Mindful Meditation
Meditation is one of the first things you should turn to when seeking to develop your spirituality, calm or mind or just shift your energy.
Meditation has been practiced for centuries all over the world by various cultures both ancient and modern. The human brain is an amazing organ and being able to tune our thoughts inwards helps to stabilize our spirits on multiple levels.
Meditation is not as hard as some would think. While to achieve a deeper level of meditation does require some practice, simple daily meditations will help you along your way!
There are many ways to meditate that include visual cues, sound waves, yoga and simple silence. Any web search will turn up countless ways to help you meditate or even guide you step by step. Find what works for you and try to meditate at least 15 minutes a day.
You can meditate on a specific phrase or intention or you can meditate to find peace and guidance.
Here are a few ways I found that help me. I know meditation works, I’ve practiced it myself for many years and it has helped calm me down instantly in a few extreme moments of panic that I’ve had.
Remember that it is natural to have thoughts flow through your head when you first start. Let the thoughts flow but don’t dwell on them. Acknowledge them and their underlying mood and let them go. Let them flow and ebb as you focus on your breathing. Eventually the thoughts will stop on their own and your mind will quiet down.
Find a comfortable and quiet place to sit/lay/pose(yoga). Somewhere where you will not be disturbed and a place you find peaceful and calming. Light some candles or incense if you wish to help aid in the positive and calming energy. You can also hold/set out some crystals to help focus the energy.
Upon first getting ready take note of your body. Mentally scan your body and feel yourself connecting to your environment. Feel where you are uncomfortable and where you are comfortable. Don’t try to change it, just feel and be aware. Turn your thoughts inward and begin.
Focus on your breathing:
There are many ways to do Focused Breath Meditation – my favorites include:
1. Balloon Breathing (Abdominal breathing)– Imagine your abdomen is a balloon and inhale a deep breath through your nose filling the balloon from the bottom up. This opens up your diaphragm and assures your lungs are filling properly, once your “balloon” is full release the air through your mouth. Repeat
Great for beginner meditation.
2. 4-7-8 Breathing (Relaxation Breathing) – Breath in through your nose for 4 counts, hold the breath for 7 counts and then take 8 counts to release it. Repeat
Great for relaxation and to help get ready to sleep.
3. Free Flow Breathing – Just like it sounds. Let your self breath naturally in through your nose and out through your mouth – but keep your focus on your breaths. Think of positive energy flowing into your body with each inhale and negative energy leaving your body with each exhale.
Visualizations:
Visualizations are simply creating a scene in your mind. Close your eyes and imagine a scene in your mind – find every detail you can. Details that occur on their own can have symbolic meaning for your own personal life.
1. Beach – Imagine yourself at the beach – start with the sand – how it looks, the color and texture – then see the sky – what shade of blue? Sunset or no? See the horizon. Then see the water. Hear the waves crashing and look at the foam it creates along the shore line….
Continue in this fashion focusing on the beach scene you are creating and then just sit and enjoy it.
2. Forest Walk – Close your eyes and go on a walk through the forest. Are you following a trail or just making your own? What kind of trees, animals, flowers? Day or night? Try to imagine every detail of your walk and see where you end up.
You can visualize any scene that brings you peace or comfort.
Meditation and Visualization are not quite the same thing but both can be calming, help you focus, shift your energy, and strengthen your spirituality.
Sound Meditation:
Certain frequencies of sound waves can help you to meditate, relax and focus. For centuries cultures have used Gongs, Singing Bowls and other instruments to help aid in meditation and spiritual healing. Everything vibrates and has frequencies, certain sounds will resonate with your spirit on a higher level.
A quick Google or YouTube search will yield you many different sounds and frequencies to help aid in your meditations. I myself will occasionally use this method and find it quite relaxing. Simply combine the sounds and breathing for a pretty simple but powerful way to meditate.
Yoga:
Yoga and other various “alternative” (dancing is great too) exercises help focus your mentality, energy, physical and spiritual bodies. It helps you focus on breathing and your body, allowing you to become more self aware. It allows the release of negative energy and encourages the flow of positive energy. Yoga can be as simple or complex as you choose. There are many beginner as well as expert videos and guides to help you on your way!
So there you have it. Those are the main ways I personally meditate. I started with focused breathing and that is what I find myself doing most often. I sometimes combine it with sound meditation. For me personally, it’s hard to focus on my breathing and “look inward” if I am working on “Visualizing” as a meditation. That is why I feel they are two similar yet different things.
What’s important is that you try. If you feel like it’s not working, just keep trying. Try something new, find what works for you. It is so important to take time everyday to focus yourself and calm your mind. You can use meditation to seek out spiritual guidance or just to find inner peace. It allows you to connect with the universe the the energies around you.
Meditation is one of the most important things you can do on your spiritual journey. If you cannot look within yourself and find peace, you will never find it in the world around you.
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