What Are Various Methods On How To Meditate

Learning how to meditate has become a rather popular trend today. There was a period of time not all that long ago when the practice of meditation was primarily associated with the hippies and non-conformists, but now many people are practicing meditation and feeling the benefits of meditation.

In recent years, an increasingly expanding list of professional athletes, celebrities and business leaders have been learning how to meditate for themselves. These high-profile people have also been more and more willing to speak up and share the benefits they have received from meditation techniques.

• In some instances, coaches of professional or college sports teams, leaders and owners of businesses have introduced meditation practices to their teams or employees to help improve performance.

Various Methods To Incorporate Meditation Into Your Life

Here are a few ideas for incorporating meditation into your own life. Beginners should focus on numbers 1 and 2 and over time experiment with the others.

1.  Participate In A Group Class

You may be able to find a class in your community specifically dedicated to meditation, but due to popular culture, it may be easier to find a yoga class that heavily focuses on meditation, such as Kundalini Yoga or Ananda Yoga.

Many people prefer taking these classes long-term as opposed to meditating by themselves because the group setting helps them to better focus or because they enjoy the sense of community.

2. Use A Video To Guide Your Meditation

Some meditation videos can be found for free online, just look through YouTube, or you can order a professional DVD or online subscription. If you prefer a mix of yoga and meditation, the best types of yoga to focus on include Kundalini, Ananda, Jivamukti, and Integral.

These days there are many guided meditations on video as well as MP3 downloads. These mediums are an easier and more effective way to introduce people to mediation. Most of the time, once they become familiar and comfortable with this practice, they are able to expand and meditate on their own or with special meditation music.

3.  Devote 20+ Minutes In The Morning Or Evening

Research shows that just 20 minutes of consistent meditation sessions can have tremendous health benefits. Make time before your day starts or before you go to bed to meditate. Some people find that their minds are clearer at these times.

4. Use Free Time To Meditate In Nature

Many people find that sitting in nature – under a tree, on top of a mountain, or in a quiet place in the sunshine – helps them to facilitate the meditation process. It’s also a great way to get outside for Vitamin D.

5. Meditate While At Work

This is certainly the most difficult way to meditate because distractions at work can interrupt the process, but many people have been able to achieve a state of meditation while performing job duties. Talk about being dedicated to the cause!

As you can see there are a number of different ways that people can learn how to meditate. For many years, the only real option was to attend a retreat that featured a staff of instructors who would lead the group through the basics of meditation techniques. Such retreats were often expensive and limited in the number of people who could attend.

Many different books have been published over the years to teach meditation, but many find it hard to learn meditation through a book. As a result, many people were not able to experience the full benefits of meditation and in some ways were even left with a negative experience, simply because they were not utilizing the best learning method.

If a person has learned the basic techniques of how to meditate, then they will have the ability to make their sessions uniquely their own and to essentially customize their practice in a way that will enhance their own particular spiritual journey. Many times, students of meditation will learn other methods, such as Buddhist meditation or transcendental meditation, and even weave the different guided meditation techniques together to create their own form.

Everyone is different. Experiment with different ways of meditating too see what you like and what comes easiest for you. Also try experimenting at different times of the day and for different periods of time, but aim for at least 20 minutes to reap the most benefit.

The health effects on your body are well worth the effort!