Meditation Tips & Techniques

What follows are summaries of two recent articles in Time magazine that explain some of the research done on meditation and it's benefits.

Article: "How to Get Smarter One Breath at A Time"
Highlights: A highly successful Wall Street executive uses meditation to maintain his mental sharpness while his peers have burnt out.

Regular meditation practice increases the density of the brain involved in decision-making, attention and memory. It also slows down the thinning of the cerebral cortex that tends to occur with age.

A study comparing the mental sharpness of people who meditated verses people who took a nap or watched TV showed that the meditators win.

Meditation increases emotional intelligence improving social skills.

To read the article click here

It has never occurred to most people that something they do everyday, every night - continuously - can be a powerful meditation technique.

Proper breathing contains the power to relieve stress, remove negativity, increase energy or even relax and meditate. With proper use of the breath all of this is easily attainable.

Our breathing is something that we have become so familiar with that we are almost completely unaware of its effects. Consider this, our breath bridges our conscious and unconscious i.e. unconsciously we are always breathing and at any time we can consciously focus on our breathing.

This is important to remember because all our emotional states are reflected in our breathing. If we are stressed our breathing tends to be shallow and focused in our upper lungs. In fact jerky breathing itself will actually increase anxiety and stress. While when we are relaxed we tend to breathe fully into our belly. Practicing belly breathing (diaphragmatic breathing) can be extremely beneficial.

Simply knowing this can make a big difference like remembering to breath deeply if you are stressed to feel better. In other words, you had an unconscious shallow/jerky breathing pattern when you were stressed and by consciously taking control you can choose a breathing pattern that is better for your mind and body.(which would be diaphragmatic breathing)

In the Yoga, breathing is considered to be so important that before any task a yogi first prepares his/her breathing. Proper breath control is considered the key to healthy living. In fact, learning to make proper diaphragmatic breathing has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety permanently.

Exercise 1: Diaphragmatic Breathing

Sit or stand with your back straight, put your hand on your belly and breath in a slow and deep pattern. Don't try to overfill the lungs or empty them - just breath softly - expanding your belly on the inhale and contracting on the exhale. Keep your attention focused on your breathing. You will find that your mind will tend to drift. That is normal. Simply return your attention to your breath when you notice you got distracted. Allow the relaxation from this breathing pattern to spread through your body and just enjoy yourself.

Exercise 2: Mind-Body Observation 1

Stand up and imagine you are standing on the edge of a cliff. Imagine a of several thousand feet beginning right at your toes. Look down and see the ground far far below you making this image a vivid as possible. You should be able to feel a tingling sensation in your feet and legs. This is the type of tension that an average person would feel standing on the edge of a cliff.

The above is an example of how a mental experience can cause bodily sensations.

From birth onwards all the sensations of your experiences are stored as memories in your mind AND body. For example that piece of music that makes you feel sad or nostalgic or happy are all perceived mentally but are felt in the mind and body. Or in reverse, learning to relax a stressed out part of the body or getting a deep tissue massage can occasionally cause memory flashbacks. A phenomenon well known to massage therapists.

Exercise 3: Mind-Body Observation 2

Take a couple of deep breaths. Breathing in slowly and fully till you can't take in any more air. Then ,without pausing, slowly exhale till all air has left your lungs. Do this a couple of times without pausing to get a feel for this breathing pattern. Now remember the feelings of standing by the edge of a cliff? Recreate those right now vividly as if you are now on the edge of a cliff. Feel those tingling feelings. Now breath deeply but imagine that the air is coming into your body through your feet, pulling up the tingling feelings and exhale them out of your body. Notice how with each inhale you can take more of those feelings and remove them from your body on the exhale.

Congratulations! You have just learned how to combine breathing with imagery to release tension. That was easy.

Alternate Nostril Breathing

It has been discovered that there is actually a rhythm to nostril breathing. That is, when breathing through your nose you will sometimes be able to breath through the right nostril and sometimes the left one.

Research has shown that each nostril corresponds to the opposite side of the brain. So when you breathe through your right nostril the left side of your brain is more active and when you breath from your left nostril your right side of the brain is more active. In a healthy individual the nostril tends to alternate every 2 hours.

With practice in observation you can begin to notice a different state of consciousness depending on which nostril is active. The right side of the brain tends to be creative while the left side tends to be logical and verbal. Breathing though both nostrils tends to indicate a focused or even relaxed state of mind and body.

There is an ancient yogic technique which takes advantage of these effects called alternate nostril breathing. It has been shown that it calms the mind and nervous system.

Note: Never force your breathing. If the nostril is blocked use conventional methods to clear it first (like Vicks, salt water or rest).

Exercise 4: Alternate Nostril Breathing Practice

Close your right nostril and take a slow deep breathe for about 4 seconds· Release right nostril close the left one and exhale slowly for about 8 seconds.· Keeping left nostril closed breathe in for 4 seconds through the right nostril.· Close right and exhale through left nostril for 8 seconds.· This completes one cycle of this practice. Doing this 4 times is sufficient.

One of the steps useful in attaining a meditative state of mind involves relaxation. Learning to relax not only prepares you to do meditation but is a meditation technique in itself.

Dr. Herbert Benson M.D., a Harvard University Associate Professor of Medicine, has been studying meditation techniques for about 40 years. He began doing his experiments at night so others at the university would not find out what he was doing. The social stigma against the idea that the mind can influence that body was very strong back then and he didn't want to get laughed off the campus.

Why? Since the discovery of Penicillin, the standard scientific approach to medicine assumes that all diseases can be cured with the application of a medicine. The ancient tradition going back to the founding fathers of western medicine (the ancient Greeks) of encouraging the patients to recover with song, dancing and storytelling got replaced with the belief that the patients mood is irrelevant to the recovery process.

Researchers like Dr. Herbert Benson have opened up modern medicine to accept the validity of the mind as an important player in the health and well-being of a person and in the recovery of a patient.

Some pictures of his studies on meditation can be found on his website Relaxation Response .Org. His results show that using a simple form of meditation that he calls 'The Relaxation Response' a person experiences:

Decreased Metabolism
Decreased Blood Pressure
Decreased Rate of Breathing
Decreased Blood Lactate Levels (an indicator of stress)
Feelings of Peace and Contentment

The technique involves relaxing each part of your body. Starting from your feet and moving up. Breathe slow and deep while paying attention to your breathing. To encourage your mind to be silent and focused he recommends using a sound with your breathing practice. Any sound will do, if used repetitively, to help still and focus your mind. Dr. Herbert Benson asks you to count your breathing which is simple and non-esoteric. A great way to enhance the meditation. To read the full technique in Dr. Herbert Benson's 'Relaxation Response Technique' Click Here.

I highly recommend reading "Role of the Mind in Physical Healing and Health". This is the testimony of Herbert Benson before the US House of Representatives, November 1997.

Like I mentioned earlier, it is the regular practice of a meditation technique that has the best effects and long-term benefits of meditation. If you practice the relaxation response technique for 10 minutes day, twice a day, then you are sure to reap some of the health benefits of meditation.

Research has proved an ancient idea that the mind and body are so intimately related that the term mind-body would be better. That means that the mind affects the body and the body affects the mind.

Here is an introduction published in Time Magazine explaining how modern science has now accepted the inseparable link between mind and body, the piece is called "Your Mind, Your Body". Another article in the same issue covers evidence on how stress can cause heart problems and vice versa, the piece is called "The Power of Mood".

If you experience physical danger, you will experience mental stress. Likewise, if you have a horrific thought then your brain will release stress chemicals into your body.

Breathing is one technique that automatically relaxes the body and so it also automatically helps relax the mind. So it follows that you can use your mind to relax your whole mind-body system further.

Meditating upon and visualizing peaceful and relaxing imagery will make your mind-body attain peace and relaxation.

For example, imagine yourself sitting on a beach. It is a warm day and the sun feels good on your skin. You can feel the wind on your skin and hear the sound of the wave.

While doing this imagery exercise, focus only on the experience, the sights, sounds and feelings of the beach AND your breathing.

1 Breathing In Colors

To do this meditation correctly you have to pick a color that makes you feel relaxed and peaceful. Imagining the color vividly will help you get some stress relief. You can pick any color you like, from blue, to gold, to red. Once you have picked the appropriate color then you can begin doing the following;

Sit in a comfortable position with your back straight. Breathe slowly and deep while imagining that you can actually breathe in your chosen color on each inhale. Breathe in this color till it feels like your body and mind are filled with it.

2 Your Sanctuary

The idea behind this meditation is that imagining a place that makes you feel good, safe and relaxed will trigger an appropriate response in your body.

Pick a place you feel safe and comfortable. It could be a garden, a forest, a waterfall, anything. Visualize this place clearly and 'step in'. Spend some time meditating as if you are actually there. Use this meditation whenever you need to take a quick break and get some relief from stress.

3 A Deep Pond

Imagining something that is still and calm will also make you feel still and calm.

Technique; Imagine a deep blue pond. Notice some fish below the surface darting around. Take a silver coin from your pocket and toss it into the center of the pond. As the coin slowly drifts down allow yourself to relax. Do this for a quick stress break.

4 Walking Meditation

This is a great meditation to 'get out of your head' and expand your awareness of your surroundings. This relieves stress quickly and it's a fun technique anyone can do anytime.

While walking start becoming aware of your breath. Expand this awareness to include the feel of the clothes on your body and the feel of your feet on the ground. While continuing your awareness of your breath and body, become aware of the place you are walking and the scenery around you. Finally, being aware of breath, body and surroundings add the huge dome of the sky above you and the earth below you. Breathe deeply and relish this expanded sense of awareness.

5 Eating Meditation

Being aware and present while you eat helps you relax and can help you control your eating habits. It also helps to be grateful before you eat as this prepares your mind to enjoy the meal. Take each bite consciously and enjoy the taste and texture. Chew slowly and take your time.

6 Candle Flame Meditation

If you have trouble with out of control thoughts, which makes you feel stressed or tired, then this technique is for you.

Light a candle and sit comfortably in front of it. Focus only on the flame allowing any thoughts arising to just pass by. Watch how the candle dances. Then close your eyes and continue to focus on the flame in your minds eye. If you lose the image open your eyes and gaze at the candle again. If you like you can imagine any thought arising to go and burn up in the flame. This will help you attain a focused meditative state.

7 Breathing In A Smell

Smell is very important to us and easily alters our internal states.

Pick a flower or food that smells extremely good to you (in reality or in your imagination). Breath in this smell deeply and slowly. Take your time enjoying the feeling of the smell "fill" your body. You will feel refreshed and rejuvenated.