I have been meditating, in some form or another, for about 45 years and I could not imagine my life without it. I set aside at least 20 minutes in the morning and again in the evening for meditation without fail. This practice gives me distance from my thoughts – the origination of most emotions – relaxation, mental clarity, an ability to focus, and, along with regular exercise and attention to diet, my good health at age 66.
What is Meditation?
Meditation is a process of stilling and balancing the mind. According to one medical dictionary, it is “a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritual growth.” The Cambridge dictionary defines it as “the act of giving your attention to only one thing, either as a religious activity or as a way of becoming calm and relaxed.”
Forms and Objectives of Meditation
There is a myriad of types and goals of meditation. Thousands of meditation practices are associated with various religions and spiritual traditions, some of which go back thousands of years.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi brought Transcendental Meditation to the West in the 60’s via the Beatles and Mia Farrow. This is a mantra, or sound meditation and is the form I learned in 1973 and practiced for many years. The purpose of Transcendental Meditation, or TM, is to bring relaxation, relief from stress and eventual enlightenment.
Vipassana Meditation, as taught by Goenka, is the technique originally taught by the Buddha, and which has been quietly and precisely passed on from teacher to disciple unchanged for 2500 years. Again, the goal is enlightenment, but the form is a way of scanning the body.
Mindfulness Meditation, advocated by Thich Nhat Hanh, is a Buddhist practice which has become popular in the West in the past 40 or so years. The goal here is increased awareness and acceptance of the present moment, without judgment. Also, clearer thinking, mental balance, alertness, and improved concentration. The meditation form is focusing on the breath.
Guided Meditation takes you on a journey, often to discover aspects of yourself, or to bring in increased energy.
Prayer is a form of meditation that connects you with a higher order organizing power in your life.
Surrender Meditation is a way of letting go whatever arises, be it thoughts, feelings, judgments, attachments. This type of meditation leads to prolonged states of bliss, or at least contentment and connection with Self.
I have practiced each of these types of meditation at various times in my life, to my own profound benefit.
Benefits of Meditation
Physical Health
Significant research has been conducted on the results of Transcendental Meditation. Findings show meditation controls stress hormones. ‘Levels of cortisol and adrenaline are often found to be lower in long-term meditators’. Meditation produces ‘profound relaxation, and significant changes in breathing, heartbeat and blood pressure’. As well, “TM meditators visited doctors and entered hospitals only half as often as did those in the control group. Across-the-board reductions were seen in thirteen major health categories, including more than 80 percent less heart disease and more than 50 percent less cancer than in the controls. Significantly, the meditators in age group 65 and older showed the most improvement. (Dr. Deepak Chopra, Ageless Body, Timeless Mind) . Meditation also reduces muscle tension and increases disease immunity.
Relaxation and Rest
During meditation, the mind remains alert, while the body receives profound rest. UCLA physiologist, R. Ketih Wallace, showed through his research that Transcendental Meditation subjects “…went into a state of rest twice as deep as deep sleep. Moreover, they did so very quickly, usually within 10 minutes after shutting their eyes, compared to the four to six hours it takes us to reach our deepest relaxation in sleep.” (Dr. Deepak Chopra, Ageless Body, Timeless Mind) . Researchers who studied meditating monks “demonstrated that they were able to reduce their metabolic rate by 20 percent, something usually achieved only after four or five hours of sleep.” (Lissa Rankin, MD, Mind Over Medicine).
Meditation is also proven to reduce insomnia and improve the quality of sleep.
Anti-Aging
Wallace also found that meditators who had been practicing meditation regularly had an average biological age of five to twelve years younger than their chronological age, based on markers of blood pressure, near-point vision and hearing threshold depending on how many years they had been meditating. Meditation improves body metabolism (which is an area that shuts down with chronic stress)
Mental Acuity and Function
Meditation aids in alertness, balance of mind, composure, and calm (Nishe Lilia Diu, Is Meditation the New Anti-Depressant? National Post, Jan 13, 2014.)
Mental and Emotional Health
Meditation helps with feelings of overwhelm, anxiety and depression. John Gartner, a psychologist based in New York and Baltimor, “expected to see positive results from meditation, both in the literature and his clinical work. “But I was taken aback that meditation was as effective as medication or psychotherapy for every disorder we treat.” Now, no patients come through his door without receiving instruction in meditation. (He specializes in treating bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder). He has found that meditation gives his patients distance from their thoughts, so they can pay less attention to them. Meditation also reduces the power of the inner voices that plague schizophrenics (and all of us, actually). It stops the cycle of obsessive rumination for those suffering from anxiety and depression.” (The Omnibus Cure – Psychology Today June 2016)
Adrian Wells, Professor of Psychopathology at Manchester University, says, “It doesn’t surprise me at all that mindfulness [meditation] performs as well or better than medication” in treating anxiety and depression.
Meditation fosters an increase in natural anti-depressants, like endorphins and melatonin.
Creativity and Intelligence
Greater awareness of our thinking and emotional processes automatically reveals our inner talents and latent creativity.
Spiritual Growth
The way to spiritual growth is to embark on the inner journey. Meditation is key to this journey. Lasting peace (the ‘peace that passeth all understanding’) is only found through self-realization.
Quality of Life
Meditation enables one to be centered in oneself, and not be at the mercy of overwhelming emotions such as worry, jealousy, fear anger and guilt. Once you are centered in the core of the Self, these emotions no longer are in control.
Relationships
As we learn more about our own mental and emotional fields, we garner greater empathy towards others. We all have an animal nature and shadow aspects. Once we truly understand why we think, feel and behave the way we do, we have a much greater understanding of others. We are slower to judge and quicker to forgive. Relationships are much easier when we are not trying to get others to conform to our views of how they should behave. When we approach others with the compassion and understanding that we have learned to give ourselves, our relationships are transformed. Meditation will give us this insight.
Presence
If you are more mindful, you are more present. Your focus will shift from guilt and regret (focus on the past) and worry (focus on the future) to enjoyment of what is going on around you in the present moment. This will lead to increased connection and engagement with people and situations.
Enhanced Energy
When you are not fighting with your mind and emotions, trying to fend off unwanted, scary thoughts and feelings, and learn to simply accept whatever is present, you free up a tremendous amount of energy. This energy can then be used for creativity, fostering relationships, or whatever pursuit is of interest.
Meditation – Ultimate Intent
“The intent of meditation is detachment, especially detachment from the notion that thoughts are “mine” or represent “me”. Witnessing or observing [the mind] does not focus on any idea or image, but allows them to flow by without involvement. One then realizes that the thought images are occurring spontaneously and the thought stream is impersonal. The thoughts are not “mine’” as there is no “me” involved. The purpose of meditation is to transcend the mind and its mental activities and limited perceptions, thereby transcending duality and becoming increasingly aware of Oneness. In the end, it will be found that the sacrifice of letting go of the mind is actually the greatest gift one can receive.” David R. Hawkins, M.D. Ph.D.
Meditation truly has the potential to transform your life.
Alison Etter MEd, RPC, RTC
Counsellor and Healer, Breakthrough Counselling and Coaching
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