Philippa Faulks - The Secrets of Meditation

PHILIPPA FAULKS

From its ancient beginnings, the art of meditation has developed into a structured practice over thousands of years and is used today by millions of people worldwide. It is truly universal, and is incorporated into the doctrines and practices of differing nationalities and religious beliefs. The best-known spiritual paths include:

Hinduism (India) Indian scriptures dating back 5000 years describe meditation techniques. Hinduism traditionally has six schools of yoga incorporating meditation as a core practice.

Buddhism (India/China/Japan/Tibet) Meditation is central to all forms of Buddhism.

Christianity The use of prayer, the rosary and the Adoration are all forms of meditation.

Judaism Jewish meditation dates back thousands of years. There are two Old Testament words for meditation hg (to meditate) and sh (to muse/rehearse in ones mind).

Islam Mohammed spent long periods in meditation and this practice is fundamental to the mystical side of Islam (Sufism).

Many other faiths record or depict the practice of meditation. To give an example, in Ancient Egypt the spiritual practice of the temple priests involved many hours of meditation. Pharaoh is traditionally shown seated in the Throne posture a position often used for deep meditation.

Taoism, Krishnamurti and Osho, are further examples of faiths which have espoused the benefits and wisdom of meditation, often with a very different concept.

Taoism (Daoism) uses meditation in motion in the form of Tai Chi.

Krishnamurti believed that we should remove choice and the need to strive; meditation to him was about choiceless awareness in the present moment.

Osho (formerly Rajneesh) created Active/Dynamic Meditation, where the person is in a state of movement followed by silence.

Meditation is the practice of focusing on an object, thought or sound, often of a singular nature. The purpose is to calm and clear the mind, so creating a peaceful state whereby we can achieve deep relaxation or a more spiritual state of awareness.

Our minds are often full of a variety of thoughts, good and bad, which can become overwhelming in everyday life. Meditation allows us to stop and unravel those thoughts, giving us a short period in time where all is still, and either our focus is on one fixed thing or our mind is devoid of all thought. This can have a similar effect on our brain as defragmenting our computer shifting all our thoughts into the correct filing system and allowing us to think more clearly and be more aware of our mind and emotions, giving us the chance to achieve equilibrium.

Meditation does not have to be a religious or spiritual practice. Many secular groups practise meditation for the positive mental and physical benefits Progressive Muscle Relaxation, the Relaxation Response and Biofeedback all use techniques drawn from the various spiritual practices but without the doctrine.

Recent medical clinical studies have found that meditation can have a positive effect on stress-related illness, immune function, chronic or terminal illness, cardiovascular and respiratory functions (high blood pressure/heart problems etc), and brain chemistry.

More and more data is becoming available to show the progressive benefits of meditation with or without a spiritual concept and it is now being offered by the Health Service to patients in the UK for stress and pain reduction.

There are no hard and fast rules as to when you should meditate, but to get a real benefit from meditating, it is advisable to dedicate at least one twenty-minute slot every day when you know you will not be disturbed make time for yourself by unplugging/switching off all phones and devices, and asking any family or friends who are around not to disturb you. Once you make the commitment to meditate, you will find a time to suit your daily routine. You may also like to use a timer that can rouse you at the end of your twenty minutes.

Try to build up to two twenty-minute sessions a day for optimum benefit.

If you are travelling you may have to adapt your time slots but when you are more experienced you can make use of the time on the train or plane to disconnect from daily life.

Again this is entirely up to you but initially it needs to be somewhere quiet, comfortable and free from distraction. Do not attempt to meditate in a cluttered, noisy environment try to keep your meditation area as calm and minimal as possible.

We will discuss shortly how you should sit but you may wish to have a choice of a chair, cushions, a blanket, etc.

Keep the room comfortably warm or cool depending on the weather and you can add little touches such as incense, a statue or natural objects to your meditation area as you wish. In time, when you are an experienced meditator you may find you are able to meditate almost anywhere outside, on a train or even in a thunder storm without becoming uncomfortable or distracted.

Before you begin to meditate properly, it is often useful to learn how to relax. This may sound ridiculous but in the modern world we have almost forgotten how to be completely at ease in our body. Often we have a nagging ache or area of tension and if you are going to be sitting or lying in one position, it is important that you are comfortable. When you have learnt this simple relaxation technique, you will find it easy to lie or sit and calm yourself quickly and with ease.

This is one of the simplest and most comfortable postures to start with for meditation.

In the Burmese posture the legs are not crossed, the knees are turned outwards to the floor. The legs are bent and the feet placed in front of the pelvis with one foot in front of the other. Your hands rest on the knees, at the top of the thighs or on the heels. Feel free to adjust the position of the feet until you are comfortable; it is perfectly acceptable either to have the feet straight in front of each other or to let them pass so that one foot is next to the other ankle. You may have to adjust the angle slightly to allow you to place your calves or knees on the floor.