Research has shown the following to be true for people who meditate on a regular basis:
Increased peace of mind
You will get to know self
You will be Calmer
Intuitive capabilities will open up
Lowered blood pressure
Reduced heart rate
Ability to concentrate and focus
Improved grades
Improvement in moral values
Closer connection with nature
Desire to preserve nature
There will be more beauty in the world – things will begin to look shiny and beautiful
Improved relationships
Easier to see the Truth that pervades all
A deeper understanding of all that is
You will notice the miracles that come into your life.
Warning: you will get to know yourself
How to Meditate:
There are many forms of meditation below is one way to do a sitting silent meditation based on the vipassana style.
Posture:
Sit with your back straight, in a chair is easiest for most people, with your legs uncrossed, unless you are sitting on the floor. Use a shall or blanket if you like, especially if you get chilled when sitting.
It is best NOT to meditate in bed as it is too easy to just fall asleep
Location:
Find a special place. Build an altar (it may be as simple as a candle), have a special room or chair where you will not be interrupted.
When:
Same time every day – a first week every morning (allocate 30 minutes), 5 to ground, 20 to meditate and 5 to reground
After the first week meditate twice a day for twenty minutes. After about two years you can change to meditating forty minutes once a day by adding 5 minutes to the morning meditation and taking 5 minutes from the evening meditation. Do this over the course of 6-months or so (or whatever feels right to you). Then meditate for life. The above time line is a general rule of thumb for a first time meditator. Adjust the duration and instructions based on your own past practices.
Process:
First create a ritual to be your process. For now you can use the following:
Go to a quiet, special place and ground (imagine your feet sinking deep into the earth)
Light a candle and set the intention to meditate as you do so
Sit in posture (see above) and take two deep breaths, very slowly
Say a prayer to set your intention (I wish my mind to be quiet for the next 20 minutes)
Enter a sacred space mentally
Notice the in-breath
Notice the exhale
After 20 minutes – very slowly come back into the room
Re ground
Ending the Meditation:
If you come back too quickly or do not ground afterward you may get a headache and be cranky or experience lightheadedness. Give yourself time and space.
Meditation is about slowing down and going within – not going to sleep; mentally you will be in a heightened state of awareness not unconsciousness. If you find yourself going to sleep during meditation then you need to get more rest so that you will be able to meditate effectively. That said, some studies have shown that twenty minutes of meditation are worth about two hours of sleep.
Anchors:
Anchors are the focus of meditation. They can be the breath, a mantra, silence, a mandala, motion, or any thing that keeps the left brain occupied so that the right brain can be receptive.
Types of Anchors:
Breath – notice the breath, notice body functions, notice thoughts
Silent Prayer – Clear the mind and notice what happens
Mantra – this is a repetitive phrase or word
Moving Meditations – waking with purpose, Tai Chi, and many other martial arts and dance styles
Visual journey to a place – like a garden or a beach (you can use prerecorded media for this or create your own journey)
Drums and rattles – can use our own drum or rattle or you can use a tape or CD
Music – chanting, Bach, Metaphysical, didgeridoo…
Mantras:
Mantras are another form of anchor. They bring in the energy of the mantra being chanted. Using modern mantras will create unpredictable results as they do not have the test of time to ascertain their affects. Using established mantras will create predictable results. Use your inner guidance as to which mantra is best for you.
AUM or OM:
Pronounced ‘OM’, is a very ancient and sacred sound. It is the all-encompassing, uncreated, unchanging essence. It is the “mind” of the Universe. The original nature of Buddha.
OM AH HUM SOHA
This mantra functions on many levels below is a rudimentary explanation:
OM, AH, and HUM represent the three bodies of the Buddha. Where OM, is the universe, the universal, the all-encompassing, the uncreated, and/or the unchanging. The “mind” of the Universe. The original nature of Buddha. While AH, is the Truth embodied, the Word and “speech” of the Universe or Dharma. HUM is the fruition, and refers to physical manifestations i.e. the “body” of the Universe or Sangha. SOHA is the termination of the mantra. This mantra is the trinity.
In Buddhism, OM is the universal Buddha mind. It is enlightenment or Nirvana. It is simultaneously the source and the destination of everything. From the center, out to all sorts of individualities, and then back to the center again.
AH represents the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas (Buddhas to be), such as Shakyamuni Buddha, founder of the present-day Tibetan Tantric Buddhism.
HUM would be correspondent to Siddhartha Gautama, the human being who became Shakyamuni Buddha. It is the fruition, and refers to physical manifestations, i.e. the “body” of the Universe or Sangha.
“SO HA” means something like “amen”, “so be it”, or “let it be”.
Most Tantric mantras have the format of “OM AH HUM SOHA”
OM Mane Padme Hum
Everything has many levels of meaning – those presented here are only one view. Roughly Translated: OM, salutations to The Jewel of Consciousness (the mind) which has reached the heart’s lotus.
OM – seed syllable
Mane Padme – “Jewel in the Lotus”
Hum (Sanskrit) / Hung (Tibetan) – seed syllable
The Jewel in the Lotus is frequently taken as a reference to Avalokitesvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, known in Tibetan as Chenrezig.