal to be achieved.

by Don Weyant/Meditation Life Skills

How To Do Meditation At Home Step-by-Step Guide – Lesson 9

Lesson 9 of 12: How To Do Meditation At Home: The Main Elements of A Meditation Practice at Home

Learning how to do meditation at home isn’t always easy or even peaceful. But it has truly amazing benefits, and you can start today, and continue meditating for the rest of your life.

Learning how to do meditation at home you need to understand the different types of meditation that may include different aspects to help you meditate.

These are the basic elements to get you started developing your own meditation practice at home. This is something you can easily do, just be sure you create your version of meditation practice.

Present Sence Mindfulness Meditation Method

With this technique, you focus on what you see in front of you. In other words, you’re going to be “meditating” or “practicing mindfulness” with your eyes wide open. You’re just working with your awareness. You’re training your awareness on one thing and one thing alone.

Steps to Present Sense Mindfulness Method

The first step is to practice the breathing patterns that you learned in the previous lessons. Focus on your breathing until you achieve a sense of relaxation. You do this with your eyes wide open.

You can do this in a room with no other people, but there are objects in the room. You do this with your eyes open. Ideally, you shouldn’t do this in any place where there are loud noises or music.

Next, you’re going to focus on an object in front of you. It can be a tree, a park bench, it can be a house. It doesn’t really matter. What’s important is that you put all your focus on that one item alone.

The key is to look at that item. You’re not out to enjoy it, you’re not out to judge it, you’re definitely not out to analyze it. Instead, you’re just looking at it. The key here is to see clearly. You’re going to basically be looking at all the details.

It’s not like you’re searching for something. Instead, your job is to just take it all in. It is kind of like taking a very thorough, high-resolution snapshot of that item that you’ve chosen to look at.

Next, once you have determined that you’ve seen all there is to see about the object, the next step is to pay attention to what that object would smell like, taste like, feel like in terms of texture, and what would it sound like. In other words, you sense it in 3-dimensions. You take it in with all your senses. This enables you to lose your focus on everything else.

When you do this, your mind is being filled with the stimuli of that object and that object alone. You have no space left for stuff you have to worry about at the office. You have no mental resources left for that time when your best friend stabbed you in the back or did something that made you hold a grudge for a long time.

All that stuff gets pushed out. Instead, you’re just cramming all the sensory data that you are willfully taking in based on that object that you have chosen in front of you. This enables you to lose focus on everything else and focus on that thing in front of you. This enables you to reset how you normally focus on things in your life.

The reason why you’re so stressed out is that you’re hanging on for dear life onto so many different things, and they layer on top of each other. And at the end of the day, all this willpower and this mental energy are just basically wasted because you’re hanging on to so much stuff.

When you practice this meditative technique, you push a reboot button for your mind and let go of all that stuff that you’re clinging to. And instead, you just fill it with this stuff that you take in, and that you flush out.

Eventually, this leads to mental hygiene because you will develop the mental discipline to zero in on an issue or a set of data for however long it takes to produce; let’s say at work or in an argument or even dealing with a relationship, and then let go.

VIDEO: How To Do Meditation At Home For Beginners

In this comprehensive guide, we will cover exactly: where to meditate, how to meditate, what to do with your mind, how long to do it for, and even how long before you start seeing benefits.

You might struggle a bit at first, but consistency and practice will definitely help you become better at it. Learn meditation at home using these few tips, then make it your own by adjusting some of the measures we will talk about.

You may also want to join a local meditation group for support and expansion of your practice. These may vary depending on the type of meditation you are doing, or who is teaching the meditation class. Find what works for you and keeps you motivated to learn how to do meditation at home in some form every day. Above all, enjoy your meditation journey.

Starting with short sessions in learning how to do meditation at home also helps you to gain enough momentum to sustain you in the long run. It gives you the drive to continue meditating, especially after experiencing a deeper sense of calmness and wellness. As many meditation experts suggest, the quality, not the quantity of your meditation is crucial when beginning.

Meditation Music: What Kind of Music You Should Play When Meditating

One of the deadliest diseases and considered to be the number of killer diseases in the United States is heart disease. In fact, a recent survey has found that heart diseases kill more people than car accidents in the United States alone. As you can see, you have every right to be concerned about your health in order for you to live a happier and healthier life.

Heart diseases are mainly caused by eating fatty foods and lack of exercise. However, you also have to consider the fact that stress is also one of the main contributors to high blood pressure as well as heart diseases. This is why working all the time without adequate rest is not recommended. It is important for the body to rest in order for it to function properly and remain healthy. However, some people disregard the rest because they have to work in order to meet their daily needs.

This kind of pressure is too much for the heart and body. It is also too much for the mind where it cannot function well enough that it impairs your way of thinking. Without adequate rest, you will tend to get moody all the time and lose your efficiency at work.

One of the best ways to relax your mind and body is through sleeping. However, you have to consider that you only sleep once a day and sometimes, you lack sleep because of work. So, the next best thing to sleep is by meditating. Meditation has been around for thousands of years. However, recent studies have found that meditation is beneficial to the mind and body.

In fact, research was made on sleeping and meditation. The scanners have found that the brain is more relaxed in meditation than in sleeping. There is less activity in the brain when you meditate. This means that you will be able to fully relax your mind and also your body and keep it fresh all day long.

Usually, meditation requires a quiet room to practice meditation. However, studies have found that soft meditation music can also help in meditating. People who don’t normally achieve full meditation in a quiet room were introduced to soft and calm music. The research was a success. It states that music can indeed help in meditation and it is now being introduced in meditation classes all over the United States as a helpful tool in meditation.

Ambient meditation music can be downloaded for free over the internet. You will hear soft and relaxing music that will enable you to meditate properly. Meditation music can also help you to go to sleep as well. Another use for meditation music is for sex. It has been found that certain meditation music enhances the sexual atmosphere and gets both partners in the mood for sex.

As you can see, meditation music can be used for how to do meditation at home and for different purposes. If you want to relax and meditate, choose a relaxing, quiet environment, play your music and start meditating. You will see that it will increase your chances of relaxing through meditation.

The most common features of meditating and learning how to meditate at home include:

A nice environment free from distractions

Find a corner of your home you can set aside for meditation, one that is free from distractions like the TV, computer, and so on. Switch off your cell phone. One of the best ways to meditate at home is to find a quiet place away from noise distractions.

Pick a time that’s convenient for you, particularly early morning as the sun rises. This time of day is generally peaceful and devoid of distractions. It’s also crucial to find a comfortable sitting position.

While some meditators like sitting in the lotus position, you needn’t do this. You can sit on a meditation cushion, a pillow, or even a couch, so long as you feel comfortable and you can sit up straight.

Learning how to do meditation at home isn’t hard – but it is very important to sit straight and ensure your spine is erect. Your neck and shoulders should be relaxed, and your eyes could either be open or shut throughout the meditation session.

A Comfortable Position For Meditating

You can practice meditation whether you’re sitting, lying down, walking, or in other positions or activities.

Just try to be physically comfortable when learning how to do meditation at home so you can get the most mentally out of your meditation. Keep the spine straight.

Focused Attention One Of The Most Important Elements

Focusing your attention is generally one of the most important elements of meditation. Focusing your attention is what helps free your mind from the many distractions that cause stress and worry, and the chaotic thoughts, or ‘monkey mind’ that can prevent you from meditating deeply.

The first step should be to comprehend the reason you want to learn how to do meditation at home. During meditation, you concentrate on a particular focus: your breathing technique. This helps to give you overall peace of mind, encouraging you to appreciate those things you normally take for granted. Your meditation goal could be to become more aware of your thoughts and feelings.

The most common thing to focus on is your breath going in and out. You can also focus your attention on a specific object, image, or mantra.

Focusing On Your Breathing Technique

The best way to learn how to do meditation at home is by focusing on your breathing technique. Become very aware of your breath when you inhale and exhale; use the breath as an anchor for your mind.

Different thoughts will pop into your mind – just acknowledge their presence and continue focusing on your breathing. Your breathing should be deep, even-paced breathing, using the muscles in your diaphragm area to expand and contract the lungs.

This gentle but powerful form of breathing allows you to take in more oxygen, sending oxygen-rich blood to all parts of the body. It also allows you to breathe more efficiently, so it is ideal for anyone with respiratory issues such as allergies, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Now that you know about the main element of how to do meditation at home for any beginner’s meditation practice, it’s time to meditate, it’s all ahead in our next lesson.

CLICK HERE for lesson 10, ” Six Easy Meditation Practices for Beginners with Videos”, are you ready to go?

by Don Weyant/Meditation Life Skills

7 Powerful Different Types Of Meditation: Lesson 8

Lesson 8 of 12: There are many different types of meditation, each striving to focus, calm, and improve the mind, but each also has its own ultimate goal to be achieved.

In this lesson on the different types of meditation, we will discuss several of the most common that you are likely to find in teaching centers in your area if you live in a reasonably sized town.

Don’t let that stop you if you live in a small town, find a meditation group, or ask for help in meditation forums or Facebook groups on meditation.

How can you change what you believe when the experiences you have had have convinced you otherwise? The simple answer to that is to create a new experience.

The best way for you to get that new experience is to meditate on how you can change the way you respond to what happens. The new response will create new results, which you will then experience it as a new reality.

We will also focus on forms of meditation you can practice on your own easily. You might eventually wish to do more research online, or via books.

We will discuss each of these different types of meditation in turn:

• Counting Your Breath Method
• Guided imagery
• Mindfulness
• Mantra
• Transcendental Meditation (TM)
• Zen meditation
• Tibetan Buddhist meditation

Preparing for the “Counting Your Breath” Method

If you practice these different types of meditation long enough, you can achieve a very deep and abiding sense of inner peace. It’s fairly straightforward. There are really no “moving parts.” It’s not complicated at all.

First, you need to find the right spot. Generally speaking, you should do this in an area where you’re not going to be disturbed. There should be no distractions in terms of what you can see, hear, smell, taste, touch.

It should be a place that will be only available to you for around 10-15 minutes. It doesn’t really take all that long, but you have to be in the right spot for a long enough period of time for this meditative technique to benefit you.

Second, you’re going to close your eyes. This is a technique that you cannot do with your eyes open. Remember, we’re basically going to avoid any kind of distractions. These distractions can be seen, heard, smelled, tasted, and touched. No distractions. So you close your eyes, and you just focus on one thing and one thing alone.

Third, focus only on your breath. How are you going to focus on your breath? Well, you’re not going to focus on it by feeling it or hearing it. Instead, you’re going to “watch it.” In other words, you turn your “mental camera” to your breath. You imagine yourself seeing yourself breathe in and breathe out.

The key here is to feel it with your body and see it in your mind’s eye. Eventually, these two sensations will line up. So it diverts your attention from the stuff going through your mind as well as the stimuli that your body is picking up. Instead, everything is focused on your breath. Your conscious attention is focused solely on your breath.

You breathe in slowly, and you breathe out slowly. Everything is focused on the area of your body where the breath is coming in and going out. The key here is to not control your breath. The key is to not be self-conscious. Instead, you’re just paying attention to this natural flow.

When you feel that there’s a strain in your lungs, you’re doing it wrong. It means you’re being self-conscious. It means that you’re trying to force things. This should not be forced. It is actually effortless.

You’re just basically turning that mental camera that you have from obsessing about all these stresses or drama happening in your life to just focusing on your breath.

That’s all it will be focused on. And if you keep this up long enough, you will become very, very relaxed. It leads to a tremendous amount of inner peace. However, let me tell you, in the beginning, it’s going to be quite difficult. You might even feel bored. You might even feel like you’re wasting your time. It’s because this is something new.

Your mind is not used to thinking this way. After all, your mind has grown accustomed to thinking about a thousand different things at once. It’s used to using up a tremendous amount of energy.

Now, you’re using very little energy and you’re focusing on only one thing. As you can imagine, that takes some getting used to. The good news is, it’s worth doing because the calm and relaxation that you get will be priceless.

Guided Imagery Meditation

Sometimes called visualization, these different types of meditation methods encourage you to form mental images of places or situations you find relaxing.

You try to use as many senses as possible, such as smells, sights, sounds, and textures, to calm the mind, and focus it. It is a good way to get into a more meditative state. Its goal is relaxation and peace. It can be done with mindfulness meditation.

Mindfulness is the psychological process of purposely bringing one’s attention to experiences occurring in the present moment without judgment, which one can develop through the practice of meditation and through other training.

Mindfulness Meditation

This type of meditation is based on being mindful, that is, having an increased awareness of and acceptance of living in the present moment. It means paying attention to what you are doing in the present, rather than living on autopilot.

Really taste your food or focusing on washing a dish would be two examples of different types of meditation. You will observe your thoughts as well without judging them. Its goal is to focus the mind and become more familiar with it. You can also focus on sensory input as different types of meditation to calm and focus the mind.

Mantra Meditation

In this type of meditation, you silently repeat a calming word, thought or phrase to prevent distracting thoughts and to awaken the power within.

The word OM, for example, has a vibrational quality that is supposed to help increase your wisdom and connection with the cosmos.

The goal of these different types of meditation is to focus more and eliminate distractions in order to achieve deeper and deeper levels of concentration and awareness. The goal is a connection and higher wisdom, such as the wisdom of enlightenment.

Transcendental Meditation (TM)

Transcendental meditation was founded in the 1950s and is basically a form of mantra meditation. Lessons are expensive and there is no evidence of any special benefit to it compared with any other form of meditation (especially since most of them are free to learn).

The Beatles and other pop stars made it popular, but popular does not always mean useful and effective. Save your money, or invest $1,000 or so dollars on some meditation retreats, books, and classes for beginners instead.

Zen Meditation

In Zen or Zazen meditation, there two main different types of meditation practices. They are breathing meditation and mindfulness meditation in order to be present and aware. The goal is inner peace.

Background of Zen Meditation Technique (Zazen):

This was the meditation technique of Lord Buddha – I should have to say no more in order to motivate you to try this meditation.

It is one of the most widely used meditations in the world and is the heart of Zen Buddhist teachings. If one was to make a shortlist of the best meditation techniques, Zazen would most certainly make the top 10 list.

Tibetan Buddhist Meditation

Tibetan Buddhism is the purest form of different types of meditation practice of Buddhism. Because Tibet is such an isolated country that the same practices have been done continuously for centuries with little outside influence.

Skilled meditators from India traveled there to teach those who wished to how to follow the path to enlightenment. The Dalai Lama is the political and spiritual leader of the Tibetan people and as a monk is an accomplished meditator.

You don’t need to be a monk, however, to get great results. Once you quiet down your mind chatter, you can focus on a certain topic in order to understand it better.

Different types of meditations on important topics such as reincarnation, loving-kindness, and the ultimate truth, emptiness, lead to Nirvana, that is, enlightenment, the freedom from suffering. Nirvana is not a place, it is a state of mind. An enlightened being can benefit everyone because they are so kind and compassionate.

The simpler forms of these different types of meditation are easy to master. You don’t have to be a Buddhist to get a great deal out of them. But you will be following instructions from the books written by the historical Buddha, (600 BCE) his 84,000 Sutra teachings.

The Buddha was a noble Indian prince who had loving parents, a beautiful wife, and a wonderful son. He lived in a magnificent palace and was wealthy beyond imagining.

But one day he saw a dead body. He realized then that no matter how powerful a prince he was, he couldn’t stop suffering, aging, sickness, and death.

He decided then to seek enlightenment in order to end suffering. He meditated for 7 years under the most difficult conditions and achieved enlightenment. He then taught his methods to others, including his own son.

The story is an inspirational one whether you take it to be actual fact or not. It is important to note that Buddhists don’t worship Buddha, they try to emulate him.

There are many enlightened beings pictured in temples, such as Medicine Buddha, or the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri, but again, they are not worshipped as gods, they are role models to remind us of what we need to work on in our lives.

However, some consider these different types of meditation and the number of Buddhas and symbols used for teachings ‘idolatry’. In fact, some people are shocked to see what looks like a Star of David used in Judaism, and even worse, a swastika in Buddhist pictures and on the chests of images of Buddha.

The 6-pointed star is the symbol of the purest of the Buddhas, Vajrayogini, the ‘indestructible practitioner’. The swastika is a symbol of reincarnation and everlasting life, which is why certain political parties used it as their own symbol of power.

If you think of Buddhism and these different types of meditation as a science of the mind, however, then you won’t have to get hung up on ‘religious’ issues. There are around 20 main Tibetan meditations that can be done in rotation, to improve your different types of meditation skills, and to give you a clearer grasp of emptiness.

A deep understanding of emptiness is believed to be the conduit to enlightenment, a peaceful mind of wisdom that seeks to benefit all living beings.

Spiritual Growth: The Spiritual Challenge Of Modern Times

To grow spiritually in a world defined by power, money, and influence is a Herculean task.

Modern conveniences such as electronic equipment, gadgets, and tools as well as entertainment through television, cell phones, magazines, and the web have predisposed us to confine our attention mostly to physical needs and wants.

As a result, our concepts of self-worth and self-meaning are muddled. How can we strike a balance between the material and spiritual aspects of our lives?

To Grow Spiritually Is To Look Inward

Introspection goes beyond recalling the things that happened in a day, week, or month. You need to look closely and reflect on your thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and motivations. Periodically examining your experiences, the decisions you make, the relationships you have, and the things you engage in provide useful insights on your life goals, on the good traits you must sustain and the bad traits you have to discard.

Moreover, it gives you clues on how to act, react, and conduct yourself in the midst of any situation. Like any skill, different types of meditation and introspection can be learned; all it takes is the courage and willingness to seek the truths that lie within you. Here are some pointers when you introspect: be objective, be forgiving of yourself, and focus on your areas for improvement.

To Grow Spiritually Is To Develop Your Potentials

Religion and science have differing views on the different types of meditation of the human spirit. Religion views people as spiritual beings temporarily living on Earth, while science views the spirit as just one dimension of an individual. Mastery of the self is a recurring theme in both Christian (Western) and Islamic (Eastern) teachings.

The needs of the body are recognized but placed under the needs of the spirit. Beliefs, values, morality, rules, experiences, and good works provide the blueprint to ensure the growth of the spiritual being. In Psychology, realizing one’s full potential is to self-actualize.

Maslow identified several human needs: physiological, security, belongingness, esteem, cognitive, aesthetic, self-actualization, and self-transcendence. James earlier categorized these needs into three: material, emotional, and spiritual.

When you have satisfied the basic physiological and emotional needs, spiritual or existential needs come next. Achieving each need leads to the total development of the individual. Perhaps the difference between these two religions and psychology is the end of self-development: Christianity and Islam see that self-development is a means toward serving God, while psychology view that self-development is an end by itself.

To Grow Spiritually Is To Search For Meaning

Different types of meditation in religions that believe in the existence of God such as Christianism, Judaism, and Islam suppose that the purpose of human life is to serve the Creator of all things. Several theories in psychology propose that we ultimately give meaning to our lives.

Whether we believe that life’s meaning is pre-determined or self-directed, to grow in spirit is to realize that we do not merely exist.

We do not know the meaning of our lives at birth, but we gain knowledge and wisdom from our interactions with people and from our actions and reactions to the situations we are in. As we discover this meaning, there are certain beliefs and values that we reject and affirm.

Our lives have a purpose. This purpose puts all our physical, emotional, and intellectual potentials into use; sustains us during trying times; and gives us something to look forward to—a goal to achieve, a destination to reach. A person without purpose or meaning is like a drifting ship at sea.

To Grow Spiritually Is To Recognize Interconnections

Religions stress the concept of our relatedness to all creation, life, and inanimate. Thus we call other people “brothers and sisters” even if there are no direct blood relations. Moreover, deity-centered religions such as Christianity and Islam speak of the relationship between humans and a higher being.

On the other hand, different types of meditation and science expound on our link to other living things through the evolution theory. This relatedness is clearly seen in the concept of ecology, the interaction between living and non-living things. In psychology, connectedness is a characteristic of self-transcendence, the highest human need according to Maslow.

Recognizing your connection to all things makes you more humble and respectful of people, animals, plants, and things in nature. It makes you appreciate everything around you. It moves you to go beyond your comfort zone and reach out to other people, and become stewards of all other things around you.

Growth is a process thus to grow in spirit is a day-to-day encounter. We win some, we lose some, but the important thing is that we learn, and from this knowledge, further spiritual growth is made possible.

Now that you are aware of several of the main forms of these different types of meditation, it’s time to get a taste of meditation yourself. Let’s start with the main elements of meditation practice for beginners in our next lesson.