INTRODUCTION
When we were young, we seem to have had boundless and inexhaustible resources of energy and stamina for the challenges of life. As boys, we were propelled forward by an abundance of hormones and youthful naïve enthusiasm for the world that was beginning to open up to us. Youth is a beautiful time—a time when our energy is greater than our expenditure—a time before we have experienced real life and its energy-draining experiences of being exhausted, sick, burnt-out, spent, dead-tired, devastated, divorced, and disillusioned. As we get older and are forced to acknowledge our mortality and finitude, many of us realize that we must find ways of replenishing our energy and soul.
One of the methods we can use to replenish and re-create ourselves is meditation, a popular form of which is called “transcendental meditation” inasmuch as it helps the practitioner to transcend or get above or past a problem or experience such as stress, fatigue, or illness. Many of us could benefit from meditation, yet few of us are familiar with meditation techniques. Therefore, in this article I will describe some of the techniques of meditation, that you might apply them in your own life. I will also give you some “informative encouragement” as to why you should consider including some form of meditation your daily routine. Not only is meditation relaxing, but some of the documented health benefits of meditation are profound!
MEDITATION
As with most other things in life, meditation can only be mastered by discipline and regular practice. You may need to make several attempts at meditation before you really feel yourself “get into it” and begin to obtain the desired sense of mental revitalization and physical relaxation. Be patient with your process of learning. Just keep trying—the success is in the attempt. Some experts1 have stated, “It is important to understand that the heart of meditation lies not simply in focusing on one object to the exclusion of all other thought, but rather in the attempt to achieve this kind of focus.” If your mind wanders (to thoughts of bills, work, problems, etc.), simply encourage it back to the focus of your meditation. Your ability to control your mind will increase with practice.
There are several different techniques of meditation—all of which are done with the intent to allow deep physical relaxation while at the same time providing an opportunity for the brain and mind to become refreshed. A recent scientific study2 showed that during meditation, blood flow and metabolic activity in the brain are increased while blood flow to other parts of the body is decreased. This is consistent with experiencing a deep feeling of physical relaxation yet at the same time feeling an increase in mental alertness.
health benefits
Physical relaxation alone is a sufficient reward for the practice of meditation, but it is certainly not the only reward. Long-term practitioners also enjoy other physiologic benefits as well, such as decreased heart rate, decreased breathing rate, decreased oxygen consumption, increased blood flow to the brain, and synchronization of brain impulses to alpha waves. Health benefits include a reduction in anxiety and compulsive thinking, relief from headaches, reduced blood pressure, and reduced blood cholesterol levels.3 Numerous documented case reports have been published in the medical literature of patients with cancer who achieved a regression of tumor growth after they began practicing meditation on a daily basis.4 Of course, folks with health conditions should seek the advice of a physician, but meditation might be a very useful addition to the treatment program for many diseases, not to mention the possibility that it could be effective preventing the development of such diseases in the first place.
techniques
The following sections describe a few of the many meditation techniques. After trying them, you may find that one technique works particularly well for you. Stay with it—use whichever technique allows you to gain the greatest benefit.
Gazing: This style of meditation involves “the practice of uncritically attempting to focus your attention on one thing at a time.”1 The object itself is unimportant, but might be an object such a candle light, flower, plant, piece of wood, stone, or anything else. You might even use a mental image as the focus of your internal gaze—for example, you could visualize yourself mastering a task, embodying the masculine archetypes, becoming the man that you want to be, or being calm and centered in your life.
Mantra meditation: Similar to focused meditation, mantra meditation involves your attempt to focus on a syllable, word, or phrase—some of the more popular are “one” and the universal mantra, “OM.” The phrases, “whole…happy… healthy…healing…” might be useful to keep the images positive and focused. Synchronize each word with your breathing.
Body-awareness meditation: Take some time to go inside yourself, to explore your feelings and emotions, to notice your body, your heart beat, the rising and falling of each breath. Scan each part of your body for tension and sensations.
Active meditation: You can carry the same meditative state with you into simple daily activities. Such a focus can bring greater relaxation and attention to your activities, and thus to your life. Consider meditating—being fully aware, relaxed, and present—while you eat (focus on each bite, the taste, smell, and texture of the food; what does it feel like?), while you walk (notice your contact with the ground; how does your body shift and respond to each step?). Imagine the serenity that might be achieved with regular day-long active meditation and twice-daily intensive meditation sessions!
Practice…practice…practice…
Get into a position that is comfortable for you whether it is standing, sitting in a chair, sitting cross-legged, squatting, kneeling, or lying. Use a pillow, cushion, or blanket to make yourself comfortable. Breathing should be neither too deep nor too shallow but should be relaxed and natural. Although you might start with just a few minutes of meditation per session, most experienced practitioners meditate on a daily basis for two sessions of twenty to thirty minutes each. At first you’ll probably want to be in alone in a relatively quiet place, but eventually, as you gain control over yourself and your mind, you will find it easier to meditate in “real life situations”—this is an important goal: to be able to be profoundly relaxed and mentally alert in any setting. This is as difficult as it is enticing. One key to maintaining relaxation within yourself despite your circumstances is to recognize your ability to separate yourself from your surroundings and to work toward developing wholeness, centeredness, and balance within yourself. You can do it—consider your potential for self-mastery.
One of the images that I consider is that of a “walled garden”, a place within myself where I go to take care of myself and to relax and find peace. It is a place where I (attempt to) feel safe even when threatened, to feel relaxed even when stressed. This image was mentioned by Robert Bly5 when he described such a place of centeredness within a man—a centeredness that comes with age, patience, experience, and practice. Bly says,
I don’t know how old you will be before you will achieve a walled garden around you. That means that you respect your boundaries, you know about your boundaries, you don’t go in and out with other people all the time. You have a wall around you in which you grow precious pear trees and beautiful things of that sort…
The image of boundaries is important. We must all learn where we begin and others end. Boundaries allow us security, and the ability to say “no” to the demands of the world when we need to take care of ourselves. But we also need to learn to say “no” to ourselves—to really take care of ourselves instead of numbing ourselves out with drugs, alcohol, television, or other habits that really don’t give us the refreshment and relaxation that we need. The image of a garden is important also. We need to learn to take care of ourselves, to nurture ourselves, and to feed ourselves with spirit and soul just as we feed our bodies with food and drink. With practice, we learn to gain mastery over ourselves, to “quiet the monkey mind”6 through meditation, and we can become more calm, more effective, more healthy, and, over time, perhaps even more alive.
