Meditation for Everyone (Even You!)

Yoga Journal

A good deal of mystique has grown around meditation, yet it is one of the most natural of our human capacities. You've no doubt had moments in your life when you were not thinking or analyzing your experience, but simply "going with the flow." In these moments, there was no past or future, no separation between you and what was happening. That is the essence of meditation.

Contrary to a common misunderstanding, meditation is not a limiting or narrowing of our attention so much as it is a focusing on what is relevant. Our attention can be narrow, as in observing our breath, or broad, as in cooking a five-course dinner. When the mind is able to focus on what is relevant to what is happening now, we experience ourselves as being at one with what we perceive. This experience is deeply joyful, as we become freed from the illusion that we are separate from everything else in the universe. In fact, meditation isn't a withdrawal from life but a deeper, fuller presence in life.

Try It, You'll Like It

Sample the following basic practices and you'll no doubt find that the possibilities are limitless. Pick a method and give it a trial run for a week or two before trying another. Suspend for the time being any judgment or doubt, and treat whatever negative reactions arise as mere thought patterns to let go. Then, if you like, try another method. Eventually, you will most likely want to commit to one and go into it wholeheartedly.

CONSCIOUS BREATHING is a basic yet profound concentration practice. Simply bring your attention to the sensation of the breath as it enters and leaves your nostrils. Keep your awareness on the duration of each breath, and when the mind wanders from the breath, just notice that and bring your attention back to the sensations of the breath. If the mind seems very distracted, you may find it helpful to label each breath "in" or "out" and each thought "thinking." Try not to control your breath or visualize it; simply note the sensation just as you feel it.

MANTRA RECITATION, another effective way to cultivate concentration, has been used by many spiritual traditions. Mantras can be one word or syllable or a phrase. Christians often use the mantra "Christ have mercy," while the Hebrew Shma (hear) is used by many meditating Jews. Other common mantras include Om, Amen, and Om mani padme hum (meaning "The jewel is in the lotus"). If these feel too "spiritual" for you, choose a simple word like peace and see how that works. With mantra practice, you can just keep repeating the mantra silently, or you can synchronize it with your breath.

Click here for more meditation methods.

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Posted by Online Editor Erica Rodefer