5 Types Of Meditation Designed To Benefit The Mind,You Can Even Do Them While You Eat And Walk

5 Types Of Meditation Designed To Benefit The Mind; You Can Even Do Them While You Eat And Walk

January 7, 2016

Meditation has been practiced, fine-tuned, and enhanced throughout human history. Archaeologists discovered wall art dating back approximately 5,000 to 3,500 BCE, with images depicting people sitting with hands rested on folded knees and eyes slighted narrowed yet not completely shut. As years gave way to centuries, different cultures throughout the world have adapted their own meditation practices with the common goal of mental, physical, and/or spiritual refinement.

With so many different versions, approaches, and postures, choosing which type of meditation is right for you can be overwhelming. Different techniques can fall under two main umbrellas: concentrative meditation and nondirective meditation. Concentrative meditation directs a person to focus primarily on their own breathing or specific thoughts, which in turn suppresses other thoughts, while nondirective meditation allows a person to focus effortlessly on their breathing or sound.



1.Mindfulness Meditation

The mindful meditation technique was designed for stress reduction in 1979. It’s produced such successful results, over 200 medical centers, hospitals, and clinics around the world offer “Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction” (MBSR) classes, which are oftentimes taught by trained doctors, nurses, social workers, psychologists, and other health professionals.

The practice revolves around breath awareness, which instructs the meditator to focus on the inhalation and exhalation of their steady breath. Next, a self “body scan” is performed. From toes to the tip of their head, meditators increase awareness to each part of their body and take note of where they’re tense and released. It can be done seated, lying down, or walking, depending upon if there’s an injury at the centerpiece of focus.



2.Walking Meditation

Walking mindfully is a way of practicing moving without a goal or intention, allowing the meditator to center their awareness around each step and breath. It can be practiced anywhere, whether it be a long walk on the beach, a stroll through the woods, or through a crowd in New York City. Meditative walks can be practiced in a group or alone, so long as there is focus on placing each footstep in front of the other at a slow, silent, and methodical pace.

As a concentrative meditation point, walking directs a person to focus on a single point, whether it’s on each step, breath, or a single word or mantra circulating through the mind. Focusing the mind can be challenging, which is why beginners often only start off for a few minutes at a time and then work their way up to longer walks.



3.Seated Meditation

Also known as “Zen,” seated meditation derives from the Buddhist approach. According to Chopra Centered Lifestyle, Buddhism is more a philosophy than a religion, in which meditators call attention to their breath and mind through instruction. Chanting is often involved, along with learning scriptures and doctrines that emphasize enlightenment.

Picture Buddha’s peaceful altar, a place where Zen meditators work to grow peace and stability within themselves. In a seated position, meditators don’t push or oppress negative thoughts but instead let the emotions unfold within themselves.

“We realize we can just be with whatever is within us — our pain, anger, and irritation, or our joy, love, and peace,” wrote meditation instructors from the Plum Village Mindfulness Practice Centre. “We are free to be still and calm despite the storms that might arise in us.”



4.Eating Meditation

The practice of meditative eating guides meditators toward a greater appreciation for the foods they eat, which is especially helpful for anyone trying to build a healthier and more conscious relationship with food.

Start off by choosing one food item, whether it be a piece of chocolate or a banana. Find a comfortable place and take a few breaths. Concentrate on the food’s smell, color, texture, and think about how the food was created on a farm or in a factory.

Address any feelings, associations, or memories that are assigned with the food and then lick or eat the food and let it sit on your tongue and resist the temptation to eat the food. As you chew and digest the food, breathe and imagine how it provides nourishment or satisfy hunger or other needs you may have.



5.Sound Meditation

Primordial sound meditation, as it’s often called, is practiced as a tool for healing to help a person reach a deep inner relaxation. Today, people experience sensory overload on a daily basis through cellphones, computer screens, and social media, which is why incorporating “restful awareness” into a daily routine can help harness an alert and quiet mind. After meditation, tasks and stimulations become less overwhelming and easier to cope and navigate through. Finding a quiet spot to listen to music with headphones on or the stereo volume up are both effective ways to finding peace.

Researchers discovered through brain scans that nondirective meditation, such as sound meditation, leads to higher activity in the brain compared to when a person concentrates on a single task. It also allows for more room to process memories and emotions compared to concentrated meditation.

The study’s lead author Dr. Jian Xu, a physician at St. Olavs Hospital in Norway said, “I was surprised that the activity of the brain was greatest when the person’s thoughts wandered freely on their own, rather than when the brain worked to be more strongly focused.”

Source : Medicaldaily.com