Meditation has become quite popular once again. Everyone from the new age circles to the ones who would never consider themselves spiritual is trying their hands on this ‘new’ method of attaining calmness, better productivity, better sleep quality, adequate rest, etc. No matter what the purpose of meditation is for the people, they usually see the benefits soon and those benefits are not usually limited to what had first enticed them to meditate. That is the power of meditation, it opens up facets of one’s mind that one doesn’t even know about.
But what is meditation? There are many many forms of meditation, and the variety in techniques is almost mind-boggling. However if one knows the purpose of meditation, then one can choose easily any of the techniques that complement their mental temperament.
Meditation is the practice of observing oneself from an ‘outside’ perspective, to quieten the mind enough so as to look within it and find out the inner workings of the mind. It is observing oneself without any form of judgement, malignant or benign. It can be a lifesaver for people struggling with mental illnesses and addictions.
There are hundreds of techniques of meditation and this blog wouldn’t be enough to explore all of them. Rather, in this blog, we will explore the general categories that most meditations can fit into.
Mindfulness – It is the ability to watch one’s own mind and body as just an observer. Without judgement, one must be able to look at the thoughts and then let them subside at their own pace, neither trying to pull them towards you nor trying to push them away. Just observing. One gains a lot of insights into how one’s mind works, and how it is connected to the body. This practice must be carried on after the meditation is over as well, trying to centre oneself in the witness.
Contemplation – Usually it is recommended to contemplate on a scripture or a prayer, etc, however, one can contemplate upon anything one likes. The best way to do it is to hold on to one of the phrases that affect you deeply and think about it. Once you think you understand the idea, just keep observing what you think you have understood. Usually, this is when new insights about the idea as well as new perspectives spring forth. Just let the mind float around the idea in a relaxed but focused way. Even if nothing spectacular happens, keep at it. Contemplation instils new ideas into the subconscious and changes one’s thought patterns and behaviours, many a time without even the meditator noticing the changes. It works on a very subtle level.
Visualisation – This is one of the most famous techniques. If you have ever done a guided meditation, chances are you have done visualisation. In visualisation, you are supposed to use your imagination to visualise things. Now, these could be as religious as visualising a deity, as secular as visualising oneself with the qualities that one wants to instil within, or as spiritual as visualising positivity going within oneself with every inhale and negativity being expelled with every exhale. Many forms of meditation come from visualisations like chakra meditation, forgiveness meditations, etc. It is one of the easier forms of meditation since visualisations resemble a familiar habit of fantasies and daydreams but brings a sort of discipline to them.
Mantra Meditation – This is a simple form of meditation where one is given a word, a name or a spiritual phrase and one has to mindfully concentrate fully on the given word or phrase. The aim is to make the mind concentrate so fully on the mantra that the other parts of the mind start getting less and less attention. It is the easiest way to improve concentration and well-being as slowly the toxic habits and thoughtforms start to dissolve away into the mantra.
Conclusion – There are many more techniques and many are not exclusive to one category but a mix of two or more categories. Meditation is a very personal practice and therefore one must be able to mould it in their own way. However one of the dangers of that is constantly jumping from one method to another, constantly looking for novelty.
Our app LetsGetHappi has many different meditations that take a lot of different temperaments into consideration. Many of our meditations fit into more than one of these categories. You can also contact us to know more about which meditation might fit your mental demands. Download the app and share it with your interested friends today!
– Nihar Laljani
– Content Writer For Veda Rehabilitation and Wellness