“Meditation exists within us–we’ve just got to find it”

Meditation is probably the simplest of daily routines we can pick up that can tremendously increase our physical and mental wellbeing. At the most basic level, meditation is a process of consciously watching our thoughts, emotions, feelings and desires, to understand them better. This is why sitting quiet is a very important component of meditation.

Although meditation is one of the most ancient sciences, it is more relevant today than ever before. Our lifestyles have become so mechanistic and stressful that finding a way to relax our minds and bodies is very important. Meditation helps us to reduce our stress levels significantly and handle our emotions better.

Stress is a direct consequence of uncontrolled thought process. When certain thoughts take over us fully and we are not able to find our inner silence, stress is a natural consequence. Meditation works directly to overcome stress by helping us to understand our thought processes better. The more we understand our thought process, the easier it becomes to be in control of it.

Meditation has absolutely nothing to do with sitting cross-legged, chanting some mantras or holding your breath for extended periods.  Your hands don’t have to be in any particular position. Meditation is a very natural process of sitting in a comfortable posture and allowing your mind and body to relax. Relaxation is the key to meditation. We can choose any posture that is comfortable for our meditation: You can sit on a chair or go underwater, it simply doesn’t matter; although it might be a little difficult to stay relaxed under water!

Pick a comfortable posture, but not so comfortable that it puts you to sleep. A posture that can help you to relax and at the same time stay alert is the best posture. You can lighten up the mood with some pleasant instrumental music. Assigning a designated place for meditation will work wonders in setting your biological clock to remember your daily meditations. The place itself will remind you of your meditation.

Choose a quiet place and set an alarm for the duration of your choice. To begin with, at least fifteen to thirty minutes is a good meditation duration. Sit comfortable, close your eyes, begin to watch your breath. Keep your focus on the breath flowing in and out, and watch your breath throughout the practice. With every breath, try to relax your mind and body a little more. It is amazing how much we can relax if we consciously try. That’s it, that is all meditation is – sitting quiet and keeping your focus on the breath. Meditation is within us–we’ve just got to find it!

The magic of meditation is actually not in the technique, it is in what happens to your mind while you are practicing a technique. The constantly noisy and chaotic mind will begin to settle down after few days of regular practice of meditation. This will significantly improve your clarity of perception, your ability to stay relaxed, and your ability to handle difficult life situations.

Meditation has a positive impact in many dimensions of our lives:

• Helps us to understand ourselves better
• Increases our self confidence
• Helps us to stay calm and relaxed during certain stressful situations
• Increases our ability to recollect things, which drastically improves our memory
• Helps us to function in a more conscious way, avoiding unnecessary daily repetitions and mistakes.

There is no wrong way to meditate.  As long as you are sitting quietly, not falling asleep, and watching your thoughts, you are meditating and you will see results.  Additionally, meditation has absolutely nothing to do with religion; it is purely a scientific process. Science is all about observation and understanding what is happening around us. Similarly, meditation is all about observing and understanding what is happening within us. If external science has created such wonders, just imagine what this inner science can do for your life.