Get to Know More About Meditation

Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years in various forms around the world, but it has exploded in popularity in recent times. Although the origins of meditation lie in Buddhism, many other religions, spiritual practices, and even psychological treatments incorporate this practice as well. By incorporating meditation practice into your life, you can heal your body, mind, and soul through this holistic practice.

What is Meditation?

Meditation is essentially any practice that involves focusing the mind on a single point with non-judgmental compassionate awareness. This practice mostly became popularized in the Western world after the creation of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program by Jon Kabat-Zinn, a renowned psychologist. This program incorporated elements of the Buddhist Vipassana style of meditation but with aspects of psychology and mindful movement as well. The creation of this program created a mindfulness explosion in the West, and many other styles of meditation have grown in popularity since then as well.

Let's look at some different forms of meditation.

1. Mindfulness Meditation: involves focusing the mind on the breath in a silent sitting practice

2. Yoga Nidra: a form of yogic sleep that incorporates elements of breath awareness, body awareness, and visualization techniques into a guided meditation practice

3. Walking Meditation: involves walking in a slow and concentrated manner while practicing the techniques of mindfulness meditation

4. Mantra Meditation: uses various mantras or sacred phrases and sounds that are chanted either mentally or out loud

5. Ecstatic Dance Meditation: involves free form and mindful movement of the body in a dance, often involves mantra music or sacred sounds as well

6. Sound Bath Meditation: involves the use of Tibetan or crystal sound bowls that create specific sound frequencies while sitting in silent meditation

7. Loving-Kindness Meditation: involves the development of love and kindness towards the self and others in a silent seated meditation

8. Chakra Meditation: involves focusing the mind on the various chakra centers or energetic centers along the spine through the use of visualization techniques

By incorporating meditation into your life, you can begin an inner journey toward holistic healing physically, mentally, and spiritually. Many people think that meditation is just a silent sitting practice, and they believe that they do not have the patience for it. But there are so many different styles of meditation, and some of them even involve movement, singing, and dancing. Mindfulness meditation is an excellent style of meditation for beginners, but if you do not enjoy this style, then there is always something else you can try instead. So, try using some of the above-described meditation styles and start developing a more healthy lifestyle today!