A SHORT REPORT ON MEDITATION & WHAT IT MAY MEAN TO YOU
The Levels of Mind State
Throughout the day, every day, even when relaxed or asleep, you would be surprised as to how active your brain actually is, so too your subconscious mind.
Our brains are truly amazing organs and do not function to their fullest capacity. We as individuals are incapable of utilising 100% of our brains, or indeed our minds, subconscious or not. There is so much raw potential we can tap into and explore if we choose to do so. A normal brain processes routine things throughout the day, and we would call that a ‘normal’ state. A first-level state in which the brain is operating in cruise mode. But at times, this can be very much in contrast to our minds. That can be racing from one concept of thought to another, churning through one idea, and jumping to another. Like a non-ceasing machine, autonomously working through the tasks and loads we present to it every minute of the day.
Your mind can be a frenetic place to be!
To move up a notch from the ‘normal’ to the second level state, we can take some control of what our minds and brains are doing; to steer and direct, to focus on a particular goal or task, to concentrate. This now demands a higher state of mind and a different form of brain activity, but concentration is not meditation; there is a difference, and should not be confused. Most of us can get ourselves into this second-level state without difficulty, what is more of a challenge for some, is maintaining that level of mind state, of focus; a concentration of pure form. Once you learn to maintain the right level of concentration, meditation is within your grasp.
Breathe…
One of the first things you will want to master is your breathing. Yes, breathing. That little thing we all take for granted every day! Breathing correctly helps in many ways, one of which is to alleviate stress or anxiety, to help you keep calm. In return, it helps your body to relax. Mastering your breathing takes time, control and concentration, so here would probably be a good place to start for most.
Allow me to guide you through an exercise you can utilise each day to achieve this and begin to strengthen your concentration.
Find yourself a firm-based chair; one that doesn’t slope back too much, otherwise use a cushion or pillow to support your lower back. The idea here is to keep your back straight. Ideally, you want to concentrate on one thing at a time in the early stages. Breathing is what we want to concentrate on at this present time, not maintaining a posture, that can come later.
Now, relax, place your hands on your lap, not on your knees, relax the arms and the shoulders. Good. From now on, you will breathe IN through the nose, and gently breathe OUT through the mouth. You will control the depth and rate of breathing and keep it regular and constant.
Breathe in to about 50% of your lung capacity, hold for a second and breathe out, again controlling the rate at which you breathe out, you want to take the same amount of time to exhale as you did to inhale. Again, hold on exhale for a second and begin breathing in. You must ensure that you use your diaphragm to breathe, not your stomach muscles. Your belly should not move in and out as you breathe, but your chest should expand and deflate instead.
This all sounds simple enough, but, believe it or not, is more difficult to achieve in practice. It will demand control and concentration, so practice it. You can start with 5-minute sessions, preferably two or three times a day. You CAN make time for that, you need nothing but somewhere to sit in relative peace. When you are able to easily control your breathing, with far less concentration than you needed when you started, you know you are ready to begin your move to the next stage.
See you in Part 3.
