Whats the best way to meditate
Meditation is the skill of focussing your mind. Traditionally the focus is on the breathing. It makes sense as you always breathe, so there never is a reason to not meditate. But there are a lot of other ways in which you can meditate: using senses, thought, movement (like Tai Chi), music or chakras (energy centres in our body). To name but a few.
Below is a list of variations in the meditation practice
1. Zazen – sitting – Buddhist meditation – Sit and remain in the present moment, observe what passes through mind and around. This type of meditation can take hours and is very challenging when you have just start meditating
2. Mindfulness meditation – Sit and focus on what happens around you by observing and eliminating all judgment. An example is listening to the sounds around you, or your hands resting on your lap.
3, Mantra meditation – repeating a mantra (a short sentence or a sequence of words or sounds) using beads 108x. The number 108 is sacred and there is a variety of reasons given A few of those:
- 9 times 12: Both of these numbers have been said to have spiritual significance in many traditions. 9 times 12 is 108. Also, 1 plus 8 equals 9. That 9 times 12 equals 108.
- Powers of 1, 2, and 3 in math: 1 to 1st power=1; 2 to 2nd power=4 (2×2); 3 to 3rd power=27 (3x3x3). 1x4x27=108
- Harshad number: 108 is a Harshad number, which is an integer divisible by the sum of its digits (Harshad is from Sanskrit, and means “great joy”)
- Heart Chakra: The chakras are the intersections of energy lines, and there are said to be a total of 108 energy lines converging to form the heart chakra. One of them, sushumna leads to the crown chakra, and is said to be the path to Self-realization.
4. Chanting – focussing on the gap in between the sounds
5. Imagination – feeling to observe or to be in bottomless well or on top of a mountain
6. Chakras – we have 7 basic energy centres in our body and when we clear and cleanse them during a meditation we balance our body and emotions
7. Working with light and warmth – allowing warmth and light into our system, with all the sensations that go with it.
8. Releasing energy – for an example of letting go, click here
9. Body scan – very popular as it takes you on a journey through your body: notice and relax, notice and relax
10. Double whammy – a breathing technique where you count in the in-breathe and build up to an out-breathe that is twice as long, when that is achieved you make the in-breathe deeper and build up to a slower out-breathe. Great meditation to energise the body.
