How to Meditate Effectively

How to Meditate: Getting Started with Meditation Practice: Two Main Goals are Posture and Circulation.

1.)Traditional Cross-Legged: It is important to have your hips positioned higher than the knees to avoid circulation issues in which your feet may fall asleep. A good meditation cushion is very helpful for producing the traditional cross-legged position. The traditional practice of touching thumbs to the forefingers is highly recommended, although not mandatory, to allow for the greatest energy flow throughout your body. If traditional cross-legged is too difficult, due to inflexibility or back pain you can modify this position by sitting on the floor with your back against a wall, a cushion underneath you in order to keep your hips positioned higher than your knees and your legs comfortably out in front of you. For those with severe back pain or other serious issues that prevent you from sitting up for any prolonged period of time, lying on a firm surface such as the floor or a yoga mat, is acceptable. Use a small pillow to cushion your head and remember this is meditation and not nap time, you want to be comfortable and relaxed but your mind is to remain alert to achieve desired results. As eluded to above, meditation requires and yields the best results when good posture is observed, since most of us don't normally exercise proper posture this may seem a little difficult at first, however, like with most things, it will get easier with consistent daily practice. You should also be properly balancing your head on top of your shoulders so as to create the least amount of neck strain. Experimenting with this will allow you to find your optimal head position. It is very important that no matter which meditation posture you choose, that you maintain a flat back with no slouching, as meditation can be considered a practice of good posture, as much as anything else.

2.)Meditation Stools: One of the best choices for creating a proper meditation position is the use of a meditation stool. A meditation stool sits only 10-12 inches off the ground and creates an optimal meditation position, allowing for proper posture and circulation based on the way it is designed.

How to Meditate: Four Important Fundamentals that You Should Understand about Meditation on any Level:

1.) Before you ever begin a meditation practice you must first develop a willingness to explore the inner workings of yourself, in all facets, and thereby open your mind to the idea of meditation practice. Meditation practice seeks to explore and uncover your inner workings in order to give you a better idea of ways in which you can become more successful and achieve a greater sense of inner peace. This process of uncovering your inner workings is not always an easy one and at times can be a little uncomfortable but temporary discomfort in meditation always gives way to greater self-understanding and more and more inner peace as old ways of being and thinking come to the surface of your reality they become exposed, felt and handily disposed.

2.) You must pick something to FOCUS your attention on. The 4 categories of things to focus on in meditation are as follows: and this becomes a personal preference based on your goals and interests and remember that mixing up the different things you focus on keeps it interesting and is also a beneficial practice because a resistance to one mode of mental focus might signify an area that needs the most work. You can focus on the breath, an object(either a physical or a mental or imaginary one), a mantra, or music. See meditation techniques for different methods of meditation that you can do from each of these categories.

3.) Allow your thoughts to just be. Gently let your mind clear, and this may take some time and practice to get better at it, but this too will improve with practice.

4.) Understand that whatever happens is what is supposed to happen and what is perfect for that time and place or in other words don't have any expectations. You will start to feel results immediately upon properly practicing meditation so refrain from trying to decide whether it's working or not or how well it's working or judging your practice based on how you perceive others would do. Just let things unfold naturally without reaction, just try to remain in quiet observation, as if you were watching yourself from another vantage point.

How to Meditate: How to Deal with the Thoughts that Arise During Meditation:

     During the meditative process thoughts will inevitably start to surface in your mind. Sometimes you may experience a more busy mind during meditation, and sometimes you may experience, especially as your practice progresses, a more quiet and subtle mind. Having thoughts surface during meditation is completely normal and is actually an integral part of the meditation process in which the stored mental clutter is brought to the surface and is released. In this way meditation is the ultimate mental cleanser. The key is how you learn to deal with these thoughts as they arise. It is important to understand your role in meditation as an observer being detached from your thoughts. Because thoughts are really just representations of reality and not actual reality one way to successfully detach yourself from them is to imagine your thoughts as distant white clouds just floating in your realm of consciousness moving freely as they wish and then disappating into the air as they become irrelevant. Another technique used for achieving this thought detachment is to imagine your thoughts as moving banners on your minds computer screen in which you are able to permanently delete them with one click of the mouse. You are free to develop your own method for dealing with the thoughts that arise during meditation as well, the point is to develop an observation of your thoughts without having a reaction to them or letting them distract you from your meditation practice. By mastering this process you will start to gain more control over your mind which is a main goal of meditation.

How to Meditate: Enhance the Quality of Your Meditation by Creating a Meditative Environment:

     Creating a space in your home more conducive to meditation enhances the experience and therefore the results. Design a meditative environment that eliminates foreseeable distractions, turn off your cell phone, computer and television. It is beneficial to create a meditation environment that includes if possible, running water, soothing instrumental music, a meditation garden or just plain silence.

A Simple Deep Breathing Meditation that Induces Total Relaxation in Just 5 Minutes:

1.)Get into a preferred meditation posture as discussed above, preferably in an environment conducive to meditation.

2.)Begin by mentally getting into an observation mode and, quietly, without opinion, notice your environment exactly as it is, in the here and now.

3.)As you do this and when you feel comfortable lightly and gently close your eyes and when you are ready slowly shift your attention to your breath and your breathing patterns. Most people usually notice that their breathing is pretty shallow and that just by focusing on it makes them breathe more deeply bringing on an immediate relaxation sensation. With your eyes continuing to be lightly closed and your attention on your breathing slowly allow your attention to drift to your other senses and begin to realize how much more heightened they become as you notice faint sounds and subtle scents. Start to notice in greater awareness the feeling of the clothes you are wearing and how they feel touching your body.

4.)After exploring your senses for as long as you like and when you are ready slowly bring your attention back to your breathing, try to fill your lungs and abdomen with a little more fresh, cleansing air with each inhale and just be in the present breathing. Continue focusing on your breathing for as much as 5 more minutes and notice your entire body begin to relax and picture any stress you might have as leaving your body and dissipating with every exhalation.

5.)When you feel thoroughly relaxed and as if you have released any and all stress you were carrying gently open your eyes and bring your attention back to the here and now of your environment, you have just concluded a very basic and also powerful beginning meditation.

     This very simple meditation, that propagates the relaxation response, is something that is designed to be integrated into your daily life. By continually observing life through all of your senses,in the present tense, even during routine duties throughout the day your life finds new balance and meaning as you begin to appreciate life's more subtle beauties and rewards. By continually bringing your focus back to your breathing you maintain a calmness even in "stressful" situations that allows you to better handle the situation in a more constructive and emotionally healthy way. These benefits that you begin to see in your daily life, of better coping with stress etc. don't happen overnight, however, but with routine daily practice over time, you will undoubtedly see these benefits gain strength and become more prominent traits.