Zen and Meditation

It is essential that we all find ways to relax and reduce stress in our daily lives. I’ll bet you didn’t know this, according to an article in Newsweek on this very subject, an estimated ninety percent of all doctor visits are prompted by stress related complaints. Also in this article it says that over the last 30 years a lot of studies have confirmed the benefits of relaxation exercises.

Everyone should learn to achieve a state of mental calmness allowing your blood pressure to drop, your heart rate to slow, your breathing deep and slow, and your muscles become less tense. If you practice regularly, it will become easier to do, you will be able to do it just about anywhere, and the benefits are tremendous for your body, mind, and spirit.

There are several ways to accomplish this mental calmness and not all of them require you to sit quietly. If you prefer to sit motionless and quietly, one good way to do this is through meditation. A good method of meditation is to choose a short phrase that comes from one of your beliefs, such as “peace and goodwill” or “the Lord is my light.”

Sit with your eyes closed, quietly with no distractions, and in a comfortable position. Relax your muscles focusing on your feet and moving on up to the top of your head.

Meanwhile keep repeating your selected phrase, if your thoughts drift or other thoughts intrude, don’t be too concerned about it, just acknowledge it, and return calmly to your selected phrase.

Do this exercise for ten to twenty minutes but actually five minutes of deep relaxation will leave you feeling calm and refreshed, however the more and longer you do this the more you will benefit.

Learning meditation and becoming more spiritual is an effective process in managing the stressors in your life. Practicing spirituality and meditation will help you become emotionally balanced, creating a feeling of Zen calmness in your life.

Soon you will see that the aggravation and those little annoyances of life do not seem to bother you as much as they used to.

An excellent side benefit of being spiritually Zen is that it strengthens your physical body as well. Your emotions are better balanced, You don’t worry so much about the little things, your immune system is stronger so you physically feel better, and your spirituality is deeper leading to a more calm and peaceful life of Zen.

The benefits of meditation extend far beyond contemplation, deep breathing, and quieting the mind. Through consistent and regular practice meditation can reduce your risk of heart disease, increase your body's ability to protect itself by giving your immune system a boost, elevate your energy levels, and reduce inflammation.

A tremendous amount of research has uncovered how well meditation influences brain function by increasing the connections between neurons which can greatly decrease depression and anxiety as well as increase the positive endorphins that positively affect your mood and help you think more clearly.

If you practice meditation on a regular basis it will have an overall positive effect on your mental, physical, and spiritual well being. Consequently, when this trilogy is positively influence you will feel more inspirational.

A study was conducted by a team of neuroscientists from the University of California at Los Angeles and they found that regular and consistent meditation can give your brain the ability to increase cortical gyrification.

The cerebal cortex is the outermost cover of neural tissue in the brain and it is vital in helping you control your memory, how you think about things, the decisions you make, how you focus your attention, and how you create your own awareness.

Cortical Gyrification is an important function allowing the cerebral cortex to fold, creating creases, and increasing the brain's capacity to process information, create memories, understand the logic in making decisions. Additionally, you will be able to control your emotions, have a higher sense of awareness, and have the ability to look inside yourself.

It is only when you can calm your mind and control the onslaught of continuous and persistent mind talk will you then be able to go deeper into your consciousness and experience those healing benefits allowing you to fully realize the true nature of peace, compassion, and love.

A regular meditative practice is a great stress buster and can greatly help you with all the distractions going on inside your life and your mind.

The thing is, you don't have to sit in a lotus position for hours on end staring off into infinity like a monk in a monastery, I mean unless you want to, just ten to fifteen minutes a day will give you tremendous benefits.

Of course meditation is just like everything else in life, the more and longer you do it, the more beneficial it is, and the more you will gain from it.

Learning to meditate may help you to look inside yourself seeking the wisdom and calmness that can enable you to developing balance, awareness, and harmony.

There are different styles and ways to meditate and you’ll have to research this on your own to find the one that works best for you.  However, I would like to give you a couple of examples to get you started in reaching a higher awareness, help you clear your mind so that you can reduce distractions, and then help you focusing on your inner self and reaching a higher state of consciousness.

Transcendental Meditation is a well known technique but what most fail to realize is that you would have to practice it for a considerable amount of time before reaching enlightenment.

This technique is not difficult to master and you don’t have to concern yourself with special breathing and postures. You only need to sit quietly, relaxed and in a comfortable position, and just focus on your own deep breathing. This type of meditation will help you improve balance, harmony, and creativity. In fact the only challenge to practicing this technique is sticking with it and that’s up to you to decide if it really is a challenge.

Vibrational Meditation is a technique that uses a phrase or mantra that is repeated and focused on throughout the meditation session and all you have to do is focus on your selected phrase. Any short positive affirmation type phrase will do as long as it is one that will keep you focused, for example, the phrase I like to use is “Ong Ma Lee Bae Mae Hong.”

I learned this from Master Chunyi Lin who is the creator of “Spring Forest Qi Gong,” (pronounced Chi Gong.) This is a very old six word chant used by Buddhists and Buddhist Monks in Tibet.

It is a healing chant and each word has specific properties. “Ong” represents the wisdom of the Universe. “Ma Lee” represents a person’s ever changing heart. “Bae Mae” represents the heart’s purity. “Hong” represents enlightenment and the relationship a person has with the wisdom of God or the Universe.

Each word has a specific healing function that is relative to the human body. The sound of “Ong” has healing properties for the eyes, ears, nose, and the head in general.

The sound of “Ma Lee” has healing properties for the heart, lungs, throat, and shoulders.

The sound of “Bae Mae” has healing properties for the back, spine, stomach, and intestinal tract.

The sound of “Hong” has healing properties for the body’s joints and legs.

When these six words are used together they bring a powerful balance to the energy of your body and help connect you to the healing energy of the Universe.

Master Lin says it is one of his favorite chants and I agree. He also says, “each sound is a healing sound and the meaning is: Open your heart. Go to the Universe. In the oneness you will find the truth of yourself.”

I also have another favorite mantra or phrase that I like to use during my meditation. I learned this one from Dr. Joe Vitale and Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len and it comes from an ancient Hawaiian healing technique called “Ho’oponopono.”

This mantra is actually four smaller phrase joined together and I consider them to be the four most powerful phrases in the Universe. They really don’t need an explanation, you can say them to your inner self and your higher being, and you can express them anytime you feel like it and in any order.

They are, “I’m sorry, please forgive me, thank you, I love you.”

Feel free to use these if you like or make up one of your own as long as it is one that supports your beliefs and is one that helps you focus during your meditation.