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A B C of Meditation
Meditation
Introduction |
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The use of Meditation
for healing is not new. Meditative techniques are the product of diverse
cultures and peoples around the world. It has been rooted in the
traditions of the world's great religions. In fact, practically all
religious groups practice meditation in one form or another. The value
of Meditation to alleviate suffering and promote healing has been known
and practiced for thousands of years.
Of the religions that use meditation, perhaps Buddhism, practiced widely
in eastern and central Asia, is the best known. To Buddhists, the
practice of meditation is essential for the cultivation of wisdom and
compassion and for understanding reality. Buddhists believe that our
ordinary consciousness is both limited and limiting. Meditation makes it
possible to live life to the full spectrum of our conscious and
unconscious possibilities.
In spite of its rich history and traditions, it is only during the past
three decades that scientific study has focused on the clinical effects
of meditation on health. During the 1960s, reports reached the West of
yogis and meditation masters in India who could perform extraordinary
feats of bodily control and altered states of consciousness. These
reports captured the interest of Western researchers studying
self-regulation and the possibility of voluntary control over the
autonomic nervous system. At the same time, new refinements in
scientific instrumentation made it possible to duplicate and
substantiate some of these reports at medical research institutes.
Health care professionals who were often dissatisfied with the side
effects of drug treatments for stress-related disorders embraced
meditation as a valuable tool for stress reduction, and today both
patients and physicians enjoy the health benefits of regular meditation
practice.
He discovered by studying various yogis and longtime meditators that the
meditation process counteracted the effects of the sympathetic nervous
system-the one that wants to fight or flee. Whereas the sympathetic
system dilates the pupils and gets the heart rate, respiration, and
blood pressure up, the parasympathetic system, activated when we
meditate, does just the opposite. Muscle tension decreases, blood
pressure drops, and for some extraordinary practitioners, even
temperature and basal metabolism rates drop during a prolonged
meditation. Oxygen needs of the body are reduced when you are in a
highly relaxed state, and brain waves change from the busy beta-waves to
the blissful alpha waves.
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| What Is Meditation? |
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There are various
types of meditation - prayer is probably the best known, but there is
also TM (Transcendental Meditation), mindfulness meditation, and from
the Eastern tradition, Zen meditation, Buddhist meditation, and Taoist
meditation.
The meditation encompasses such diverse methods as:
Formal sitting in which the body is held immobile and the attention
controlled. e.g., Zazen, Vipassana
Expressive practices , in which the body is let free and anything can
happen. e.g., Siddha Yoga, the Latihan, the chaotic meditation of
Rajneesh.
The practice of going about one's daily round of activities mindfully.
e.g., Mahamudra, Shikan Taza, Gurdjieff's "self-remembering".
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All these practices
have one thing in common - they all focus on quietening the busy mind.
The intention is not to remove stimulation but rather to direct your
concentration to one healing element - one sound, one word, one image,
or one's breath. When the mind is "filled" with the feeling of calm and
peace, it cannot take off on its own and worry, stress out, or get
depressed.
Meditation can be broadly defined as any activity that keeps the
attention pleasantly anchored in the present moment. When the mind is
calm and focused in the present, it is neither reacting to memories from
the past nor being preoccupied with plans for the future, two major
sources of chronic stress known to impact health. Meditation, helps to
keep us from identifying with the movies of the mind.
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| Psychological Benefits of
Meditation: |
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Meditation can help
most people feel less anxious and more in control. The awareness that
meditation brings can also be a source of personal insight and
self-understanding.
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