Meditation Articles

We all remember the Jim Jones tragedy, which resulted from a deadly combination - a charismatic leader who knew how to influence and control people, and weak willed followers who couldn't discriminate between fact and fiction. In the cramped confines of a cult, rationality goes out the ...

Do you know that you can easily get all the benefits of meditating without meditating? So what kind of benefits am I talking about? *Increased mental abilities, learning abilities and concentration… *Greater creativity, Ah-ha! experiences and intuitive powers… *Release of emotional blockages that sap your energy… *Elimination of stress and stress-related symptoms such as sleeping problems, anxiety and frustration… *Delay or reverse the aging process… In deep meditat

Lately there has been a great deal of oxygen in the air for conversations about the plight of our new generation of combat veterans. While stories about moldy outpatient clinics and traumatic brain injury compete for (much deserved) attention, there is another, underground story going on. We're ...

Just suppose you could open your heart to love in order to find the strength to forgive. How often have you found yourself experiencing some kind of circumstance in which you find forgiving someone (or maybe even yourself) nearly impossible. In the past you may have thought that holding on to feelings of resentment or judgment simply felt safer, that you wanted people to change before you were going to be willing to forgive them. Know in your mind now that you will be able to discover another answer to finding the strength to forgive.r

Although there are many different approaches to meditation, the fundamental principles remain the same. There are literally thousands of different meditation techniques, so I'll try to summarize for you the basics behind them. Many have you focus on the breath or a mantra. These are simply tools to help you reach the desired meditative state.nnBreathingnnThe simplest meditation technique of all is to simply watch your breath. All you need to do is simply breathe in and out wh

Journeys of lifelong evolution often begin simply. No matter how complex the goal or desire we have nurtured in our souls, the first steps we take are nearly always basic and uncomplicated. Navel meditation, a creation of the Taoist tradition and the oldest form of meditation recognized in China and India, is a simple practice suitable for those experienced in the art of mediation, yet it is also a wonderful introductory meditation for novices. It utilizes the natural rhythms

One of the easiest types of meditation to start with is probably the breath awareness method. It's simple, non-religious, since we all breathe and the breath is always there so. This is sometimes called anapanasati and was taught by the Buddha in the early scriptures, which are preserved in Pali language and translated into Sanksrit as well. A benefit of this type of meditation* is that it deepens concentration as the attempt is to keep the mind on one thing. In this case the

Binaural beats can help you to have a deep meditation experience. They were discovered by Heinrich Wilhelm Dove in 1839. He was a Prussian meteorologist and physicist. Doctor Gerald Oster made the world aware of the technology. This was via a paper called "Auditory Beats in the Brain". Binaural means relating to or having two ears - which applies to humans quite nicely. The process itself sends marginally sound frequencies to your ears, usually via headphones. These frequenci

“Why am I here? What is my purpose in life?” Asking these questions marks the beginning of your search to finding your life’s purpose. Following the path toward a life of meaning and purpose is different for everyone. Here are some steps that have been taken by many who live a fulfilling ...

Praise and worship is the means of communicating with a sacred object, a god, a lord or the oneness of God. It is universal, the method of performing the rituals continue to diverge from different faiths. The technique of praise and worship are numerous and each is directed to different depths of the relationship with the Lord.

You have no idea that when it comes to the variety of different meditation techniques and methods that are currently available that Yoga Nidra is one of the oldest and most effective guided meditation techniques that you can experience. As you can imagine, Yoga Nidra is literally translated into yogic sleep which means that this guided meditation technique is going to drop you into the deepest states of your being to help resolve and transform your life in a variety of different ways.

What do you gain from meditation? Consider what could be. Imagine “a world of peace and ease,” yours without changing a thing. Imagine perfect mental balance: “a balance of mind never upset by any event under the canopy of heaven.” Meditation promises great things: “Great Liberation;” “Great Knowledge;” “Great tranquility.” The promise however is rarely fulfilled. Most who meditate gain little more than rest and relaxation. The shortfall is due to flaw in traditional methods.

We in America are just beginning to understand what the phrase "Letting the cat out of the bag" is all about. This idiom means that a secret has been somehow accidentally disclosed, and in America's case, the secret has dire ramifications. The phrase has been traced back to around the middle ages where dishonest farmers would sell piglets packaged in opaque, black bags that you couldnt see through. But there were no piglets in the bags . . . there were cats! Which were much less expensive than piglets.

At one time many years ago, I had a female student who came to learn Vipassana meditation with me. After some weeks she was met by a friend who also claimed a meditation practice.rn‘How long have you been learning?’ asked the friend.rn‘Oh, for about six weeks now,’ my student replied.rn‘Are you seeing green lights yet?’ continued the friend.rn‘No,’ replied my student somewhat startled by the question.rn‘Then your meditation isn’t working!’ said the friend.

rnOnce upon a time, thirty some years ago I began my meditation practice. It all started in my junior year of college at chilly Northern Michigan University. I was initiated into a popular meditation tradition. In the intervening years, I have struggled to keep this practice going and over time because of the struggle, I have invested a lot of money into other types of meditation that promised to help me clear my mind of thoughts. It was not until very recently that I was int

Beginning Meditation Techniques Meditation is simply the practice of neutrally attempting to focus your attention on one object (physical or mental) or on a verbal word or phrase ("Peace" or "Om" for example) for a period of time. There are many styles of meditation to choose from, we will discuss two basic ones that are easy to learn for beginning meditation. 1. Grounding One basic component, in learning meditation, that can be used alone or in addition to other meditation

Why, Self, am I writing to you? Well, for one thing, you’ve been a busy lately. I’ve had trouble getting your attention. Sometimes you can get someone’s attention with a memo, so I thought I’d give it a try. Anyhow, why do I suggest that you find the time to ...

Seeing the Buddhann He who sees me, sees the Dhamma, He who sees the Dhamma, sees me. Vakkali Sutta This short, but beautiful verse expresses completely our spiritual journey, and the goal ...

How many times have you caught yourself immersed in thoughts? What you did yesterday, what went on a year ago, what will happen tomorrow, your next assignment, your financial expectations, blah, blah, blah.rnAnd what good did thinking about any of this do to you? I mean, some planning in life certainly is useful, but really. rnWhat good are you doing to yourself when you worry about, say, that job interview next week? Come on. Reason with me here. Have you done all you can do

Janet and I decided play a little tennis recently to get a cardio workout. The last time we played was almost 30 years ago when we first met, so we knew the fundamentals but were, to say the least, a bit rusty! At 56 and 66 respectively, Janet and I aren't exactly Serena Williams and Roger ...

Endings are inevitable. There is nothing in physical reality that always stays the same. It is impossible. Some endings are wonderful and some are not so pretty, but they always mean the same thing—something new must be started. If endings are truly viewed as beginning, there is more happiness around the ending when you are in the midst of it. Sometimes you might feel that an ending is unfortunate, be it a relationship, a business, or some other situation you wanted to continue to hold on to, especially if it gave you joy, stability or simply was familiar.

No, this is not an article about dissolving a third marriage! This is about untying the knots that we make in our minds. Whenever we tie ourselves to someone or something, we make a knot. Over time, these knots accumulate, and our minds become nothing but large balls of tangled twine. A mind ...

Loneliness is a widespread problem in Western society, especially among older adults, which doesn’t seem to get enough attention. As adults grow older, there is a tendency for them to become more isolated from their families and society in general. A study published recently in a scientific journal found that mindfulness meditation helps older adults overcome loneliness. This is good news for seniors because loneliness is a major risk factor for various health conditions such as Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular disease.

USA TODAY reports that "Despite population growth and immigration adding nearly 50 million more adults, almost all denominations have lost ground since the first ARIS data was released in 1990. The 2008 results, released today, April 25th, are based on 54,000 interviews with a margin of error of plus or minus 0.5%." On their interactive map, data that was collected over 18 years from the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) is available state by state.

Using guided meditations can be a great way to start off your meditating. It's a quick and easy way to take your mind down a certain route and using a guided meditation makes it simple to stay on track. So long as you can listen to a CD or MP3 track, you can use a guided meditation.nnNaturally there are general meditations available, which are often used for relaxation. In today's fast paced, hectic lifestyle this can be a great way to unwind. They have the added advantage th

Honor the Feminine in Us and in Others By Stephen Ruppenthalnnwww.directawakenings.com One day this past winter, I decided to take in a talk on the Buddhist mother of compassion, Kuan Yin. Interested people, and not only women, flooded out the doors of the bookstore where it was being held. ...

I placed two carefully chosen, unpeeled hard boiled eggs in my favorite white ceramic bowl. These are very special eggs – laid by free range hens who are not given steroids, hormones, or antibiotics, and are fed only organic or natural grains. While all of these points are important to ...

A culture of heart is emerging into the world. We are moving from a culture of the mind. The mind has gotten us where we are today. It will be the heart which leads us forward into a new era. How can we think about the heart? The heart is physical, emotional and spiritual. The heart synthesizes and the mind analyzes. Our core self is located inside our hearts. The heart is the basis for all religion. A mystic is one who connects with the divine current through meditation practices. Anyone can do this.

How can you tell if your love is real? The following self-tests will help. Answer “yes” or “no” to each question. 1) Does your love need to hear the words “I love you?” (Yes. No.) Looking into your eyes, does your love need to hear you say: “I love you.” Thomas Carlyle wrote: “Under all speech that is good for anything lies a silence that is better.” This is especially true of love. Love’s union is most complete when the thinking mind is silent. Saying: “I love you” (or anything else) disrupts love’s flow. 2) Is your love exclusive? (Yes.

Life on this planet is but a few moments long, considering the endless eons this earth has twirled around its sun. Long after life has found this planet too unfriendly, and after all of our accomplishments are burned up in that incredible supe ova that our sun will evolve into just before it ...

Sit quietly in a comfortable place with your eyes closed. Take a few deep breaths, in through your nose and out through your mouth. Listening to the rhythm of your breath, feel your body relaxing from the top of your head, all the way down to the tips of your toes...nnBegin to form a vivid picture in your mind. See before you a large golden chalice, spilling over with a pale green light. The soft glow of this light is calming to look at and seems to emanate a sound like a tho

The Mahakala Buddha is a Dharmapala, or “protector of dharma”, who resides in the fourth hierarchy of deities, and is most associated with the Vajrayana Buddhism. Mahakala’s Sanskrit meaning comes from its roots of “Maha”, or “great”, and “kala”, meaning “black”. Tibetans generally tend to refer to Mahakala as “the protector”. He is also referred to as “Lord of the Tent” by the nomadic Tibetans, who often call upo Mahakala to protect them in their tents Mahakala is called Daheitian by the Chinese, and Daikokuten by the Japanese.

When you are searching for meditation techniques or want meditation instruction, whether you are looking for relaxation meditation or spiritual meditation techniques, if you are an advanced student or a beginner, if you are searching for anxiety relief or anything else...whatever reason you may want to meditate, it’s important to keep in mind that there are many different kinds of meditation.

You grow in major Spiritual Steps with every situation you experience in your life! But did you know that even the miserable and not-so-nice stuff that happens to you every day could really have the biggest benefits? How could that be? Just look at the three ways gratitude can enhance your ...

Do you want to know where some of the worst places are for men to meet and attract women are? Bars and clubs, online dating, speed dating events and anywhere else where you r primary purpose for being there is to meet and attract women. Now that you might have noticed that these are also some ...

Astral Travel For Beginners - 5 Tips That Will Pave Your Way To Success Astral traveling for beginners is not too different from that of the people that are more experienced; the main difference being is in how you get to and how you handle the new experience. There are many things that you need to do and understand before you can successfully get to enjoy your own travel into the fifth dimension. When you are preparing, here are 5 tips that could help you find your path soon

Looking back at my high school yearbook, the senior class asked what you wanted to attain in life, most people said simply to “be happy.” Of those who I have kept track of, I think very few have found true happiness despite having attained financial success. You readers, you ...

Sometimes there are days when I wake up and already feel behind. It is a very unpleasant feeling. Rushed, anxious, slightly nervous for no apparent reason, it is as though the stress fairy visited me right before I woke up. I would think all of the stress training I receive in my meditation training would grant me immunity to this feeling. It doesn't.

We have entered an Age of Enlightenment. Millions of people are becoming more aware: aware of their own true nature, aware of a deeper calling, aware of an awakening of consciousness that is occurring throughout the collective consciousness of humanity. You are at the very front of this global ...

Creative visualization to a wonderful day is a practical application of creative visualization. In this article, I am honored to share the answers to the three questions: 1) what is the definition of a wonderful day in our view? 2) What are the detailed steps to make such a creative visualization? 3) Must I begin such a creative visualization in the morning? nnTag: creative visualization, creative visualization to a wonderful day, steps on creative visualization, guide to cre

As are your thoughts, your emotions are in the moment. Conflicting emotions are strong constraints in mind. The managing emotions are learned through regular practice of awareness of its positive and negative thoughts. Measuring happiness depends largely on how effective you are in control of emotion. The emotions are ephemeral, bound to swing. Emotions are transient and related to the movement of thoughts in mind in the moment. The thoughts of happy events in the present moment are to make you happy. Thoughts of sad events of today are to make you sad.

One of my iterations is as an energy healer, so I have a unique perspective on seeing the effect of the economy on our chakras. A friend's husband was laid off a year ago from his newspaper job, and she told me recently that he is becoming more and more depressed and she is worried about him. I didn't think of his depression in terms of chakras until I myself was laid off, but over the next few days I realized that my third chakra, the solar plexus and seat of my personal pow

A down-to-earth look at the benefits of meditation and how to bring some simple, calming practices into your busy life. The art and practice of meditation has been in transition over the last few years. Twenty years ago, meditation was primarily for the person searching for enlightenment or ...

Our culture, around the world, puts so much pressure on us to look good, to stay young, and to stay beautiful. Why? How does this impact us? There are many reasons why. One, from more of an evolutionary stance, is that being beautiful encourages people to procreate. Women who are younger are, of course, more able to have children so youth is seen as something that is desirable; this is natural and helps us have procreate around the world. If we had evolved in such a way to find elderly people to be attractive then we wouldn’t have as many babies and genes wouldn’t be passed on.

Think about it; what did we do in the pioneer days out on the prairie when we came down with an appendicitis attack? We would go, “Ouch. ooh, ahh” for a few days and then die. Easy! No paperwork, no deductibles, no out of pocket expense, no arguing back and forth with insurance companies, doctors and hospitals - and no funeral expenses! Well, hardly any, maybe a shovel and a hand chiseled, homemade headstone, “Here Lies Clem. He Didn’t Have Health Insurance.”

Posture is how we hold ourselves, both literally and figuratively. In meditation, there are two postures to consider — the inner, and the outer. The inner posture is our attitude; when we meditate, it’s a posture of open-mindedness. But what about our physical posture? Does it matter that much? The short answer is yes. Our physical body is the support of our mind. It must be relaxed but sturdy, supportive yet not rigid. The right meditation posture will put you in an ideal

Malas are a main part of Buddhist religious practices. These beautiful beads are strung with specific purposes in mind for each person who uses them. There are several uses for prayer beads. They can be used for meditation, with calming effects in every day life or even to keep on the walls of the home as a protective talisman to watch over the entire family. There are hundreds of substances and stones these lovely Buddhist prayer beads are made with. rno Tibetan coralrno Ave

Don’t Indulge In Fear, that’s the Juice for the Old Paradigm Engine During these times of uncertainty, economy troubles, conspiracies that are coming to light, and the coming world changes that must happen in order for humanity to continue, it is challenging for many to stay out of the fear frequencies since there is so much to support it on the outside. However, I encourage you to refrain from indulging in fear, that is the juice that that old paradigm engine runs on.

As the physical body is washed with water, Washed mind is through meditation.. Urinated as the child's clothing is purified by applying soapy water, impurities in the mind are eliminated by the application of meditation in the mind.Physical body is an extension of the subtle mind, which is consciousness and reflection. The physical body is merely acting on the orders of consciousness as fate or the idea of knowledge through thought process of mind. Consciousness acts in the spirit with the ete al spiritual inner knowledge that are unrelated to any form and language spoken in the world.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR): One technique for managing stress Progressive muscle relaxation is a systematic technique for managing stress. In the 1930's Dr. Edmund Jacobson discovered that tensing and releasing various muscle groups throughout the body produces a state of relaxation. In his original book, Progressive Relaxation, Dr. Jacobson developed a series of hundreds of different muscle relaxation exercises and an elaborate training program. More recently, the