There are thousands of books out there on meditation: what to meditate on, how to do it, etc. Surely it is best to find the right way for the individual? Do we not discover inner peace through our own mind?
2007-03-25 22:58:41 · 14 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
There is a zen traditional answer to the question "how do you meditate?" it is "sit"
Perhaps that is the wisest way to answer - people seem to do much better figuring it out for themselves.
2007-03-27 03:31:17 · answer #1 · answered by Eyebright 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The methods you follow to do meditations are up to you. You are taking a journey into yourself, to have a look on your inside world and through that journey, manage to sort things out in your outside world.
There is no single way, no unique path. Learn a bit from everything on your way.
If you do guided meditations, be sure you aren't being taken for a ride! You are putting yourself in the hands of someone more knowledgeable and expert and if you put your trust in the wrong person, they can wrap you around their fingers and you won't notice.
Meditation is good. It is much better than just kicking back and relaxing. It strengthens you, builds you up and makes you more able to deal with everything life can throw at you. It gives you the mental peace from which you will not panic while everyone around you loses their head over a deadline or arranging a party or any of life's little "moments".
Meditation is a tool to clear all the static, cut off all the noise made in our busy lives so that we can listen to our own minds and discover inner peace.
You don't even have to do anything fancy. You don't have to sit in a super healthy position listening to relaxing music, breathing in exotic incense, imagining a grassy riverbank carpeted with pretty little flowers, listening to the rush a waterfall feeding the river while a deer walks by... but it is sure easier to tune out the world of phones and computers and the rush of life if you imagine you are sitting in an idyll!
P.S. As an answer to Granny's comment about having no attention span for meditation, meditation is exactly what she needs as a method to train the mind to hold a though longer. I was quite scatterbrained and my dabblings in meditation helped me a lot to shut out distractions and focus on the matter at hand, be it work or following a complex story.
2007-03-25 23:30:46 · answer #2 · answered by NotsoaNonymous 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I agree with you. Meditation is a very individual experience. Some people are connected to different cultures so meditations based on that cultures teachings are most effective for them. Also some people are better using high energy movement meditation like Kundalindi.Some prefer the more traditional and some may say cliche way of sitting in deep thought. As I said its very individual. If you find a way thats best for you then use it. I know personally just listenin to music is very effective for me.
2007-03-25 23:06:48 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
TM is one method - meditation is often very difficult for many, because calming an overactive mind is difficult.
Basically all you do is repeat a mantra using your inner voice (not Om, as you could go nuts) until the other thoughts that enter your mind pass without you concentrating on them - after a few minutes random thoughts stop entering your mind, and the inner voice (to me) begins to sound more like a whisper, and you then sit there 100% consciously aware of yourself in stillness.
A comment about Seng Kim T’s answer: With this type of meditation you never actually empty your mind 100%, as you are 100% aware of yourself and the quietness.
Evil spirits are real: My mothers Baptist Friend and her daughter are both depressed and are on antidepressants and Lithium, my Mothers Jehovah’s Witness Friend (who requires tablets to wake her up and put her to sleep) is also on Lithium.
These poor woman are stressed beyond belief and are fearful of the future; they have been preyed upon and spirtually attacked by what I deem to be evil: - 2 Irrational Quasi Christian based Belief Systems.
They live in a world in which their God does not exist, and feel that their lives will only get better once they are dead (the daughter has attempted suicide several times, she has also run up debts on her credit card by giving money to the GOD channel for redemption – as she believes she must obtain forgiveness for giving birth to a disabled child)
2007-03-26 00:51:28 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Mindfulness is the Key Word in Meditation.
An excellent book out on How to acquire, and cultivate an inner stable peace of mind,
which brings Happiness is:
"Mindfulness in Plain English"
By: Bhente Henepola Gunaratana.
But if money is tight, as it is for some, I encourage you and others reading this, to go to this site below, to learn how to daily practice Insight [Mindfulness] Meditation. It also teaches Loving-kindness meditation toward others and oneself.
The site is below:
http://www.buddhanet.net/meditation.htm...
With Metta {Loving-kindness & Friendship).
2007-03-26 08:38:54 · answer #5 · answered by Thomas 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, its different for every person. The reason those books exist is because most people don't know where to start to begin to understand how to meditate.
2007-03-25 23:03:54 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Inner peace by getting OUT of yourself.Too many committees in there.Try to reach a level of acceptance that's comfortable for you.Too much introspection does not make for a peacefull soul.
2007-03-25 23:19:00 · answer #7 · answered by Sweet Willy 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
How will you know what is the best way without investigating a wide range of alternatives? If you keep doing things the same way (i.e. your way) you will always end up with the same result. By expermenting with lots of different ways you will find the best way for you.
2007-03-26 00:12:47 · answer #8 · answered by LillyB 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I believe that not only can you find inner peace through meditation, you can also find portals or doorways into other realms and dimensions, you can escape time and space.
2007-03-25 23:08:25 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
When you focus on God in stillness and quietness and allows Him to speak to you. The Eastern way of meditation where one let the mind go blank is not meditation to me - to me, anythime you empty your mind, you are putting yourself in danger as you expose yourself (mind) to invasion by all kinds of spirits! (When there is an empty space, there will be something rushing in to fill it up ..... so, be careful!)
2007-03-25 23:45:09 · answer #10 · answered by Seng Kim T 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋