Meditation techniques

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Meditation Techniques

Part 1- What are the basics of meditation?

Part 2- Effects of Meditation

Part 3- What are the main types of meditation?

Part 4- How to practice meditation?

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Part 1- Meditation Basics

Popularity

* A 2007 study by the U.S. government found that nearly 9.4%of U.S. adults (over 20 million) had practiced meditation within the past 12 months

* This was up from 7.6% (morethan 15 million people) in 2002

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When the mind is emptied of superfluous conscious thoughts and ego chatter, insights can bubble up from the unconscious mind.

Meditation is about emptying your mind.

* Meditation is defined as a mind- cleansing or emptying process

* At a deeper level, meditation is focused concentration and increased awareness of one’s being

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McKinsey & Co.* developed meditation and self-analysis programs not only for their own employees but for other corporations* a meditation program developed by McKinsey for an Australian client saved the business more than $20 million.Yahoo!* meditation rooms, free classes offered on-site.Deutsche Bank* meditation classes, quiet spaces on siteProcter & Gamble* health and fitness programs that include meditation classes* meditation spaces in their major corporate buildings.HBO* gyms, free yoga classes, and meditation classes at the workplace

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10 Big Companies That Promote Employee Meditation


10 Big Companies That Promote Employee Meditation (continued)

Apple* employees allowed to take 30 minutes each day to meditate at work, classes on meditation and yoga on-site, meditation room.Prentice Hall Publishing* “Quiet Room.” for employees to take a break and slip into the space for meditationGoogle* “Search Inside Yourself” employee support program* meditation space and meditation coursesNike* relaxation rooms, meditation and yoga classes wAOL Time Warner* meditation classes during the work day, quiet room

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The best meditation posture is the most comfortable one: whether it is laying, sitting or standing. It does not have to be the traditional cross-legged sitting pose.

Originally, the asanas (yoga postures in above picture)served as stable postures for prolonged meditation

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Click on the screen






Some Study Examples on the effects of meditation:

* Heightened restful state, lowered heart rate andpulse, slow and calm breathing, and relaxed musclesOrme-Johnson (1987, 1995)

* Heightened alertness. EEG recordings show high activity of alpha and beta wavesPersinger’s (1984, 1993)

* Decrease in the concentration of arterial andblood lactate levels 4 times faster than in sleepWallace and Benson(1970, 1971,1972)

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The graph shows the number of meditation studies considered as serious explorations of meditation’s effects published per year

in the MEDLINE database

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Regular meditation practice contributes to increased mental acuity(better test scores), increased concentration skills (less ADD)

and increased emotional stability (less depression)

In summary:

* A recent randomized study published in Psychological Science reported that practicing meditation led to doing better on a task related to sustained attention

* In over 1,000 published research studies, variousmethods of meditation have been linked to changes in metabolism, blood pressure, brain activation, and other bodily processes.

* Meditation has also been used in clinical settings as a method of stress and pain reduction

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randomized

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_Science_(journal)

Part 3- Main Types of Meditation 10

●Exclusive Meditation

●Inclusive Meditation

Mindfulness Meditation

●focus on only one thought, to the exclusion of all others, also called restrictive meditation

How does it work?* Mental repetition (mantra)* Visual concentration (tratek)* Repeated sounds (nadem)* Physical repetition (breathing, rhythmic exercise)* Tactile repetition (beads, shell, stone, ...)




Mindfulness Meditation From top left to right:

* Tactile repetition (beads, shell, stone, ...)* Physical repetition: breathing* Repeated sounds/music (nadem)* Visual concentration (tratek)





allow all thoughts to enter the mind’s screen, yet passing no judgment or emotional attachment on them

How does it work?* Observe with emotional detachment

* Example include Zen Meditation(next slide)





Zen Meditation

A kōan is a story, dialogue, question, or statement, which is used in Zen-practice to provoke the "great doubt", and test a student's progress in Zen practice.For instance: “Two hands clap and there is a sound. What is the sound of one hand?—Hakuin Ekaku





be mindful / conscious of everything you do without judgment. Some people consider this to be a form of inclusive meditation

How does it work?

* Close your eyes and listen to all sounds, even the faintest, most distant ones

* Mindfulness Mediation is also seen as a form of inclusive meditation





The aim of mindfulness isn’t to make you feel more relaxed.Trying to relax only causes more tension.

Mindfulness is accepting your moment by moment experience.So if you are tense, mindfulness is being aware of that tension.

Where do you feel tense? What’s it shape, colour, texture? What’s your reaction to this tension, your thoughts.

The Hindu Ohm evokes peace and mindfulness

Part 4- Practicing Meditation 16

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6eFFCi12v8


Mindfulness meditation in practice:1- Pay attention: To be mindful, you need to pay attentionto the present moment, whatever you choose to attend to.

Present Moment is the reality of being in the here and nowmeans you just need to be aware of the way things are as they are now. Your experience is valid and correct just as it is.

2- Be non reactive, non judgmental, open your heartto your thoughts.Step back and think about your experience before reactingNormally, when you experience something you automatically react to that experience according to your past conditioning. Example: if you think, “ I still haven’t finished my work”, you react with thoughts, word and actions in some shape or form.

A reaction is automatic and gives you no choice;a response is a deliberate and considered action.


* Dedicate a specific time of day

* Dedicate a specific place each time

* Minimize distractions; phones, TV, co-workers

* Maintain a comfortable position allowing your body to relax

* Consider using some type of focusing device such as mantra, music, breath, ...

Create a routine in your weekly calendarTip: check out the “Self” meditation app available on iphone

Click on the screen





* wikipedia.com

* “The Power of now” from Eckard Tolles

*http://www.onlinemba.com/blog/10-big-companies-that-promote-employee-meditation

* “Study shows compassion meditation changes the brain” March 25, 2008 by Dian Land, University of Wisconsin

* www.psychologicalscience.org

Sources and References 19

http://www.onlinemba.com/blog/10-big-companies-that-promote-employee-meditation



Slide transcripts 20

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Health & Medicine

Meditation techniques