Show Notes:
Meditation often comes with a stigma of being religious or cult-like, but this is not the case. Sure, meditation may be incorporated into many spiritual practices, but you do not have to be a Buddhist monk to meditate. In fact, meditation takes many different forms and is a completely individual experience.
In essence, it’s all about mindfulness. Meditation is a deliberate attempt to be truly mindful of the present moment; to be truly connected to the present moment. Heightened levels of consciousness can be achieved in which you observe your own body and mind. Rather than experiencing, you are detached and observing, cultivating awareness and clarity.
In this episode, we’ll explore what meditation is, how to do it, and why it can be so beneficial. Included will be an exploration of some research studies explaining the neuroscience of meditation on brain health and happiness.
TOPICS:
[1:51] What is meditation?
[5:47] How to meditate
[10:22] Popular meditation techniques
[12:27] Scientific benefits of meditating
[14:22] Meditation in practice: Braeden’s experience
[18:59] Creating your own meditation practice
Gratitude
Today, I am particularly grateful for the ability to travel and spend time in nature. Being in Colombia and having explored some beautiful parks, mountains, jungle hikes, and the Caribbean ocean, I have had many opportunities to pause, breathe, and meditate on the beauty of life and find stillness within the chaos of the world. At this moment, my life is perfect, so I am grateful for that.
What is Meditation?
What a great question, and honestly, I don’t have a good answer. In fact, a 2019 study compiled 100 experienced practitioners and assessed the 20 most popular forms of meditation [1]. To them, meditation techniques could be classified as activation or amount of body orientation. Within these headings, they describe seven main techniques:
– Mindful observation
– Body-centered meditation
– Visual concentration
– Contemplation
– Affect-centered meditation
– Mantra meditation
– Meditation with movement
Another way of classifying these techniques may be to consider focused attention practices and open-monitoring practices.
To supplement this understanding, the Vedic texts of ancient India were reviewed in another study [2]. Their conclusion is that the texts proclaim that the human being consists of three primary aspects:
1. Physical body
2. Inner faculty (mind, intellect, ego)
3. Deep inner self (nonchanging pure consciousness)
Through this lens, meditation would be the practice to connect with the deep inner self, achieving the state of nonchanging pure consciousness.
Mindfulness is at the Core of Meditation
In essence, it’s all about mindfulness. Meditation is a deliberate attempt to be truly mindful of the present moment; to be truly connected to the present moment. Heightened levels of consciousness can be achieved in which you observe your own body and mind. Rather than experiencing, you are detached and observing, cultivating awareness and clarity.
In The Power of Now, Eckart Tolle refers to a higher level of consciousness as presence – when you are now the witness of your own body. Instead of thinking and acting, you are observing. It is almost like a third-person view observing the physical sensations, cognitive thought patterns, and emotions that run through your body.
He notes that you don’t judge or try to change how you feel, but rather, he says “Watching it is enough. Watching it implies accepting it as part of what is at the moment” [3].
Further, summarizing the title and core concept of the book, Tolle writes that The Power of Now is “The power of your presence, your consciousness liberated from thought forms” [3].
An thus, this is what meditation is all about. It is finding peace and tranquility in the present moment, regardless of the external circumstances or environment. By practicing meditation, we have the ability to pursue this higher level of consciousness at any time and in any place.
Meditation 101: How to do it
There is no single way to meditate, and while it is intimidating at first, the best way to learn how to meditate is to practice. Remove expectations and judgement. Don’t expect anything magical, or anything at all. Don’t judge or criticize yourself for thinking too much, for being distracted, or for anything other reason. Just be present and do your best to let go.
So from some of the popular sources of mindfulness and meditation content, here are a few common ways to meditate.
Mindful.org offers a simple seven step process for meditation [4]:
1. Take a seat
2. Set a time limit
3. Notice your body
4. Feel your breath
5. Notice when your mind has wandered
6. Be kind to your wandering mind
7. Close with kindness
Another great resource, Calm shares a five step process that can be implemented in just a minute [5]:
1. Find a comfortable position for your body
2. Close your eyes
3. Breathe
4. Pay attention to your breathing
5. Gently return your attention to your breath
Just like that, you will be meditating. It may not feel like “meditation,” but the whole point is that meditation isn’t supposed to feel like anything. It is simply the presence and awareness of your body, mind, and spirit.
Tolle again offers some great advice, encouraging people to “Be present as the watcher of your mind – of your thoughts and emotions as well as your reactions in various situations” [3].
Scientific Evidence of the Benefits of Meditation
Numerous studies have been conducted on the benefits of meditation, particularly on brain health. In a comprehensive over conducted in 2015, research found that meditation may result in an incredible amount of health benefits [2]. To see this paper and review the accompanying research papers that are referenced, you can find it here.
Some of the research-supported benefits include [2]:
– Stress reduction
– Increased energy
– Decreased anxiety
– Decreased depression
– Reduced pain (psychological and physiological)
– Reduced blood pressure, heart rate, cortisol, and epinephrine
– Increased relative blood flow to the brain
– Improved memory
– Increased gray matter in brain
As far as neurological benefits are concerned, it is widely known that neuroplasticity is the ability for the brain to “change its structure and function through thought and activity” [6]. Basically, the brain is malleable.
Therefore, through mindfulness and meditation, an active shift in our conscious thoughts, we have the ability to change the structure and function of the brain. In fact, significant research has supported improved cognitive functioning, increased gray matter, and decreased likelihood of the onset of neurodegenerative diseases through meditation [7, 8].
Start Your Own Meditation Practice Today
As recent podcast guest Sid Chawla, a certified NLP Practitioner, shared, meditation is a mobile device. You can perform it anywhere and at any time. Even just 60s is enough to make a positive impact. Start by scheduling three, one-minute meditation blocks every day.
Simply focus on breathing, do a body scan, and just observe all your sensations, thoughts, and emotions without judgement. Be present and be at peace.
Here’s a quick review of some of the ways to meditate:
– Allocate time to be present
– Be aware of your breathing, sounds, colors, sensations, emotions
– Use guided meditations
– Spend time in nature
– Practice gratitude
– Practice Mindfulness throughout day
The most important thing is to practice; there is no right or wrong. But for guidance to really help develop the skill, there are a ton of great resources available:
– Headspace
– Calm
– Smiling Mind
– YouTube
Find a place that is quiet and relaxing, remove all distractions, get comfortable, close your eyes, and breathe. Everything else, just let it happen.
With this basic overview, I hope you will be willing to experiment with different types of meditation, find what works best for you, and find peace and happiness in the present moment, deepen introspection and spirituality, and leave you feeling amazing.
References
[1] Matko, K., & Sedlmeier, P. (2019). What Is Meditation? Proposing an Empirically Derived Classification System. Frontiers in psychology, 10, 2276. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02276
[2] Sharma H. (2015). Meditation: Process and effects. Ayu, 36(3), 233–237. https://doi.org/10.4103/0974-8520.182756
[3] Tolle, E. (1999). The power of now: A guide to spiritual enlightenment. Novato, California: New World Library.
[4] Mindful Staff. {2019, January 31). How to meditate. Mindful. Retrieved from https://www.mindful.org/how-to-meditate/
[5] How to meditate. (n.d.). Calm. Retrieved from https://blog.calm.com/how-to-meditate
[6] Doidge, N. (2007). The brain that changes itself: Stories of personal triumph from the frontiers of brain science. New York: Viking.
[7] Tang, Y. Y., Lu, Q., Fan, M., Yang, Y., & Posner, M. I. (2012). Mechanisms of white matter changes induced by meditation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 109(26), 10570–10574. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1207817109
[8] Lardone, A., Liparoti, M., Sorrentino, P., Rucco, R., Jacini, F., Polverino, A., Minino, R., Pesoli, M., Baselice, F., Sorriso, A., Ferraioli, G., Sorrentino, G., & Mandolesi, L. (2018). Mindfulness Meditation Is Related to Long-Lasting Changes in Hippocampal Functional Topology during Resting State: A Magnetoencephalography Study. Neural plasticity, 2018, 5340717. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/5340717
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