Meditation Info

Monday, August 01, 2005

Tips for Better Meditation

Meditation students often come to me and ask what they can do to improve their meditation. Success in meditation is not the result of any one single factor but depends on sustained and systematic effort over a period of time. However, there are a few tips for meditation, that will help you to improve your performance, regardless of the meditation method that you follow.
1. Prepare your body for meditation
Your physical condition has a tremendous influence on your mind. This is true for your day to day activity, but even more so when it comes to meditation. You can prepare your body for meditation by eating the right food, and by coming to meditation with an empty stomach. Eating the right food, means food which strengthens the body but doesn't have any adverse affect on the mind. If you consume products that make the mind dull or over-stimulated then it will be much harder to meditate. And whatever your diet is, when you sit down to meditate, it should be on an empty stomach. That is why one of the best times to meditate is in the morning, before you have had your breakfast. Another good time is in the evening, before the evening meal.
2. Prepare Your Mind for Meditation
Just as your body must be prepared, so must your mind. Before you start meditation you must convince yourself, that this period of meditation is your time for personal growth, and that it is important, as important as anything else in your life. When you close your eyes to meditate, you should not jump up to answer the phone, or get ready to leave your meditation due to some slight disturbance. If you convince yourself of the importance of meditation, then your example will also convince others around you and they won't disturb you during meditation. So, remember your periods of meditation are one of the most important parts of your daily routine, and treat them as such.
3. Sing Before Meditation
The Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore once said, "God respects me when I work, but He loves me when I sing." That explains the place of song and music in all the great spiritual traditions. Before you begin meditation you can sing spiritual songs, whose meaning elevates your mind. It doesn't matter if you have "good" voice or a "bad" voice, sing from the heart, and your mind will go to a point that will be the ideal starting point for your meditation.
4. Sit in a Proper Position
Remember when you were in school and the teacher looked around and saw someone slumping in his or her seat, and she said "sit up straight!" She had a good point; when the back is straight the mind is alert. Sit in a position that will keep the back straight. Sit with cross legs in a simple position, or a half-lotus or a full lotus. In addition to making the mind more alert, these positions help you to rest the various motor organs, and provide a peaceful physical base for your meditation.
In the beginning these positions may seem difficult or uncomfortable, but if you can get used to them, they will help you to deepen your meditation.
5. Follow the Meditation Instructions Exactly
Remember carefully what your meditation instructor taught you and do your best to carry it out, exactly according to the instructions. Don't experiment and make up your own method. The various systems of meditation are based on thousands of years of experience, so you don't have to try to figure out what to do. Take advantage of the age-old knowledge of the past, and you will make rapid strides towards a bright future. If you have forgotten any part of your meditation method, go and see your instructor and get a review of your lesson.
6. Be Regular in Your Meditation Practice
This is one of the key factors to success. Meditation works, if you work. If you only do meditation once a month or on whim, when you feel like it, then it will be impossible to be successful and realize the benefits of meditation: mental clarity, inner peace, love for others and spiritual awareness. Make meditation a part of your daily routine. Just as surely as the sun comes up each day, do your meditation without fail. Fix a time for it in the morning and evening and do it on a regular basis If you get into the habit of doing your practice regularly, then you have taken one of the single most important steps towards success in meditation, and indeed, in your life.
7. Be Patient
"Rome wasn't built in a day," and similarly you cannot make miraculous changes in your personality or in your spiritual life in just one sitting of meditation. Don't be discouraged if you feel that nothing is happening. Meditation is a subtle art, the changes come slowly but surely. Keep on practicing and your meditation is sure to deepen and you will indeed be successful.
About the Author
Dada Vedaprajinananda has been practicing and teaching meditation for the past 33 years. He is a senior teacher with the Ananda Marga spiritual movement and also the webmaster of the Ananda Marga website (www.anandamarga.org). Dada is also a writer, singer and songwriter and his work can be found on his website, www.dadaveda.com.dada@dadaveda.com
This article courtesy of http://themeditationsource.com.You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and URL remain intact.

Wednesday, July 27, 2005

Meeting Jesus In Meditation

Meeting Jesus In MeditationA K Whitehead
There are many approaches to prayer. Not least because there are many different needs. But the greatest of all our needs is to get nearer to Jesus. The most powerful form of prayer for this purpose is arguably Christian meditation.
This article discusses some of the special aspects of Christian meditation
Sources Of The Benefits Of Christian Meditation Meditation has a very long history in Christianity and has taken various forms. But meditation on Scripture, and not least the gospels, is a kind which has great power.
How does the power come about?. From three sources: which work together to bring us closer to God:
1. From the Holy Spirit, of course. But this kind of prayer makes a very special kind of requirement on us and on the Spirit, and that is expressed in terms of
2. Faith. Obviously, the very act of prayer, any prayer, involves some kind of faith. But the degree of faith which this form of prayer demands can be quite different than in other forms of prayer.
3. Consistency. To really get into this kind of prayer one needs a daily commitment which is kept consistently. It is often said that "grace builds on nature" and that is very true. In this case it is true because we need to become habitually open to the way in which the Spirit works within us. We shall not achieve that unless we become habitual in our habits of prayer.
Essentials Of Christian Meditation Christian meditation on the Bible is essentially straightforward in terms of what we do and the procedure we follow. However, there are many questions and issues which arise from the process. Too many to consider in a short article such as this. The subject receives an in-depth treatment in the book "The Keys To Meditation" by Keith & Iris Whitehead. But here we can indicate some of the essentials and some important benefits.
This kind of meditation should not be confused in any ways with types derived from Eastern religions, such as Hinduism. It is quite different and essentially Christian. Very often it is associated with Ignatius of Loyola because, after his conversion, he developed a particularly clear method of approach.
This involves reading Scripture in a particular way. At its essence is explicitly allowing the Holy Spirit to reveal to us the nature and meaning of what, after all, he himself has written over the centuries.
The Subject MatterFor a Christian, the most important part of Scripture is the New Testament. While, we can meditate on the Old Testament, the former is, at least, the best place to start. Sometimes we meditate on the gospels; sometimes on the letters or Acts or Revelations. In the latter cases the approach is somewhat different in important respects to meditating on the gospels. However, it is meditation on the gospels which can bring us repeatedly face-to-face with Jesus in real and dynamic ways.
Some Of The Benefits Of Christian Meditation The reality of meeting with Jesus in this way is a principle benefit. But it must not be either over-emphasised nor under-emphasised. The first is a danger because the actual experience of meditation will vary considerably from day-to-day or as between prayer periods on the same day. Few people with considerable experience in meditation would deny the reality of this meeting.
But some with limited experience may tend to overstress these encounters. They get carried away with what the Holy Spirit is providing for them over a particular period of time. But the Spirit deals with us in very different ways at different times.
On the other hand, these experiences are real, of great value and bring many blessings and should not be ignored. Certainly, we should avoid becoming "hucked" on them. That is a real possibility and must not be allowed to happen. People like John of the Cross have warned repeatedly about such dangers.
Allowing Freedom For The Holy Spirit To Work Moreover, we need to allow the Spirit to balance the graces he is giving us. This requires mixing meditation periods on the gospels with other periods on, say, the letters of the New Testament, or the Psalms are a good source for beginning to meditate on the Old Testament.
One of the greatest benefits which a Christian has in his relationship with God is the very fact that God dwells within him. For example, Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 2:12 that we have not received the spirit of the world, but we have received the Spirit who is from God. The reason for this is so that we may understand what God has freely given us.
When we do understand that, we understand that he needs to be given both the freedom and opportunity to work within us to the maximum possible degree. Only in that way shall we continue in the process of becoming like Jesus. That, after all, is what our lives are about.
About The Author:A K WhiteheadWeb Site: www.christianword.co.uk Email: akw@christianword.co.uk Experience: Over twenty years in Christian healing and teaching. Qualifications: B.A., M.Phil., Camb Univ Cert in Religious Studies Conditions of use: This article may be reproduced on condition that it is unaltered and that all this information is included.
This article courtesy of http://themeditationsource.com.You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and URL remain intact.

Saturday, July 23, 2005

How You Can Unite Meditation, Divine Essence and Personal Tenacity to Serve Your Highest Purpose on This Earth

1. Meditation:
Meditation is a sacred practice. Shamans, gurus, priests, medicine men and other wise beings have practiced meditation for over 5000 years. In the 20th century, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi popularized one form of meditation he named Transcendental Meditation, This is a simple form of mantra meditation, easy to learn and to do.
We meditate by sitting quietly, eyes open, and concentrating on an image such as a mandala, or a candle, or sitting with closed eyes, and, in either case, repeating a mantra. A mantra is not a word. A mantra is a sound. Different sounds, repeated over and over and over again, affect energies within the body, each in its own way.
There are many ways to meditate. In most instances, you sit quietly. Teachers may recommend different postures. These include the lotus position in which the Buddha is often depicted. Diverse cultures recommend various deployments of the fingers. (one example: thumbs and forefingers lightly touching, palms up.)
When we meditate, we slow down our brain waves. We change them from the beta state, (22 cycles per second in normal waking consciousness) to the alpha state (11 cycles per second.)
This slower vibration opens up access to the subconscious mind. The subconscious mind, in turn, opens awareness of our otherwise inaccessible higher consciousness. To higher consciousness as well as to universal intelligence.
2. Divine Essence:
When a person's intentions are pure, they surrender selflessly to their higher purpose in life. They surrender themselves in the service of the creator of us all. Diverse cultures variously call the creator God, some Allah, some the Great Spirit, some Our Heavenly Father, some use various other names, all meaning the supreme intelligence, the creator of the universe, of all that is.
In this state of surrender, a person is in touch with their divine essence. Having pure intentions, they are harmless. They are interested only in higher service.
On the other hand, some people who develop access to their higher powers, use their higher powers for selfish, negative and harmful intentions. (Darth Vader types.)
Your intuition may be trusted to inform you, to warn you of people with negative and evil designs. These people are to be resolutely avoided.
3. Bulldog Tenacity:
When we unite the practice of meditation with surrender to our divine essence, we are likely to be empathetic, loving, and harmless.
And if we are to advance ourselves in the relative world, the temporal world, the ordinary world of people, places, and events, a third quality is required.
This quality is bulldog tenacity. Do you know the nature of a bulldog? A bulldog is tenacious in defending its master and the master's property. Their teeth lock onto the presumed invader. Their grip is an iron grip. That iron grip prevails even in death.
This means that when your intentions are noble and worthy,when the outcome of your intentions somehow contributes to making this a better world, you are to never, never, never give up.
You are to "pay any price, bear any burden" to bring your intentions into objective reality. This is the way to justify the space you take up and the resources you consume while you draw breath.
This is the way you make a positive difference in the lives you touch.
This is the way you make yourself a role model for others. And, most important of all, this is the way you leave a lasting legacy.
Burt Dubin, a 20 year veteran of the business of speaking, coaches and mentors speakers and wanna-be's world-wide. For samples of his wisdom, simply go to his web-site, http://www.SpeakingBizSuccess.com or 1 Speaking Success Road, Kingman, Arizona 86402-6543, USA. Phone 800-321-1225. Fax 928-753-7554. mailto: burt@SpeakingBizSuccess.com Copyright 2003 Burt Dubin
This article courtesy of http://themeditationsource.com.You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and URL remain intact.

Friday, July 22, 2005

Meditation--a pathway to the inner self

Gives an overview of meditation and its benefits.Often times to the inexperienced or unfamiliar, the very idea of meditation can conjure up such visions as a robed master sitting on some remote mountain top, chanting a primordial sound all in order to evoke some deeply altered mental state. To the ever increasing numbers who are finding value in this form of inner communication however, meditation has become a valuable tool to everyday life, in terms of its positive impact on body, mind and soul.
Like many other "alternative" practices such as herbal medicine and acupuncture which are enjoying a big resurgence in interest today, meditation can be traced back thousands of years to the health related and spiritual rituals of both eastern and western civilizations. To understand its true essence, short of actually experiencing some form of meditation, would be to grasp the concept that it involves a quieting of both mind and body in order to better access our own inner voice or intuitive insights.
Although this may seem at first glance to sound a bit remote and far fetched, if we can understand and accept that in each and every moment of our lives we exist as a tri-dimensional being of mind, body and soul regardless of whether we are aware of this or not, then perhaps the idea of tapping into our own intuitive voice does not seem that far fetched to us after all.
Meditation can take many forms, from the most basic of breath meditations in order to gain a moment of peace and relaxation by sitting quietly for a few moments in silence and putting focus on our breathing, to the much more spiritually provoking, where in our stillness we can open up to divine energies and knowledge that can help us heal virtually every facet of our sometimes complex lives. Often times this will involve becoming quiet and listening to a spoken dialogue which can take us on an inner journey, or perhaps going into the silence with a specific question or intent, to see what our own wisdom may be trying to tell us at the time.
It does not take a moment of crisis or deep spiritual dilemma in order to fully access what is deep within, although for most of us, this seems to be when we are most vulnerable and willing to allow our true selves in. Take for example the day to day stresses of job, raising family, financial concerns etc.. and imagine for a moment that there are ways to help offset these concerns by taking a little time each day if possible, to silence ourselves and access the peacefulness and bliss that is there waiting to be tapped into. Imagine also that if we choose to do so, that we can begin a process of understanding how to resolve our areas of concern by beginning to understand why these issues are present in our lives in the first place and where there is room for personal growth. The various means of meditation are just such a path and can be of great value to us.
To begin to experience meditation first hand I would recommend the following exercise when you have a few moments of time to yourself: Go to an area of your home where you can be alone and undisturbed. If you like, play some gentle, melodic music in the background. If candles, incense or use of aromatherapy essential oils are to your liking, make use of them at this time. For the next 10 minutes or so, close your eyes and sit comfortably in a chair, or lie down and begin to focus on your breathing. As you begin to settle down, try to let go of all extraneous thought, without making an extreme effort to struggle to do so. Reflect on the phrase "Peace And Harmony Are Now Within My Total Being". After you have had time to feel a sense of ease and calm come over you, begin to open your eyes and stretch your body and gently rise and go about the rest of your day. Try to avoid bolting up and rushing immediately into activity. Do this exercise every day for a week, particularly if times are stressful and see if you gradually begin to notice more inner calm and tranquillity in your life.
The range of benefits in making meditation a regular part of your life, are a hundred-fold, be it reduction of stress, better physical and emotional health, or in making deeper spiritual connection. Try it today to see if it can begin to make a difference in your own life.
About the Author
In her diversified career as a holistic practitioner, Tracy Norwalk has conducted corporate stress relief programs, taught classes in Aromatherapy as a certified practitioner, and worked as a Nationally Certified Massage Therapist for state-of-the-art spas in both Pennsylvania and California. She has designed and sold her own all-natural bath and body line, and done freelance newspaper writing on topics pertaining to alternative medicine. In addition, she has studied and works with various forms of energy healing techniques. Web address: www.geocities.com/naturelady42
This article courtesy of http://themeditationsource.com.You may freely reprint this article on your website or in your newsletter provided this courtesy notice and the author name and URL remain intact.