PRACTICE MEDITATION FOR A MENTAL BOOST

Learn to be calm and you will always be happy – Paramahansa Yogananda

Meditation is a practice that incorporates different techniques that help people focus their attention and achieve a heightened state of awareness. It's a technique that involves focusing your mind and eliminating the stream of jumbled thoughts that may be crowding your mind and causing stress. It has been shown to have a number of health benefits.

Meditation involves sitting in a relaxed position and clearing your mind or focusing your mind on one thought and clearing it of all others. You may focus on a sound, or on your breathing, counting, a mantra, or nothing.

It’s generally necessary to have at least five to twenty distraction-free minutes to spend, though meditation sessions can really be of any length. Longer meditation sessions tend to bring more significant benefits, but it is usually best to start slowly to maintain the practice in the long term. It is a boon to practice meditation to reduce or avoid stress. Your mind and body will be relaxed after this is over. Your day would seem to be a blessing and would be able to carry out your day’s work with much zeal and enthusiasm. It is a very simple exercise to practice as you can do it in the comfort of your home and at a time suitable for you.

When practicing meditation

• You use oxygen more efficiently.

• Your blood pressure normalizes.

• Your heart rate and breathing slow down.

• Your immune function improves.

• Your mind ages at a slower rate.

• Your mind clears and your creativity increases.

• You sweat less.

Before you decide to start on meditation there are a few considerations that you need to bear in mind for getting successful results.

· Consistency in practice is the first factor to be kept in mind before you embark on this tool. Every day you should try to take out scheduled time to meditate for all the days in a week or a specified number of days which should be followed consistently without fail. This can calm your body and mind to relax and feel at ease.

· Be Patient: meditation takes time to set in so it’s quite normal for the mind to wander and settle down. You may not be able to detach completely from thoughts but gradually the mind would get free from different types of attachments. The body is weak, but the mind is strong, so it would take control of the situations with time.

· Comfortable space: choose a comfortable space in your home and a posture to relax. It is advisable to have a sitting posture but if this posture is not giving you the comfort to meditate you may lie down and see if it's more relaxing and worthwhile.

· Focus: after selecting the posture to start, you must close your eyes and focus on your breathing, not to get distracted. You can observe the inhaling and exhaling process till your mind settle down. Some people find counting easier for the body to calm down.

· Guided meditation: you may also use recordings or apps to help you to start.

Types of meditation:

1. Mindfulness meditation: you pay attention to your thoughts as they pass through your mind without getting attached to them.

2. Spiritual meditation is used in most of the religious and spiritual traditions.

3. Focused meditation involves concentration using the five senses.

4. Movement meditation is good for people who find peace in action.

5. Mantra meditation uses a repetitive sound or word to clear the mind.

6. Transcendental meditation is a practice to quieten the mind.

7. Progressive relaxation or body scan is a practice to reduce tension in the body.

8. Visualization meditation is to focus on enhancing feelings of peace and calm by visualizing positive scenes or images.

Meditation is not free of side effects. Immediately after meditation, you may be vulnerable to suggestions and outside influences, so decisions should not be taken immediately after the practice. If it’s not bringing you the desired results, stop meditation and start with yoga, walking, or any other exercise. Meditation is not a device for solving serious emotional or psychological problems, for this professional help is advised.

Traditionally yogis and Buddhist monks did yoga first before meditating to release energy and prepare the body for restful meditation. Yoga can improve joint health and flexibility. Some yoga practices include meditation; in yoga nidra, the goal is a trance-like meditation sleep.

Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom – James Allen