What is meditation?

What is meditation?

Meditation techniques aren't new. They've been around for thousands of years. Originally the goal of meditation was to help people deepen their understanding and awareness of the sacred and mystical forces of life. But you don't have to be religious to benefit from meditation. Anyone can meditate, regardless of religious or cultural background.

Meditation is one of several types of mind-body techniques. Other therapies use creative outlets such as art, music or dance.

Meditation isn't a medical treatment in the usual sense. But your doctor may recommend you try it because meditation has proven benefits. Meditating each day can help you relax and decrease muscle tension. It can reduce your risk of heart disease by reducing your body's response to the chemicals it produces when you're stressed, such as adrenaline. Adrenaline can raise your blood pressure and make your blood more likely to clot. With continued practice you may reach a point where meditation also reduces your blood pressure.

Meditation continues to be a spiritual and religious practice. In fact, you'll find variations of meditative practice in all of the world's religions. Here's a look at some of the more popular forms of meditation.

Concentration meditation: Calming your mind

Concentration meditation involves focusing your attention on a single object. Objects of meditation can include your breathing, an image you visualize in your mind or a real image you look at, such as a candle flame or sacred icon. One purpose of concentration meditation is to help you focus your attention and concentrate. If you have a lot on your mind and find you're having trouble concentrating in your everyday life, take a break to meditate and return to your project refreshed. Here are some examples.

• Breathe deeply. If you're a beginner, consider starting with this technique. Breathing is a natural function that you won't have to consciously learn. You simply pay attention to your breathing — how it feels when air enters or leaves your nostrils. Don't follow it down to your lungs. When you feel your attention wander, gently return your focus to your breathing.

• Scan your body. When using this technique, you'll focus your attention on sensations, such as pain, tension, warmth or relaxation in different parts of your body. Combine body scanning with breathing exercises and imagine breathing heat or relaxation into and out of different parts of your body.

• Repeat a sacred name or phrase. A mantra is the name of a sacred deity or a sacred phrase that you repeat silently or aloud. You can create your own mantra, if you'd like. Mantras are the building blocks of transcendental meditation. Examples of religious mantras include the Jesus prayer in the Christian tradition, the holy name of God in Judaism, or the om mantra of Tibetan Buddhism.

• Exercise your imagination. A related practice is guided imagery, in which someone's voice, whether taped or live, directs you through a visualization exercise. Once you reach a state of deep relaxation, most likely through meditation, you create a visual image of whatever the person directing the exercise suggests. Perhaps it's a peaceful place, such as a garden, where you feel calm and safe.

Meditaiton in motion: A conscious blend of body and mind

Meditation that includes movement can be spontaneous and free-form or involve highly structured, choreographed, repetitive patterns. This type of meditation may be particularly helpful if you find it hard to sit still. The following are examples:

• Yoga. A 5,000-year-old practice, yoga incorporates breathing, movement and posture to achieve a union of mind, body and spirit. It involves completing a series of postures, during which you pay special attention to your breathing — exhaling during certain movements and inhaling with others. You can approach yoga as a way to promote physical flexibility, strength and endurance or as a way to enhance your spirituality. In either case, you may find that yoga helps you to relax and manage stress.

• Tai chi. This form of meditation is an ancient Chinese exercise practiced at a slow, even speed. Tai chi involves gentle, deliberate circular movements combined with deep breathing. As you concentrate on the motions of your body, you develop a feeling of peace and tranquility.

• Qi gong. This technique also arises from ancient China. Similar to yoga and tai chi, it integrates physical postures, breathing techniques and focused attention. Adherents of traditional Chinese medicine recommend daily practice to maintain overall health and prevent illness.

• Walking meditation. Combining a walk with meditation is an efficient and healthy way to relax. You can use this technique anywhere — in a tranquil forest, on a city sidewalk or even inside a building where you work. When you use this method, slow down the pace of walking so that you can focus on each movement of your legs or feet. Don't focus on a particular destination. Concentrate on your legs and feet, repeating action words such as lifting, moving and placing as you lift each foot, move your leg forward and place your foot on the ground. You can substitute other words if you like. Some people prefer to signal the beginning and end of a walking meditation with a ritual, such as the ringing of a bell, a ceremonial bow, silent prayer or spoken words of thankfulness.

• Sufi walking or dancing. A form of moving meditation that developed in medieval Islam, you'll walk or dance in a rhythmic fashion while chanting. From the Islamic perspective, the intent of the chant is to focus your mind on a specific quality of God, or Allah. If you're Muslim and want to focus on strength and courage, you could walk or dance with forceful steps, arms swinging, and chant "Allah akbar," meaning "God is great." You can merge this meditation technique with any faith tradition and focus on any sacred object or deity. If you don't consider yourself spiritual or religious, you could focus on an aspect of a phenomenon, such as birth or nature, and chant words or phrases symbolic of the phenomenon.

Soothing your spirit: Reflection on meaning and purpose in your life

Do you find that you feel more hopeful after attending a worship service? Do you enjoy taking time to read a daily meditation? Many people find that taking the time to sing, pray, read and reflect on the meaning and purpose of life with like-minded people helps them face life's challenges. Consider these examples:

• Engage in prayer. The best known and most widely practiced example of meditation is prayer. Spoken and written prayers are found in most faith traditions. You can pray using your own words or read prayers written by others. Check the self-help or 12-step-recovery section of your local bookstore for examples. Talk with your rabbi, priest, pastor or other spiritual leader about resources. You may also consider joining a prayer group.

• Read or listen and take time to reflect. Many people report that they benefit from reading poems or sacred texts silently or aloud, and taking a few moments to quietly reflect on the meaning that the words bring to mind. You can listen to sacred music, spoken words or any music you find relaxing or inspiring. You may want to write your reflections in a journal or discuss them with a friend or spiritual leader.

• Focus your love and gratitude. In this type of meditation you focus your attention on a sacred object or being, weaving feelings of love and gratitude into your thoughts. You can also close your eyes and use your imagination or gaze at representations of the object. The adoration of the Holy Eucharist is an example found in Roman Catholicism.

Meditation can calm your mind, relax your body and soothe your spirit. It's inexpensive and risks are minimal. What have you got to lose? Consider these suggestions as you get started:

• Select a meditation technique that fits your lifestyle and belief system. Many people build meditation into their daily routine. For example, you can start your day with a prayer or take a 15-minute walking meditation break in the afternoon. At the end of your workday, you may find inner peace by attending a yoga or tai chi class at your community center.

• Set aside some time. Start with 5-minute meditation sessions once or twice a day and work up to 20 minutes each time. Unless you have an excellent innate sense of time, keep a clock nearby and glance at it occasionally, or set an alarm that's not jarring when it goes off.

• Keep trying. Be kind to yourself as you get started. If you're meditating to calm your mind and your attention wanders, slowly return to the object, sensation or movement you're focusing on. You can use an image to bring yourself back to your focus if you'd like. Try this: Picture balloons floating away with your thoughts, or imagine your thoughts as pigeons and mentally clap your hands to get them to fly away.

• Make meditation part of your life. Many people prefer to start and end their day with a period of meditation. Others prefer to take meditation breaks during the day. Experiment and you'll likely find out what works best for you.