Evans Meditation Technique

Meditation:
The Guide
To Self
Enlightenment

By
Mike Evans
www.TheMikeEvans.com
(212) 501-2910

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Table of Contents
Meditation:..........................................................................................................................1
Table of Contents................................................................................................................3
Introduction.........................................................................................................................5
Chapter 1: Exactly What Is Meditation Anyway?..............................................................7
The Stages of the Mind.............................................................................................................7
Stage One: The Normal Mind................................................................................................................8
Stage Two: Concentration....................................................................................................................10
Stage Three: Final Meditation.............................................................................................................11
Understanding Contemplation..............................................................................................13
Chapter 2: Wait! What Will Meditation Do For Me?....................................................16
Benefits You Experience........................................................................................................17
Chapter 3: The Types Of Meditation................................................................................19
Concentrative Meditation......................................................................................................20
Breathing..............................................................................................................................................20
Mindfulness Meditation.........................................................................................................22
Chapter 4: What Happens During Meditation?...............................................................50
The Physical Reaction............................................................................................................53
Are You Sleeping?..................................................................................................................55
Chapter 5: Are You Ready To Meditate Yet?...................................................................56
A Word Of Warning...............................................................................................................57
A Bit Of Background..............................................................................................................58
Activities For Meditation.....................................................................................................................59
Get Yourself Ready................................................................................................................60
Chapter 6: Elements Required For Meditation To Happen............................................61
Location ..................................................................................................................................63
The Right Position..................................................................................................................64
Semi Poised..........................................................................................................................................65
Poised Posture......................................................................................................................................65
Lotus Posture........................................................................................................................................66
Passiveness In Your Attitude.................................................................................................66
Your Meditation Object.......................................................................................................................70
Put It Together........................................................................................................................72
Chapter 7: Meditating In A Simple Form First..............................................................78
Simple Mediation....................................................................................................................79

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Chapter 8: Other Methods Of Mediation ........................................................................83
Walking Meditation................................................................................................................83
Transcendental Meditation....................................................................................................85
Mindfulness Meditation.........................................................................................................87
There Are More......................................................................................................................91
Journey Meditation...............................................................................................................................91
Sound Meditation.................................................................................................................................92
Conclusion.........................................................................................................................93

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Introduction

Have you tried meditation to solve your stress and health
problems? If you haven’t done so yet, now may be one of
the best times to make that experience a reality. Mediation
is one of the most sought after forms of stress relief and is
even recommended by many doctors.

Something that valuable is something that you should be
striving to learn. If you are someone that spends your
evenings worrying, stressing about all that needs to get done
and even feeling physically bad without being sick, then
meditation may be an ideal solution for you.

In meditation, you transform the way that your mind is
working. While you can’t say that it’s a simple process,
meditation is something that you can easily learn to do and
then use daily.

In fact, studies show that when you do allow yourself
(especially your mind) to meditate for just a few minutes
each day, you can reduce the stress levels you face
improving your quality of life. Indeed, lowering stress levels
also can improve your physical self.

In this book, you’ll learn how meditation can change your
life. It is merely a guide to get you started, though.

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Most individuals that are successful at meditation are those
that seek out resources locally to help them to learn the
process as well as to practice it. Meditating with others is
something that can be powerful to the individual. With more
and more meditation clinics and classes popping up around
the country, you are likely to find one relatively close to you.
But, first, you need to learn a bit more about how meditation
works and what it can do for you.

This book will prepare you to begin meditation and take you
into a world that far too many people don’t realize exists
with such benefits. If you are skeptical, there is nothing to
lose by investing a few minutes in learning this process. In
fact, you’ll find yourself striving to learn more once you have
just one or two sessions of meditation.

Learn to meditate alone or with friends. In either case,
you’ll find many different methods to select. More so, you
could be improving your health and well being. That’s worth
just a few minutes of your time!

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Chapter 1: Exactly What Is
Meditation Anyway?

Before you can begin practicing meditation you do need to
understand what it is and why you need to use this method
of relaxation. The brain is the primary tool that you’ll use to
define this process. But, you may not realize that when the
brain is in a “normal” state that it actually is very abnormal
in what it is doing.

To help you to understand meditation, we must first break
down the different stages in which the brain functions so
that you can see the state of mind that you are functioning
in most often.

The Stages of the Mind

There are three unique stages in the brain that depicts how
it is functioning at any one time. When you consider
meditation, only going through these three stages can
actually get to you achieve the serenity that you are after
with meditation.

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Stage One: The Normal Mind

In the “normal” state of mind, your mind is working in
various directions. It is functioning as it usually does which
means it is bouncing from one idea and thought to the next.
In fact, this is quite abnormal activity for the brain because it
needs to focus on a lesser amount of ideas if it is to be
successful in resolving problems.

Stimuli from all over the place are coming in at the brain.
When something new stimulates you mind, it moves from its
previous thought to the new one. Although you feel like you
are completely in control of yourself during this type of brain
function, you likely aren’t.

You have very little control over the way that you behave
and think during this type of situation. Not only do your
thoughts move from one thing to the next thing quickly, but
your physical being is doing the same thing too. Your
emotions follow suite, too.

An example of this type of brain activity can be as simple as
seeing a child playing. If you see that child while you are
driving, your mind goes from control of the vehicle to the
child. She’s cute, playing and riding her bike. Then, your
mind moves to thoughts from your own childhood. You feel
good and smile at the happy memories.

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Of course, it doesn’t always play out so innocently. You can
go through these same thought and emotional processes
with negative images too. Consider if that child was a
teenager, doing something that they shouldn’t be. Now, you
are wondering about your own children, what they are doing
that you don’t know about. And, your emotions follow you
too with thoughts that are fearful and tense.

In a negative situation, you are likely to become distracted
by the thoughts playing through your mind which then
directly impacts the way that you drive your vehicle.
Perhaps you run a red light or, you narrowly miss a car
accident.

As you can see, in your normal state of mind, your emotions
as well as your physical being are at stake. Each plays their
own role in the outcome of these events.

Often, stresses build up during this process and since it is
our “normal” state of mind, they pile on over time. You can
find yourself unable to concentrate on anything and overtime
you can have trouble balancing all that you have to do in
your everyday life.

For the most part, your “normal” way of thinking may be one
of the worst things that you can do for yourself.

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Stage Two: Concentration

When you enter into concentration, you enter into the first
state that will lead you to meditation. Yet, don’t confuse
concentration with meditation. It’s very much something
quite different.

During the second stage of meditation, you can begin to get
control of your mind. When you learn to keep yourself in
this type of mind frame, chances are good that you’ll
improve the quality of your life considerably.

In concentration, your goal seems simple but it actually quite
difficult to master to any amount of degree. You need to
concentrate on one sole thing or object.

To be successful, you need to keep your mind focused on
that one thing and not distracted by any type of diversion
that happens to spring up. Focus on it, without allowing
your mind to wander. It’s very difficult, actually.

During concentration, although the process of focusing on
one element is simple enough, the problem is the mind’s
ability to trick you back into its “normal” state of being. By
pulling off the actually concentration topic and focusing on
another, it pulls you back.

For example, if you need to concentrate on a paper for
school, you could be sitting down thinking and working.

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You’ll allow your mind to focus and relax on the topic at
hand. You think to yourself about the topic and can really
clearly see what it is.

Then, you think of what your teacher had to say about the
paper. That leads to thoughts of what your friend said next
to you while the teacher was talking. Within a matter of
minutes, you are thinking about something completely
different than the original thought.

The end result is that you are distracted so much so that you
are back at the “normal” stage of thinking, having
accomplished little in way of concentration. That’s not what
will help you.

The goal with concentration, though, is to realize what’s
happened. When you can realize that you’ve been distracted
and that your mind has fooled you into making its own
decisions then you can come back and actually concentrate.

When you can master the art of keeping your mind focused
and concentrating, you will experience a new type of
thinking. You’ll be able to relax more and you’ll be able to
actually feel better about life. That’s an amazing feeling!

Stage Three: Final Meditation

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In meditation, the third stage of the process, you enter a
completely different realm. Now, you are able to fully
concentrate on the object or thought that needs to be
accomplished without falling for any type of distraction.
Here, no distractions or mind tricks happen to you during the
process.

It’s a stage that you should strive for because it really can
offer you a new way of looking at things. In many ways,
you’ll be able to fully focus so much so that you can better
understand and educate yourself. You make better decisions
that are focused.

During concentration, your mind is only really concentrating
on the objects you present it in a minimal way. Distraction
breaks the continuously stream of concentrating thoughts.
This leaves you with having to recognize the problem and to
go back and change it.

In meditation, though, this is no longer the case. Now, you
are keeping an ongoing stream of thought moving. There’s
nothing breaking it and nothing that is able to pull your mind
from it. This is the ultimate experience in meditation
because of the amount of focus it provides you.

In an example of what meditation can do for you, consider
this. If you think about just one topic, over and over again,
anything and everything connected to that topic will come to

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you in one form or another. Let’s say that the word that you
use is that of love.

If you think of love in a meditation stage, you concentrate on
that one word which leads to other love terms. You love
something, you love someone, different types of love, and so
on. Eventually, you have connected virtually everyway
possible to love. You physically feel it, you emotionally feel
it. You have thought everything about it. And, eventually,
you have connected everything you can to love.

When you have achieved this type of meditation, you’ve
elevated yourself to a new enlightenment. You’ve gone far
beyond the simply level of concentration. Now, you have
entered the final stages of meditation which is called
contemplation. This part of the final stage of meditation is
the very best level of consciousness that your mind and body
can enter.

Although it takes some time to work through these various
processes to achieve this level of understanding, the end
result is well worth it.

Understanding Contemplation

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Contemplation is the final level of meditation. In this state
of mind, virtually anything and everything is possible. Yet,
not many can understand what contemplation is without
experiencing it.

During contemplation, you enter an entirely new world of
thought and mind. Instead of thinking about yourself and
your own problems, you are now connected with the entire
universe. Here, your body and your own mind are let go.
Now, you are experiencing a level of consciousness that
allows you to connect with the cosmos.

You realize now that you are part of a much grander scheme
of things. You know that you are just one small part of a
very large world. But, the key to contemplation is the ability
to become united with all of this.

When you obtain this highest level of meditation, you enter
into the state of Realization of Cosmic Consciousness. Now,
you have entered into a very enlightened, meaningful and
completely connected level.

Those that practice meditation know that this stage of being,
of being in the highest form of meditation is what you should
be experiencing. In fact, most believe it is something that
you are born with the need and ability to accomplish.

The process of meditation is rather drawn out, but each
stage in the game is something that must be fully

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understood if you are to find yourself experiencing all that it
can offer.

Look at the way that your mind works today, right now.
How does it feel? Are you thinking about this book, reading
it, but have the commercials from the television drawn you
in? Or, are the kids bellowing for you? Each time that you
face a distraction, your mind is pulled in another direction
making it nearly impossible for you to focus and to obtain
true meditation.

Yet, this is something that you can learn. In fact, it is
something that you are born with the ability to achieve and
even given the right to obtain. Allow yourself just a few
minutes a day to work towards total enlightenment with
meditation and you’ll find yourself in a completely different
frame of mind.

As a beginner, don’t let the process of meditation worry you.
The fact is that it is easy to understand and fully something
you can obtain.

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Chapter 2: Wait! What Will
Meditation Do For Me?

If explaining to you what medication is happens to not be
enough for you to dive right into it then consider what
meditation can do for you by what it does for others.
Meditation is something you should consider and these are
just a handful of reasons why.

The largest and most profound benefit of meditation is
reaching enlightenment through the Contemplation phase of
meditating. Achieving this allows you to become a whole
new person, one that has the ability to live a full and happy
life beyond that of what a person dealing with only “normal”
brain activity can.

You can learn to be more compassionate. You’ll learn how to
become a good person. You can learn to be more
understanding, more interesting, and more educated. You’ll
also become a person that is able to enjoy their life to the
fullest, knowing what is out there and what role they play in
that universe.

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When you can fully reach this state of being and of
consciousness, the fact is that you can transform yourself
and experience true Grace.

Benefits You Experience

In addition to this, there are additional benefits that can
come from meditation. Here are some of the many benefits
your experience.

• Meditation allows you to focus, allowing you to
accomplish your tasks in a better method as well as
faster.

• Meditation allows you to improve your level of stress.
By reducing stress, you will make better decisions and
fully handle problems effectively.

• Meditation allows you to communicate more effectively,
through more defined words that ultimately lead you to
a better realm.

• Meditation allows you to improve your health including
helps to improve heart conditions, cancer risks, high
blood pressure and plenty of other conditions. By
lowering stress levels on the body, you can heal faster
and more effectively from any of these experiences.

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• Meditation allows you to be a better friend and family
member. Through the dedication of those around you,
you all can become enlightened and therefore on a
higher realm of being.

• Meditation promotes health of the mind, too. By
allowing your mind to enter this improved state, you
can create for yourself an amazing of being, which
allows you to think clearer. It helps to keep your mind
sharp.

• Meditation allows you to become the real you, the one
that you want to be, rather than the person that is held
captive by the world around them. If you meditate,
you can learn quite a bit about yourself as well as the
world around you!

There are many more benefits to meditation. For each
person, this experience is going to be quite unique. If you
wish to find out what it can offer you, you must learn to
meditate. There is nothing negative that can come of
meditation and what’s more there is quite a bit of good that
can come out from it.

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Chapter 3: The Types Of
Meditation

As you will learn the further you look into meditation, there
are many different types of meditation. Some are very
ancient methods that have been used for thousands of years
by various cultures. Others are much more modern and, in
such, are sometimes more popular. Yet, learning about
these types is something you should invest in.

Finding the right type of meditation for you is key and the
process means educating yourself about the various types of
meditation that you can select from.

Yet, all of these methods of meditation will fall into one of
two different classifications. If you were to select meditation
on any sole factors, it would be based on these two methods
available.

Thoroughly exploring both of these methods of meditation
can be very important to finding success. You’ll need to
experiment with both types, eventually, to determine the bet
route for you to take.

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Concentrative Meditation

The first type of meditation is that of concentrative
meditation. In this type of meditation, the focus is on the
way that you breathe, on an image, or on a sound. Sound,
or mantra, is often used. By using these tools, so to speak,
you are able to clear the mind and allow for greater
awareness as well as clarity.

To focus on meditation, you’ll use one of these elements to
help you to focus. By focusing on it, like you would a
camera lens, you can then effectively reach the state that
you are in.

Breathing

One method of concentrative meditation that is commonly
used is that of concentrating on your breathing. It is
probably the most simple of methods to use because you can
do it any time without much need.

Breathing is effective because of how it plays a role in your
daily life and well being. Many of hose that practice other
alternative medicines, such as yoga, also believe that
breathing is essential to maintaining the correct state of
mind. In meditation, it is believed that breathing must be
regulated in order to meditate properly.

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You can see this clearly in your everyday life without
considering meditation at all. When you are relaxed and
comfortable, your breathing is slowly and deeper. But, when
you are worried, stressed or anxious, your breathing speeds
up. If you are distracted, this happens as well. By
regulating your breathing, you can focus your mind and gain
control over it more effectively.

But, how does breathing effect meditation? Have you ever
felt overwhelmed and anxious? Where you afraid or even
terrified? If so, then you may have told yourself to take a
deep breath and to calm down. As you can see, you can
control your own breathing.

As a tool in meditation in the concentrative methods, you
can gain control over your mind using breathing. To do this,
you must regulate the breathing. To do this, you’ll need to
focus on the rhythm of your breathing. The rhythm is the
movement between inhaling and exhaling.

When you do this, sit and close your eyes. Focus on your
breathing, the movement of air in and out of your body.
You’ll need to concentrate on that breathing and only the
breathing you are doing.

Soon, your meditation on breathing will become something
that helps to ease your mind. You’ll see this as your
breathing becomes more regular and then deeper and
slower.

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When this happens, your mind too is changing. It becomes
quiet, calm and collected. You’ll feel serenity and peace. You
are also more aware of your surroundings and more likely to
gain the benefits of meditation.

Breathing is just one example of concentrative meditation.
There are many other forms, some of which we will talk
about later in this book. Yet, remember that there is
another type of method of meditation that accompanies
concentrative meditation as the two forms that all methods
and techniques of meditation fall under.

Mindfulness Meditation

Mindful meditation is quite unlike that of concentrative. If
we use the example of a lens to help show the difference,
you can see this. In concentrative meditation, you are
concentrating on one single thing, focusing the lens on that
one element, like breathing or something in the room that
you are in.

On the other hand is mindfulness meditation. Here, you are
not focusing your lens, but widening it to include more and
more information.

You may wonder just how including more of what is
happening in any one moment can help you to collect your

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thoughts and focus your mind. Yet, the fact is that you can
do this because of how you do it.

Using your abilities, you’ll become very much aware of
everything around you including all of your feelings, the
things that you see, the things you hear, the smells and
sounds, the very elements that you may want to filter out of
your mind.

From here, though, something is unique. You’ll notice and
be mindful of these things, but you will not react to them.
Instead, you are simply taking in whatever is happening in
your mind. Don’t become overly involved with these
elements. You won’t allow for images, thoughts, or
memories to filter into your mind here as they do when you
are concentrating.

Because, you are not becoming involved with the images and
elements that are filtering through your mind; you actually
calm down. Your mind is now clearer because it has taken in
many of the things that are happening around you. You
aren’t focusing in on any one thing. Instead, you are aware
of everything going on, but not participating in it.

Although this method of meditation is one that is less well
known and used by beginners because of how challenging it
can be, it is still an ideal choice because it allows for a
renewed sense of being and wholeness. By focusing on

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everything but not on one single thing, you can clear your
mind fully.

All types of meditation fall in one of these groups. You will
either use methods that are concentrative, in which you will
concentrate on one thing to enter into a meditative state or
you will use a mindfulness meditation method to enter this
state.

For those that are looking towards these methods and
wondering which to choose, don’t. You can use both types
of meditation to gain benefits and sometimes one method
will work better than others will. With the ability to learn
either type, you’ll be that much better at meditation that fits
what you are doing and what your body and mind needs at
any one time.

Guided Meditation

A lot of people have shunned meditation as they think of this

as some kind of asceticism, or a miserable religious practice

that involves some form of spiritual lesson. However,

meditation is actually a way that you can help train your

mind to focus more clearly, and even help your body and

your mind achieve a more relaxed and calm state. This will

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not only help you become mentally strong, but also improve

your physical performance to a certain degree.

Throughout the years, there have been a lot of development

and change in meditation, wherein some of the meditation

techniques and methods that were used in ancient times are

now modernized and updated with more current movements,

paraphernalia and techniques. Although there are a lot of

different kinds of meditation techniques and methods that

are being practiced nowadays, there are certain types of

meditation that are more applicable to certain situations, and

are sometimes more preferred by some people, than others.

One particular type of meditation that has its own perks and

uses is the guided meditation.

What Is Guided Meditation?

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Guided meditation is one type of meditation, which, as the

name implies, involves a person guiding another person who

is undergoing the meditation. What this means is that a

guided meditation has a particular structure or pattern that

is followed by the person meditating in order to achieve a

fully meditative state. Since meditation requires a certain

level of skill, discipline and understanding on what to do and

how to do them, not everyone can actually meditate the

right way, at least right enough to get them to a meditative

state that would allow them to feel relaxed and refreshed.

Purpose For Guided Meditation

Although meditation may appear relatively easy to do, it

does require a certain level of skill to be able to do it

properly. Guided meditation allows the person to be guided

through the meditation process to ensure that he is able to

achieve a full meditative state in order to feel relaxed and

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have a better frame of mind afterwards. People can

sometimes focus too much on the progress that they make

during meditation that they meditate the wrong way, and as

a result, they end up progressing poorly in the process, and

could even potentially cause some pain and discomfort.

Kinds Of Guided Meditation

Although there are no specific kinds of guided meditation,

there are actually certain variations to this type of

meditation that you can do, depending on which type you

feel comfortable in doing. However, there are three basic

types of guided meditation, and those are the lying guided

meditation, wherein the person meditating will assume a

lying position, a sitting guided meditation, wherein the

person meditating will assume a sitting position, and a

walking guided meditation, wherein the person meditating

will perform the meditation while walking.

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Benefits Of Guided Meditation

The benefits of guided meditation are basically similar to the

benefits of any form of meditation, in the sense that their

mental, emotional, and physical state will experience some

form of improvement. Your memory will improve. Your

mental state will become more calm and peaceful. You will

feel more confident, and would generally become better at

how you treat other people, mostly because you feel better

within yourself. You will be able to reduce your level of

stress, as well as sharpen your decision-making skills,

especially for those that involve some level of problem

solving.

How To Effectively Use Guided Meditation?

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In order to learn how to be able to effectively use guided

meditation, you need to understand first what sets it apart

from other forms of meditation. One of the main differences

with guided meditation with other forms of meditation is that

it provides assistance to the person meditating, whether it is

by means of another person, or simply through directed

instructions on how to perform the meditation effectively and

properly.

Who Can Use Guided Meditation?

Although there is no real category of people who would

benefit more from this type of meditation practice than

others, there are some who might find this form of

meditation more suitable to their needs and taste. Children,

for example, might find it easier to meditate if you use this

kind of meditation technique, especially since most children

would require a certain level of assistance or guidance.

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Buddhist Meditation

Our hectic, and sometimes very demanding, lifestyle

nowadays can lead to a lot of stress and problems that could

affect both our personal and professional lives. Too much

stress can make a person feel tired almost all the time, and

could result into making the person feel very unhappy,

frustrated and impatient. These feelings could ultimately

have an adverse effect on your health, thereby causing you

a lot of problems.

These problems could make it seem like you don’t have

enough time to be doing anything else other than what you

are currently doing, but actually, you can. Meditation can

actually help give you more time. By simply meditating

every once in a while, you can train your mind and body to

become more calm and relax, allowing you to become more

focused in your activities and thoughts, thereby giving you

the ability to accomplish a whole lot more than what you can

when your mind and body is not focused, calm and relaxed.

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One particular type of meditation that is specifically designed

to help you achieve just that is the Buddhist meditation.

What Is Buddhist Meditation?

Buddhist meditation is actually a product of the Buddhist

tradition that is focused on making sure that a person

achieves a peaceful and happy mind. This positive state of

mind is believed by the Buddhist tradition to be achievable

through different profound and transforming spiritual

exercises such as the Buddhist meditation. Buddhist

meditation actually aims for you to learn how to meditate to

a point that your mind will become more focused and

relaxed, as well as aims to give you a better understanding

of how your mind works, thereby putting yourself in a much

better position to achieve balance in your life and inner

peace.

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What Is The Purpose Of Buddhist Meditation?

As stated earlier, Buddhist meditation is geared towards

providing its practitioners with a means to help them achieve

inner peace, as well as help them attain balance in all

aspects of their lives, whether it be spiritual, personal or

professional. This is done by simply removing all your mental

discomfort by putting your mind in a more peaceful and

relaxed state through different Buddhist meditation

techniques. Doing these, as the Buddhist tradition dictates,

will help you achieve true happiness.

Breathing Meditations

There are actually a number of different types of Buddhist

meditation techniques and methods, each one providing the

practitioner with different methods of meditation. However,

Buddhist meditations can be narrowed down to two main

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types of meditations, and those two are the breathing

meditations and transforming meditations.

Breathing meditations can be used as a preliminary exercise

to prepare for a more serious form of meditation, but can

also be used as a meditation exercise itself. This particular

meditation technique is all about the sensation of air that is

being breathed in and out of the nostril. This meditation

technique is believed to be able to help the person

meditating to clear the mind by eliminating all distractions

that the person meditating may be experiencing.

Transforming Meditations

The second type of Buddhist meditation is the transforming

meditation. This type of meditation, is focused on not just

simply clearing a person’s mind, but also involves unifying

the mind and the virtue behind the Buddhist meditation

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process. What this means is that basically in order for a

person to truly become transformed to a point that he can

find true happiness, he needs to be able to unify both the

mind and virtue, because true happiness can only be

achieved if the mind is truly calm and peaceful.

How To Perform Buddhist Meditation?

Performing Buddhist meditation requires you to follow

certain stages, which usually starts with preparation, and is

followed by contemplation, meditation, dedication, and

finally, practice. Preparation, as the name implies, involves

preparing your mind by eliminating anything that could

cause you some mental discomfort. Contemplation and

meditation involves figuring out the virtue that you need to

help you meditate, and focusing on that virtue to help you

through the meditation process. Dedication has something to

do with strengthening your belief in your virtue, and

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subsequent practice will focus on how you incorporate the

meditation into your daily routine.

Benefits Of Buddhist Meditation

The main benefits of Buddhist meditation is that it allows you

to take control of your mental state. By gaining control over

your mental state, you can almost always keep your mind in

a more relaxed and focused state, thereby making it easier

for you to learn how to cope with the demands of your

everyday life, both professionally and personally. Also, by

performing these Buddhist meditation techniques, you will

notice that it is easier for you to become happy as compare

before. This is probably due to the fact that your state of

mind is geared towards focusing on the positive, thereby

producing only positive thoughts, even during the most

problematic of times.

Christian Meditation

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Nowadays, a lot of people are very interested in finding ways

to help them cope with their every day lives. A lot of people

have tried using different methods, but one of the more

popular and common methods is through meditation. There

are actually a lot of different kinds of meditation that people

can choose from, one of which is called a Christian

meditation. A lot of people are not very familiar with this

type of meditation practice, especially since this type of

meditation method differs from your conventional meditation

practices. In order to fully understand how Christian

meditation differs from conventional meditation practices,

you need to understand what Christian meditation is first.

What Is Christian Meditation?

Christian meditation is actually similar to a form of prayer

than anything else, although it does have some similarities

to certain forms of meditation techniques and methods. Like

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most meditation techniques, you need to purposefully set

aside some time for you to be able to think and ponder when

it comes to Christian meditation. Usually, Christian

meditation coincides with their time for prayer, which is why

it may be associated with a form of prayer. Also, people who

use Christian meditation usually seek some form of relief

from their current circumstance, whether it is from stress or

from something more serious, by taking certain virtues from

the ‘Word of God’. These virtues will help the individual cope

better with his situation, and will eventually lead to a happier

and healthier life.

What Is The Purpose Of Christian Meditation?

Christian meditation is believed by most Christians to be a

means for them to not only seeks some form of relief from

their predicament, but is also a way for them to look back

and reflect on the life of Jesus Christ. It is important to

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remember that this form of meditation is deeply rooted with

the Christian religion, which is why most of the meditative

techniques involved in this particular method of meditation

have something to do with seeking truths about God. By

doing so, the person meditating will be able to achieve his

higher self based on his beliefs.

How To Perform Christian Meditation?

In order to perform Christian meditation, the person

meditating simply needs to relax and get into a meditative

state through their posture and breathing. Once they are in

that particular state, they simply focus on a particular

passage or phrase or statement taken as the Word of God,

and reflect on that. They not only keep their mind clear and

relaxed, but they also fill their mind with hope and

encouragement that they can take from the Word of God.

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These hopes and encouragements that they get are all

rooted on their faith and belief system.

Difference Of Christian Meditation From Traditional

Meditation

One of the main difference with Christian meditation to the

traditional meditation is that the former seeks to be filled,

whether it be filled with the Word of God, or be filled with

hope and encouragement, while the latter seeks to empty

the mind from stress and possible mental problems through

meditation. Another notable difference is that with Christian

meditation, the focus is on God, and not on the self like with

most traditional meditation practices. Traditional meditation

techniques get the person meditating to focus on his own

self above anything else.

Benefits Of Christian Meditation

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Christian meditation offers the person meditating a chance

to not only improve his state of mind, but also allows that

person to reach his higher self through his belief system,

which is to simply put it, through God. If a person’s belief in

God is strong, then it is easier for that person to achieve a

happier and more fulfilling life.

Is Christian Form Of Meditation Better?

For some people, Christian meditation is more appropriate

and applicable to their style of meditation, while for others,

the more traditional form of meditation may appear to be

more appealing to their particular taste and needs. Whatever

your choice would be, it is important to remember that no

single meditation technique is more superior over the others.

You simply need to find the one that would help you achieve

your goal, which is to feel better mentally, physically, and

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emotionally. If doing the Christian meditation gets you there,

then why not.

Healing Meditation

There are a lot of people out there who are looking for ways

that they can help their mind; body and spirit recover from

the rigorous demands of their everyday lives. A lot could

happen within a day of a person’s routine, some of which are

not necessarily good, or has a positive effect on one’s

disposition.

If a lot of things go very wrong, then that person might need

more than just a physical type of healing in order to get

through the day in once piece. Lucky for you, there are ways

that you can help yourself cope with your life’s daily

demands, and help heal your self, whether it is for your

physical pain, or for your spiritual and mental problems. One

particular method that allows you to do just that is by means

of healing meditation.

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What Is Healing Meditation?

Healing meditation, as the name implies, is all about healing

the body, or helping it recover from all the negative factors

that have influenced it into such a negative and imbalanced

state. Healing meditation is a type of healing process that

you allow your body to undergo in order to improve your

disposition by simply making a connection between your

mind and your heart. To simply put it, healing meditation is

all about removing all of your negative thoughts that could

be influencing your general health in a negative way through

the guise of different types of illnesses and ailments, and

replace them with positive thoughts that would help

influence you to experience better health and general

goodness in yourself.

What Is The Purpose Of Healing Meditation?

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One of the main thrusts of this type of meditation is that it

aims to help you feel better and improve your general health

and overall disposition through meditation. You are healed

from your illnesses and ailments that are directly caused by

your negative thoughts and state of mind. Aside from that,

healing meditation will also help you cope with the demands

of your daily routine, allowing you to live a happier and

stress-free life. Since we all have some problem areas that

are ailing you, especially regarding your health and overall

wellness, a health tune up is definitely something that you

will need once in a while. And healing meditation can do just

that.

How To Perform Healing Meditation?

There are actually different ways that you can perform a

healing meditation, all depending on which problem area you

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are hoping to address. However, the most basic method of

performing this particular meditation technique is that you

must actively participate in the healing meditation process.

When you perform a healing meditation, you will need some

form of assistance to help guide you through the meditation

process. It is important that during the entire meditation

process that you visualize what you want to happen, and

visualize the entire process as it happens. Positive

visualization will help you through this process.

Types Of Healing Meditation

There are actually a lot of different types of healing

meditation techniques, over ten different kinds, each

depending on what health issues you choose to address. The

ten known healing meditations are the insomnia obliterator,

scar healing, flower balancing, energy protection, sacred

breath, introduction to breath, theater protection bubble,

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regeneration journey, infection protection and pain healing

matrix.

Benefits Of Healing Meditation

There are actually a lot of different health-related benefits

that healing meditation can provide you. Some of the

techniques of healing meditation are designed to help you

drop your blood pressure and heart rate. Others put you in a

deeper and more relaxed state. Some can even help you go

to sleep faster, and remain asleep for longer. If you have a

problem with negative people draining your positive energy,

then healing meditation has some techniques that can

provide some help for that issue as well. Pain, infection

problems, and your body’s regenerative properties can also

be addressed through this type of meditation.

Should You Use Healing Meditation?

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If you are experiencing certain health-related problems that

you think are deeply rooted to your body’s inability to cope

with the mental, physical and spiritual stresses of your daily

routine, then using healing meditation to help you cope with

these problems could be just the thing for you.

Meditate to Reduce Stress

Stress is beginning to become one of the main problems that

people experience as a result of their very rigorous and

hectic lifestyle and daily routine. Most of their personal and

professional problems could be attributed to the fact that

they are not able to cope well with the stress that they

experience on a daily basis. Stress, if not handled the right

way, could negatively affect a person’s way of thinking,

thereby leading him to make very poor decisions.

If you think that you are one of those people who are more

likely to experience a lot of stress on a regular basis, then

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you need not worry, for there are ways that you can actually

cope with the stress in your life. One particular way that you

can reduce the amount of stress that you will experience is

by means of meditation. Before you can understand how

meditation can help you reduce stress, you must first

understand certain things about meditation in order to fully

understand how it can help you with your stress problems.

Walking Meditation

Walking meditation is all about getting your body to move

and remain active while you continue to monitor your

breathing and the sensation that you feel while walking. You

can do walking meditation by simply taking a stroll outside,

or by simply pacing in a room. However, when you do decide

to take a walk outside for meditation, you need to learn how

to block out some of the distractions that would probably be

there, such as moving traffic, external and ambient noises,

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and even the uneven pathway that you choose to walk on.

Bear in mind that you need to focus on your walking and

breathing, and nothing else.

Mantra Meditation

Mantra meditation, as the name implies, basically involves a

word or a phrase, also referred to as a mantra, which you

repeat as you perform your meditation exercise. Repeating

this mantra for the duration of your relaxation exercise will

help you focus on your exercise and your exercise only,

thereby reducing the chances of you getting distracted with

external factors, as well as helping you keep your mind from

wandering from what you are doing.

Mind-Emptying Meditation

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This particular meditation exercise involves letting your mind

go blank for the duration of the exercise. Although this may

prove to be a challenge for a lot of people, especially since

any little thought or movement could cause your mind to

work. When performing this exercise, you simply need to sit

in a relaxed cross-legged position and just allow your mind

to go silent.

Concept Meditation

The idea behind concept meditation is that you have to focus

on an idea or scenario while you perform your meditation

exercise. You can actually start by focusing on something

that is familiar and easier to understand, like your feelings

and thoughts, then you progress to an idea or concept, such

as meditating on flight, wherein you imagine what it would

feel like to actually fly like a bird. You then think about the

different sensations that you might experience during the

entire scenario.

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Chapter 4: What Happens During
Meditation?

Modern medicine does not say that meditation works. You
won’t find a doctor that will prescribe meditation as the sole
means of healing your illness in traditional medicine,
anyway. Yet, meditation is something that doctor’s do tell
you about in other ways.

For example, how many times has your doctor told you that
stress was a problem in your health issue? Or, perhaps he
told you of the need to relax more so that you can overcome
your headaches, your pain, or your tension? In your doctor’s
words, he is encouraging you to clear your mind of the
things you worry about and concentrate instead on relaxing.
That is what meditation can do for you.

Yet, the mechanics behind how meditation works is
something completely different. Not many actually realize
how meditation works or why it matters that they know why
it works. You’ll learn both elements here.

In studies that have been done, there is evidence that
meditation can produce a reaction in the body. It has been
shown to provide a healthy state of relaxation. Physically,
your body reacts in several ways.

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1. Your breathing becomes regulated, smoother and
deeper.

2. Your heart rate decreases which means your heart is
beating slower.

3. It can help to decrease the amount of the stress
hormone, called plasma cortisol that is produced by
your body.

4. It can decrease your pulse rate.

5. It can increase a brain wave stimulation that causes
you to relax. This is called your EEG or
electroencephalograph alpha which is directly
associated with the body’s ability to relax

6. Probably the most astonishing physical experience to
the body is the decrease in your metabolic rate, or the
rate at which your body takes fuel and burns it for
energy. This rate seemed to have dropped by some 20
percent in those that had otherwise normal metabolic
rates.

Yet, not just physical changes happen during meditation. In
addition, your body enters into a state of profound rest, rest
that goes beyond that of any other stage of consciousness
you could be in.

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During this time, your mind and your brain are extremely
alert and in tune. This has been shown through medical
experiments as well. Patients were told to meditate while
their brain’s activity was monitored.

During these tests, there were indications that your brain
was in a state called “restful alertness” where it was
completely and extremely alert but calm and focused.

It has also been shown in the way that your body reacts to
various stimuli. For example, most individuals experience
stimulations that allow them to be faster in movements.
They may be more creative as well. Some are able to
comprehend at a higher level after they’ve meditated as
well.

As mentioned, the body’s metabolic rate also drops, which
means that you don’t eat nearly as much as you should.
Patients that have been monitored during one specific
technique of meditation known as Transcendental
meditation, called TM for short, had metabolic rates that
dropped below that of those that were in a deep sleep
pattern.

Your heart rate will drop by several beats each minute as
well as your breathing reduces by an average of two breaths
for each minute.

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Another result of Transcendental meditation was the effect
that it seemed to have on patients and their blood pressure
rates. In those that had normal levels of blood pressure
considered healthy, nothing changed and those numbers
remained in low numbers. But, those that started with
higher, above average and healthy blood pressure numbers
saw a fall in their blood pressure rates. It fell to a
considerably lower level in these patients.

Another area that was tested during this type of meditation
is that of the body’s relaxation of its muscles. This can be
hard to measure but during some tests, doctors will
administer a very low level of electrical current and monitor
the reaction that your body’s muscles have to it.

Individuals that have a fall in their skin’s resistance are
known to be people that suffer from tension and anxiety or
have high levels of stress. If you had a rise in your
resistance, on the other hand, that means that your muscles
are very relaxed.

Once tested, it was easy to tell how the effects of meditation
are. Those that meditated then had this electrical test down
were found to have significantly more relaxed muscles than
those that did not.

The Physical Reaction

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As you can see, there is a real physical and mental change in
the body when you are or have been meditating. But,
doctors want to learn more and often people ask, why
meditating has this effect on the body and mind. For that,
let’s explain a bit more.

One of the marked improvements during meditation happens
to the individual’s nervous system. Instead of what normally
happens, a different branch of this system takes charge,
which it normally does not. This branch, called the
parasympathetic branch, is prone to help relax and calm you
and your body.

Another example of what happens to the body is that of the
amount of lactate in your blood before and after meditation.
Lactate is a naturally produced substance that is necessary
in the body. It is produced by your metabolism and is done
so in the muscles surrounding your skeleton.

When you meditate, this lactate level drops significantly;
which therefore causes your metabolic rate to significantly
drop, as we mentioned. In fact, the amount of lactate in
your body decreases by some four times the rate that it
would if you were lying on your back and had not meditated.

In addition to this, the amount of lactate produced in your
body fits the fact that your blood will flow faster and more
effectively throughout your body during and after
meditation. Because your blood is flowing faster (in some

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areas by up to 30 percent!) that means that oxygen is
getting to your muscles faster.

When your muscles have an increased amount of oxygen,
which they need, they don’t produce nearly the amount of
lactate that they would otherwise. Therefore, meditation
helps to increase your blood flow and decrease your
metabolic rate.

Are You Sleeping?

Many of the things that happen to your body while you are
meditating are actually quite like what happens to the body
when you are sleeping. Your breathing and heart rate drop.
Your body and mind enter a very restful, deep relaxation and
enter a very restful, deep relaxation.

But, are you sleeping when you meditate, then?

The question that many face is how your body can be both
so relaxed and yet so alert. You see, when you meditate,
your body is extremely alert, not nearly sleeping.

When you are meditating, your body enters a type of rest
that is similar to that of deep sleep and/or a hypnotic state.
That’s due to the fact that your body responds to the
meditation in all of the ways that we’ve listed which causes
the relaxed state to happen.

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Behind everything is your ability to tell your mind and your
body to relax. When you enter meditation in a complete
manner and these things happen, you’ve learned to access
your body’s relaxation response, something that allows you
to then control when and how well you can relax.

In addition to this, many doctors and researchers believe
that those that meditate also are able to allow their own
body to make the right decisions about healing.

There are many theories on how meditation happens and
what the real physical and mental change that happens in
your body when you meditate is. What’s important for you
to realize, then, is that a physical as well as a mental change
happens in your body. That change is one of serenity and
enlightenment, two things that each person should strive to
achieve for their ultimate state of mind.

Chapter 5: Are You Ready To
Meditate Yet?

Now that you understand a bit behind the reasoning behind
meditation, you can clearly see what the benefits are. Now,
you are ready to learn how to meditate. Over the next

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chapters, we’ll talk about many of the different techniques
that are crucial to meditation.

Some techniques you can learn through this ebook, others,
though, you’ll need a trained and experienced instructor to
help you to learn how. We suggest starting with some of the
simpler forms like those listed here and then working your
way into more complex ones. You’ll find that this allows you
to be more successful with the difficult meditation exercises
as well.

A Word Of Warning

As you begin meditation, you should realize that the process
can bring up feelings, thoughts and even traumatic events
that happened in your past. If you have repressed
memories or otherwise are psychologically affected by
meditation, don’t give up on it. You should work with a
skilled instructor though to work through these problems so
that meditation can be successful for you.

Meditation may not be for you if you are a person that is
paranoid, have problems with delusions or are facing high
levels of anxiety to the point of not being able to function
properly. These individuals often find that meditation can be
helpful, but only when under guidance from their doctors.
Those that have psychotic episodes of any sort should work

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with their meditation specialist first and foremost before
starting their own meditation

Those that are interested in meditation but are worried
about what could happen during meditation should insure
that they have a skilled meditation specialist to help them
through the first few episodes.

A Bit Of Background

Meditation is an art form that has come down from all types
of cultures and from ancient civilizations. Yet, each form
comes from its own place, making it a bit unique from
others.

One thing that you will notice about meditation is its ability
to change with the culture and therefore you’ll find various
names for some of the techniques and styles that you find.
In addition, you will find countless religious or mystical
applications to meditation as well. As you move through
meditation, realize that each aspect is different in where it is
from and how it is used, yet all strive to offer the same end
result to you.

For example, in ancient Christian training of the spirit,
meditation is the process of thinking with a good amount of
concentration on a topic. Yet, in Eastern meditation,

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meditation doesn’t have any such meaning. Instead, you
are doing the opposite of thinking about a topic.

The goal of meditation in this form is to become detached; to
pull away from your thoughts and then allow the silence to
open up to you. When this happens, your mind becomes
quite. In Eastern meditation arts, this is called the
relaxation response that your body presents. Yet, in
Christian mystical practices, it is called contemplation, which
we have already touched on.

Activities For Meditation

As we work through meditation, it is important to find
something to use as your focus or your tool to enter into a
meditation experience. There are many different tools that
you can use. The best things to do are those that allow you
to relax, stay still and to have some passive amount of
attention paid to the object.

Here are some examples:

• Relaxing comfortably on the couch listening to soft
music. Lying down is generally more beneficial than
sitting up because it allows all of your muscles to relax.

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• Prayer, probably the oldest and most profoundly used
tool in meditation is still one of the best tools to use to
meditate with. Prayer allows you to focus and helps you
to concentrate. You are quiet and still, generally. It is
the most commonly used meditation stance.

• A fire can be a wonderful meditation tool as well.
Sitting quietly by the fire, gauzing into it is alluring and
often times allow a person to completely become
memorized. For meditation purposes, a fireside
meditation can be the perfect location, assuming you
are safe of course.

• Focusing your attention on any single object can be
beneficial as well. Often times, this can be on anything
that’s in the room where it’s quiet and open enough to
relax. You can do this with anything in the room, a
person, a scene or even just the atmosphere of the
room.

In meditation, the goal is to find something to meditate on
that allows you to focus, quietly and still, on it. Anything
that provides this can work for you.

Get Yourself Ready

Now that you have a basic idea of what goes into meditation,
you can provide yourself with the necessary tools to get

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started. We will get into that a bit more in just a minute.
Yet, before you do this, ask yourself a couple of questions.

• Are you able to fully experience meditation because you
are open to the potential benefits it can provide to you?

• Are you able to have someone to watch over you during
your first sessions, or perhaps work with you through
them, in order to insure that you do not have any type
of problem during one?

• Do you have a partner that may like to learn to
meditate with you? This can allow you to better
experience the process.

Now, you are ready to dive into meditation. First, ready
your mind for the benefits that it can offer you. Skeptics
needs to stay behind, now.

Chapter 6: Elements Required For
Meditation To Happen

So, you want to meditate. Now that you have a bit of
background on meditation you think you can sit down and
completely get into it, right? It’s not quite that easy.
Nevertheless, the process can be broken down to allow
anyone to fully learn it.

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To perform meditation, there are several key elements that
must be taken into consideration prior to getting started. If
and when you accomplish these tasks, you’ll be in a better
place to actually meditate to the highest possible level of
consciousness.

There are four big things to consider. First, you need to
have the right attitude. For that, you need what is called a
passive attitude. This attitude allows for the right
experience because it takes away some of the lesser and
often negative aspects that you may have towards
meditation.

Attitude isn’t everything, though. The next element that you
need is the right location. The best location for meditation is
one that is quiet and relaxing to you. Whatever it takes to
get into the right setting, make it happen.

Next, you need the right physical posture. Your body must
be in the right stage so that you are both comfortable and
relaxed to the level that meditation requires. When you
enter this stage, meditation is easier to accomplish.

Finally, you need something to meditate on. As we’ve
already discussed, there is importance in what this is as it
should be something that is relaxing and something that
allows you to remain still and quiet while meditating with
that element.

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Now, we’ll go into detail about each of these aspects. Each
is a very important part to the meditation process.

Location

First, we need to help you to find the right location to
meditate. As you can probably imagine, you need a location
that is quiet and calm. If you wish to experience meditation,
being in the correct surroundings will make all of the
difference to you.

The best locations for you to select are those that will allow
not only your mind to relax but also your body’s muscles.
This is generally done in a sitting or a lying position, so make
sure that the location you choose offers that.

The location should be one that does not offer many
distractions. This is crucial to the ability to filter these things
out of your mind. Those that are just starting to learn
meditation need the least distractions possible. Once you
hone your skills, though, you’ll be able to meditate is more
busy locations including in public locations where you can’t
control the distraction and noise levels. First, though, look
for quiet!

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The Right Position

Just like the right location, being in the right position for
meditation is crucial. Actually, what we are looking for here
is the right posture for your body that provides for the best
abilities to meditate.

The posture in which your body is in is very much a role
player in the type of experience that you have. This is
believed in many forms of alternative medicine and wellness.
In Yoga, there are a number of postures performed to get
the desired results.

If you are practicing Kum Ney, which is a type of Islamic
prayer, there are postures beneficial here. In Buddhist
religious ceremonies, the posture of the body is very critical
to the experience that the individual has in the prayer that
they lead.

One of the most important elements in maintaining your
posture is to keep your spine straight. Although there is no
proof medically speaking, it is believed that when the spine
is correctly aligned, in a straight line, which it helps to
benefit the state of mind that you are in.

If you have a problem with your spine and this is not
comfortable for you, do not insist on it. Most individuals will
experience some discomfort during their first few

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experiences with this type of straightening of the back. For
most, this will go away after you get used to it. If it is pain,
though, don’t force yourself to do this.

You may be tempted to meditate in a lying down position.
Although this position does work, it often causes individuals
that are new to meditation to fall asleep. Therefore, unless
you know that you can refrain from sleeping; try to use the
sitting up position.

Semi Poised

The semi poised posture is another choice. In a semi poised
posture, you are not sitting straight up and you are not lying
down flat. You are reclining to a point. This is often done by
those that can’t sit well straight up. It can be done on your
sofa for additional comfort. Make sure that your head is
supported in this position. You should not put yourself in a
position that allows you to fall asleep, though.

Poised Posture

The most common and the most beneficial type of posture is
that of poised. The poised posture is one in which the back
and spine is upright and straight, but is not rigidly so. The
reasoning behind this benefit is actually important to
understand.

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When you are in the poised posture, your body is alert. Your
state of mind is that of being aware and poised, ready for
attention. By keeping your back straight, you are keeping
your mind alert.

Lotus Posture

Another option is that of the lotus posture. This is actually
the most common and well liked posture in the Eastern
forms of meditation. In this position, you will sit with your
legs crossed and the back and spine in a vertical line. Your
legs are crossed with the feet placed on the thighs.

The problem with the lotus posture is that it can be
somewhat painful for those that aren’t flexible. It can be
something learned and even mastered after a few tries.

There are other postures that can be used as well. If you
would like to learn a posture that allows you to sit in a
specific position, look towards your meditation guide to help
you to find one that works for you.

Passiveness In Your Attitude

The next key ingredient in meditation is your attitude.
Often, the attitude that is most commonly required and

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talked about is that of poised awareness. Your attitude is
probably the most important element in this entire process.
It is called poised awareness because that’s just what you
are. You are relaxed but alert in such a way that is the
perfect balance between the two.

When you enter this type of awareness, you notice what is
happening around you but you are not focusing on it. You
are casually aware of these things and yet you are detached
from them.

When new thoughts enter your mind, you must let them just
pass through, knowing that they have come but not caring
much about them. As you gaze at your meditation object,
you’ll want to allow your mind the ability to notice what is
happening around you.

But, when your mind wanders away and you begin to add
additional thoughts onto that original one, developing an
interest in them, come back to that meditation object and
readdress your methods of entering into meditation.

When you learn to keep your mind focused and relaxed, you
can realize that your mind has gone off into another
direction and bring it back to where we want it to be for
meditation.

When you enter poised awareness, you will at first need to
fight to stay there. Yet, over time, you’ll find yourself being

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able to stay in focus throughout your meditation experience.
You don’t have to fight it as much.

A passive attitude is one in which your mind can notice that
there are other thoughts passing through, but that stays
relaxed and doesn’t focus on those thoughts. When you can
do this, you’ll be able to notice but not react to those
distractions that come your way, therefore allowing your
body and mind to enter into meditation easier.

Start At Your Own Pace

When meditating, you don’t have to go at it at a very

physically challenging pace. Perform the meditation exercise

at your own pace, and monitor how your body is able to

cope with the exercise. Too much of meditation can be a bad

thing, so learn when to stop by listening to your body’s

capacity. If you begin to feel light headed, or if you begin to

have a headache, then it is a sign that you should probably

end the meditation exercise already. Don’t be too caught up

in what you think you should get from the entire meditation

exercise, but instead, you should focus on monitoring how

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you and your body is reacting to the entire meditation

process.

Incorporate It In Your Daily Routine

In order for you to be able to really feel the full effect and

benefits of the meditation exercise, you need to learn how to

incorporate the exercise into your daily routine. The more

consistently you are able to perform it, then the more you

will feel and notice the effects and benefits of the exercise in

your body, as well as in your life, both personally and

professionally.

Meditate At The Right Time

One of the things that you need to learn to do is that you

must be able to pick the right time of the day that you will

perform the meditation exercise. Although you can actually

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perform the exercise at any time during the day, it is

advisable that at the beginning, you try to do it either at the

beginning of the day when you wake up, or right before you

go to bed at night. Later on, you can actually perform the

exercise at any time you wish to, as long as you have the

time in the day to spare for your meditation exercise. It is

not a good idea to perform the exercise when you are under

pressed for time, as this will not make you feel relaxed by

any means, but will only end up stressing you out more.

Your Meditation Object

There is one more piece of the puzzle to enter into
meditation through practicing yourself. You need to have a
meditation object to use to help direct and focus your
attention on.

The object that you use is generally called a mantra, which is
actually a specific word or even a syllable.

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Sometimes, like in Buddhism meditation, you’ll focus on your
breathing movements as your object for meditation. If you
do decide to use breathing as your method for entering into
meditation, then do so correctly. You need to make your
meditation method use the rise and fall of your abdomen
rather than the presence of inhaling air.

In addition, make sure to use breathing that comes you’re
your diaphragm rather than from your stomach. Proper
posture will help this as will practicing how to use it. Once
you get into a meditation state, you’ll find that the rhythm of
your breathing in the movement of your body will help to
promote deep relaxation.

Either of these, mantra or breathing, can be used as your
meditation object so long as they provide for relaxation.

You can also use various other elements in the room you are
in. If you choose to do this, make sure that the element you
select is something that provides for relaxation. Some
individuals like to close their eyes in order to relax and then
to induce meditation. This is up to you and your preferences
for meditation.

Should you go with a mantra for your method of inducing
meditation, do so with careful thought. Although some
meditation therapists will tell you that a specific selection of
sounds should be used for your mantra as determined by
your nervous system, there isn’t a lot of noticeable benefit

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from this. You can use any word that is neutral and that
allows you to stay focused. It should not be something that
easily brings another thought to your mind.

It doesn’t have to be a word either. It can be a nonsensical
sound or a grouping of sounds.

Remember that your mind needs to enter into a phase in
which no thoughts or very few thoughts and no thoughts of
meaning are passing through it. When this happens, the
deepest level of thought and consciousness are found and
only then can it happen.

Put It Together

Once you have learned each of these four very important
elements to the meditation process, you can begin to
develop a pattern for yourself.

Most of the time, it does take some practice and just trying
out different methods to actually find the process that works
the best for you. The goal is to remember what you are
after. You want a state of mind that is clear from other
thoughts and you want to put yourself both your mind and
your body in a relaxed state.

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For you, this may be different from what it is for others that
meditate. We recommend starting with those methods
described here and practicing with them until you have
achieved them. Later, if you find that something works
better for you, such as with your posture or your meditation
object, you can then change it to match the benefits that
you’ve found.

Most commonly, though, meditation involves a trial and
error. Don’t assume that just one try of a mantra will work.
If you don’t fully learn how to do something, this too can
lead to the wrong experience. For example, if you don’t
breathe correctly, you can’t know that breathing doesn’t
work for you. Next, we’ll try to meditate.

Contact Meditation Center

As soon as you have chosen a few meditation center

candidates, you now need to try and contact them in order

to get more information about their meditation classes, and

about their company or organization. You can accomplish

this by either giving them a call, going to their actual place

of business, or by visiting their official business website. This

is important because certain companies or organizations

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could have different meditation class schedules. There are

some that only offer night meditation classes, while there

are others that offer meditation classes during the day. Use

this opportunity to get more information about them, and

narrow down your choices.

Participate In A Class

Once you have narrowed down your choices to a selected

few, one way that you can further narrow down your choices

is by simply participating in some of the meditation classes

that these companies are offering. This is a good way for you

to gauge how well you and your body can adapt to the class

itself, and if whether you are getting what you want and

need from the meditation classes that they are offering.

Make A Comparison

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Once you have given all of your choice meditation centers an

opportunity to show you what their meditation classes are all

about, you simply need to take the time to make a

comparison between all of them. Just recall your experience

with each one of the meditation centers that you have gone

to, and take note of your experience in the meditation

classes that you have taken, and compare them all with one

another. Find the one that left you with the best experience.

It doesn’t matter what made your experience good, as long

as you are getting what you expected to get from the

meditation class itself.

Make A Commitment

Once you have narrowed down your choice of meditation

centers to just one, you now need to make a solid

commitment to that particular meditation center that you will

attend more meditation classes. You don’t need to that right

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away, though. Try to take a few more classes until you feel

satisfied enough to finally make a commitment, just to make

sure that you give yourself the opportunity to really check

them all out. Picking a meditation center is not an easy thing

to do, but it does require you to give it some time and some

thought before you make your choice. Don’t forget that the

quality of meditation center you choose could affect how you

progress mentally and physically.

Finding a Meditation Center

There are a lot of people who experience stress, most of

them are unable to cope and manage them, causing them to

encounter a lot of mental problems in their personal and

professional lives. One method which they can use to help

them manage the amount of stress that they are faced with

is by means of joining and taking meditation classes to help

them learn more about how they can become more relaxed

and focused, especially during the times that they are

exposed to stress.

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If you are just new to the entire meditation culture, or if you

have been practicing meditation alone, then you may want

to finish reading this article. Here are a couple of things that

you need to learn in order to be able to find a meditation

center that is just right for you.

Create Meditation Center List

The first thing that you must do when trying to find a

meditation center, you simply need to make a list of all the

available meditation centers that are in your area. If there

are certain meditation areas that you are not completely

sure of, then there is no need for you to include them in your

list. Just pick the ones that you are interested in visiting to

save you some time. Just bear in mind that not all

meditation centers are Buddhist, so you don’t necessarily

have to exclude any one that isn’t a Buddhist meditation

center.

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Pick A Meditation Exercise Style

Once you have your list of meditation centers at hand, you

then need to pick a particular meditation exercise technique

or method that you think would best fit your need and

lifestyle. Keep in mind that there are a lot of different

meditation styles out there, each one offering you different

benefits and advantages, and each one having different

requirements and demands. The sooner you can figure out

which particular style of meditation you feel the strongest

affinity to, then the easier it is for you to find which type of

meditation exercise style you should choose.

Chapter 7: Meditating In A Simple
Form First

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Meditating is an art form, we’ve told you that. Now, to get
you started, you must first learn about the various strokes
you can make in your art so that the end result is what you
can appreciate.

With meditation, everything is built from the simplest of
methods up to more complex types. To enter into
enlightenment, then, you need to first take baby steps. Our
first meditation is one that’s simple, straightforward and
honesty is something you can master in a few tries at it, if
you do it correctly.

Let’s go through the process now. In this meditation, our
goal is to introduce you with the relaxation response. This is
a great type of meditation to do daily, even when you are
busy.

To get started, put aside time to meditate. You need to try
and do this daily to fully learn through practice how to
accomplish it as well as to benefit from all that meditation
can offer to you.

Simple Mediation

Simple mediation can start like this.

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1. Find a location that’s quiet and where you know you
won’t be bothered. You are looking for ten to twenty
minutes of undisturbed meditation here. Turn off all
telephones and anything else that could become a
distraction.

2. Now, sit comfortably and quietly. Keep your back in
position with your spine vertically aligned. Remember
that posture is something that you need to make
happen.

3. Commit to what you are doing right now. That means
not allowing distraction to play a role now. Commit to
not being interrupted by anything happening in the
world around you. Most importantly, remove anything
from the room or from your line of view that could be a
potential distraction. Commit to performing
meditation.

4. Select a word that fits into your natural belief system.
For example, use “love” “peace” or others. If you are
religious, select a work of a short phrase that signifies
what you believe. “Hallelujah” or “Om” make good
choices. Close your eyes once you’ve selected the right
word. Closing your eyes helps you to enter into
relaxation.

5. Now, we’ll go through the body and relax each of the
muscles in it. Start with your toes. Consciously think

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to yourself that your toes should relax and feel them
relax. Next, move to your feet, your legs and so on.
You want to allow each of your muscles to relax. Make
sure to include your neck, your jaw, your pelvis, back,
your arms, fingers and hands, and shoulders. As this
happens, feel the tension leave your body.

6. Continue to breathe through the process in deep, long
breathes and repeat your mediation word over and over
again. Breathe in, say your word, breathe out, and
repeat. You don’t need to say the word out loud, but
rather mentally pronounce it.

7. Use the passive attitude that we’ve talked about. If
any thoughts come into your mind while you are
sitting, relaxing, let them go out simply by telling
yourself “oh well.” Most people will have trouble with
this at first, so don’t worry about how well you are
doing. Just let go of those words the best that you can.
Keep repeating your meditation word, too.

8. Keep this going for ten minutes at least and strive for
twenty. Don’t use any alarm to warn you, just open
your eyes for a moment to check.

9. Sit and relax for several minutes once you’ve come out
of your meditation. Keep your eyes closed for a couple
of minutes before opening them. Don’t stand up just

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yet. Allow yourself time to come back into reality
before doing so.

You should try to do this simple meditation at least once a
day but two or more times per day really can have a positive
effect on your daily stresses. Many people find that this
simple meditation works well before they get their day
started, when they are fully rested and before they have
eaten breakfast.

When you have practiced this type of mediation for several
days or even longer, you should learn the benefits of
meditation and what it can offer. If you don’t feel any
different, you may not be following each step appropriately.
You need to focus on relaxation not on whether or not
meditation is going to heal all of you.

When you do accomplish this form of meditation, try out
some of the others that we’ve included here in the next
chapter.

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Chapter 8: Other Methods Of
Mediation

There are many other types of mediation that can easily be
used just like that of the simple meditation. Here, we’ll talk
about several other options that may fill your needs. Should
you choose one?

After you have learned the basics of meditation you can
begin to experiment with other sometimes more complicated
methods.

Walking Meditation

One other type of meditation that you can easily incorporate
into your daily lifestyle is that of Walking Meditation. The
process seems much simpler than it is, but it’s worth the try
because it can allow you to enter into a new enlightenment
no matter where you are.

Walking meditation does take practice so plan on giving it a
few chances before you write it off as something that’s not
working for you.

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Here’s how walking meditation works.

Start by paying attention to your body as you walk. You
should take note of the way it feels, not just walking but how
it affects each part of your body. You should feel the ground
hitting the bottom of your foot. You should feel the muscles
in your legs and back tighten with each step that you take.
Pay attention to these things.

Focus your attention, now on each of your feet. Start with
just one foot. As it hits the ground, take notice of it. Feel
the next foot come up and go down, notice how it feels too.
Continue to do this over and over again until it almost
becomes a mantra that you are saying to yourself.

If your mind begins to wander off, force yourself to focus on
your movements again. Your eyes should be watching in
front of you, without really looking at anything in particular.
Don’t focus on anything else. This will help you to take your
meditation to the next level of meditation.

Why should you use walking meditation? Its simple. When
was the last time that you paid attention to the actually
walking part of your movements?

You think about the countless things you have to do, where
you are going and who’s talking to you, but not the
movements of walking itself, which can offer a high level of
relaxation when focused on.

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By concentrating on walking itself, you can better experience
relaxation and the movements of walking itself. Through
this, you can enter into a new awareness of the world
around you and of your physical self.

Transcendental Meditation

If you have come to learn meditation, it is likely that you
want to learn transcendental meditation or TM for short.
There are many people that have set their sights on this type
of meditation and with good reason.

First, it’s easy to learn. Second, you can actually find
countless benefits from this type of meditation.

Once you learn to practice Transcendental Meditation, you’ll
find results and benefits right away. Through a bit of
practice, you could be doing this within a week or so,
especially if you have practiced the other types of
meditations prior to this.

During Transcendental Meditation, you will work closely with
an instructor. This instructor not only will walk you through
the process of entering into this type of meditation, but he or
she will also provide you with a unique mantra to use during
the process.

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Remember that a mantra is a word or a few syllables of a
word that you will say over and over again. In this type of
meditation, your instructor will give you a specific mantra to
say that is chosen specifically for you. This type of selection
is based on your body’s needs and your nervous system
specifically.

Once you have been given this type of meditation mantra,
you can then begin the process of meditation. You must
promise not to tell anyone what your mantra is as that’s part
of the process.

From this point, you will sit down quietly and clear your mind
of anything that is going through it. Then, you’ll close your
eyes gently and relax your muscles throughout your body,
much like that of a simple meditation. From here, you’ll
begin repeating your mantra over and over again. The goal
is to completely focus on those words.

When you do this, over and over again, you’ll want to dispel
any other thoughts that come into your mind. Clearing your
mind and bring it back to the mantra is going to allow you to
find benefits in meditation.

You should practice this type of meditation at least two times
per day, every day.

In this type of meditation, your goal is to find an “oneness”
with the universe. By repeating this one word or idea over

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and over again, you enter into a state of consciousness that
is elevated. You are creating a one between you and the
universe.

During the process, you’ll use your passive attitude to easily
dispel any distractions that come into your mind.
Remember, when your mind wanders, a simple, “oh well”
will allow you to come back to your mantra and therefore
refocus your meditation exercises.

If you remember correctly from our earlier chapters, there
are many benefits to Transcendental Meditation. If you will
be practicing this type of meditation for any purpose, you
should still clear your mind of all of those thoughts prior to
getting started otherwise it may not actually work well for
you.

You should also remember our information about
Transcendental Meditation in how it relates to your health.
This type of mediation is the most profound type of
meditation in the way of relaxation and health and mental
benefits.

Mindfulness Meditation

There is another type of meditation that should be
mentioned because of its many benefits on your lifestyle as
well as just how unique it is.

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In the other meditations that we’ve selected to tell you
about, your goal will be to use a mantra or a breathing focus
to help you enter into a state of meditation. But, that’s not
necessarily the only method to do so. In Mindfulness
Meditation, which is also known as Vipassana, you don’t
focus on something around you but rather on inside
meditation.

In Mindfulness Meditation, you are not paying attention to
the physical aspects of what is happening around you.
Instead, you are focusing on what is happening in the
present moment, not the future or the past. You will learn
how to focus on what is happening right now, at this very
second.

You’ll find that the Mindfulness Meditation is one that can
help to turn the brain down to low. If you are one that has
constant thoughts racing through your head and often finds
that there’s just too much noise happening in your brain at
any time, then this type of meditation may be one of the
best types for you.

In Mindfulness Meditation, you will not focus on any one
thing. You are not even going to look at this factor yet.
Instead, you are going to concentrate on the quality of your
awareness.

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You will be what is called a “silent witness” which simply
means that you need to be aware of what is happening
around you at that very moment silently. You are witnessing
what’s happening around you.

Don’t mistake this type of meditation for a mediation that
allows you to be passive in what happens in your daily life.
Rather, Mindfulness Meditation helps you to stop and make
decisions based on reality rather than making impulse
decisions.

So, how do you do Mindfulness Meditation? You may have
heard of it before, actually. There are two ways to do it.
One is informal. The other is formal and a good example of
this is through Yoga.

Yoga works as a method of meditation because of the
concentration that is paid to the here and now. You are
mindful of the movements and positions of your body. Each
movement is done slowly and carefully as planned. You are
fully aware of each move you are making and thus you are
mindful. When you practice in this manner, you are
mindfully aware of your feelings, your physical movements
and what’s happening in your mind.

You are taught through this type of meditation to allow
breathing to enter into your body and then to leave your
body taking with it your stress, your anxiety and other
elements. Through methods like yoga, you can focus your

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attention on removing these toxins from your body and live
a more mindful lifestyle.

The other type of Mindfulness Meditation is that of informal
means. In the informal meditation, you take in the world
around you through just each thing that you do. Each thing
that you do or encounter is fully experienced in a very
unique way.

For example, if you are hungry and grab an apple for a
snack, you bite it, chew and swallow while probably watching
television or even sitting on the web. But, when you use
Mindfulness Meditation when you are consuming that apple,
things change considerably.

Now, you are not just taking a bite. You are observing the
apple in all ways. What does it feel like in your hand? What
does the apple smell like? Take in its color and its weight.
As you take a bite, hear the crunch of the apple’s skin, the
texture of the apple’s inside and the way that the juices
come out of the apple as you chew.

As you can see, with Mindfulness Meditation, you are fully
aware of everything to do with the task at hand. It doesn’t
just have to do with your foods, either. The same goes for
everything that you are doing.

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Your hand on the mouse of your computer, the putting on of
your shoes, and the movement of your pen on the paper are
all activities that you can use Mindfulness Meditation on.

Why do this type of meditation in an informal way? When
you do this type of activity, over and over again, you gain
benefits of meditation at a basic level over and over again
throughout your day. That means that you’ll enter into a
relaxed state often, probably dozens of times each day.

There Are More

One thing to take away from this book is the fact that there
are many ways to enter into a state of meditation. Here are
a few more examples of meditation methods that you can
learn and practice for benefits.

Journey Meditation

In this type of meditation, you will take yourself to a new
location through meditation. You gain meditation by taking
yourself to a different location where peace is the focus of
the trip.

To do this type of meditation, sit up in a proper posture yet
comfortably. Keep some paper and pen near you so that
you can write down anything that you worry about during

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this type of meditation. Breathe in slowly and deeply for
about five counts to cleanse your mind and thoughts. Then,
find your peaceful place. It’s generally a location that helps
you to feel relaxed and at peace. Keep distractions out of
your mind and enjoy the peace that’s offered to you.

Sound Meditation

In this type of meditation, also known as vibrating
meditation, you’ll use the sound of your mantra to move
you. Stand up while doing this type of meditation and allow
deep breathing to cleanse your thoughts. Then, pick a word
that sounds good and showcases peace for you. Repeat it
over and over again, in a chant like method. Relax your
muscles and enjoy what this method has to offer to you.

Even thought we’ve covered many of the best types of
meditation, especially for the beginner, there are plenty
more. Make it your experience to learn more of them.

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Conclusion

As you can see, meditation is a very complex process that
really can be brought down into a few simple things. By
finding an element to concentrate on and then clearing your
mind of all that is happening around you, you can enter into
a state of meditation.

Why do it? Why should you meditate? Although it can be
difficult for anyone to really understand the benefits of
meditation without first giving it a try, the fact is that
meditation can take you to a new level of consciousness.

Not only will it help to improve your stress levels, often
helping you to reduce them to healthy levels, but it helps
you to feel good, too. You will feel more collected and
organized in your thoughts. When this alone happens, you’ll
be able to make better decisions, work harder without
working too much and you’ll accomplish more each and
every day.

Meditation has many health benefits and has been helpful in
improving the quality of life for many. But, don’t take our
word for it. You know have the ability to learn how to take
your own life to a new level through meditation.
Enlightenment truly can happen through this process of

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experiencing meditation. Most individuals can master is
quickly and therefore will improve their life easily.

Meditation is something to experience, with your full heart
and your empty mind.

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