Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard about meditation, its different practices, and the various health and mental benefits of meditating. And for good reason. It’s been in the news frequently, there are plenty of books, apps, audio recordings, and classes about meditation out there, and you may have become curious about this ancient technique that’s making a comeback in modern times.
Let’s explore what you can do to learn more about meditation and most importantly, how to give it a try.
Learning More About Meditation
The internet is a great place to start looking for more information about meditation. It may be how you discovered what you’re reading right now. You’ll find plenty of information about meditation, it’s long history, the various forms of it, and of course some direction and instructions for getting started. This isn’t a bad place to start. You’ll get the basics and enough information to dip your toes in with a simple meditation practice.
You can also find a lot of great books about meditation. Head on over to Amazon, your local bookstore, or the library and pick up a book or two on meditation. There are also some great apps out there with guided meditations. Search for meditation in your phone’s app store.
How To Start Meditating
You can find some simple guided meditations online, as audio recordings and the like. Another great option is, of course, the apps I mentioned. They are a great source of guided meditation and the apps will help you increase your meditation time as you go along. They are a great starting point. From there you can explore other options like breathing meditations for example.
One of the simplest forms of meditation is to become aware of your breath. Sit comfortably, calm your mind, and focus all your attention and conscious thought on breathing in and out. It’s harder than it sounds and takes a bit of practice, but once you get comfortable with this particular exercise, it’s a form of meditation you can do anytime, anywhere.
Above all, I encourage you to look into meditation and give it a try. It’s a wonderful way to combat stress, improve your quality of life and do something positive for your mental and physical health. Try it and see if meditation is right for you. If you don’t particularly enjoy guided meditation, try chanting, transcendental meditation, or breathing meditations.
There are so many different traditions and practices out there.
If you keep an open mind, I’m sure you’ll find the one that’s right for you.