Poems Pictures Meditations (Poems Pictures & Meditations Book 5)

Christian, Judaic, and Islamic forms of meditation are typically devotional, scriptural or thematic, while Asian forms of meditation are often more purely technical. In popular usage, the word "meditation" and the phrase "meditative practice" are often used imprecisely to designate broadly similar practices, or sets of practices, that are found across many cultures and traditions.

Definitions in the Oxford and Cambridge living dictionaries and Merriam-Webster include both the original Latin meaning of "think[ing] deeply about something "; [6] as well as the popular usage of "to focus one's mind for a period of time," [6] "the act of giving your attention to only one thing," [26] and "to engage in mental exercise such as concentration on one's breathing or repetition of a mantra for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness. Criteria for defining a practice as meditation "for use in a comprehensive systematic review of the therapeutic use of meditation" were identified by Bond et al.

The table shows several other definitions of meditation that have been used by influential modern reviews of research on meditation across multiple traditions. Goleman's book has 33 editions listed in WorldCat: The varieties of meditative experience and 16 editions as The varieties of meditative experience. Citation and edition counts are as of August and September respectively. In modern psychological research, meditation has been defined and characterized in a variety of ways; many of these emphasize the role of attention. The practitioner of meditation attempts to get beyond the reflexive, "thinking" mind [32] sometimes called "discursive thinking" [33] or "logic" [34] This may be to achieve a deeper, more devout, or more relaxed state.

In this article the terms "meditative practice" and "meditation" are mostly used in this broad sense. However, in some contexts more specialized meanings of "meditation" may be intended. Some of the difficulty in precisely defining meditation has been the difficulty in recognizing the particularities of the many various traditions.

The specific name of a school of thought or a teacher or the title of a specific text is often quite important for identifying a particular type of meditation. Ornstein noted that "Most techniques of meditation do not exist as solitary practices but are only artificially separable from an entire system of practice and belief. These meditative practices sometimes have similarities often noticed by Westerners , for instance concentration on the breath is practiced in Zen, Tibetan and Theravadan contexts, and these similarities or "typologies" are noted here.

In the West, meditation techniques have sometimes been thought of in two broad categories: One style, Focused Attention FA meditation, entails the voluntary focusing of attention on a chosen object, breathing, image, or words. The other style, Open Monitoring OM meditation, involves non-reactive monitoring of the content of experience from moment to moment. Direction of mental attention A practitioner can focus intensively on one particular object so-called concentrative meditation , on all mental events that enter the field of awareness so-called mindfulness meditation , or both specific focal points and the field of awareness.

The Internet Classics Archive | The Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

These include mindfulness , shikantaza and other awareness states. In these methods, " the practitioner is fully alert, aware, and in control of their faculties but does not experience any unwanted thought activity. One proposal is that transcendental meditation and possibly other techniques be grouped as an 'automatic self-transcending' set of techniques. Other typologies include dividing meditation into concentrative, generative, receptive and reflective practices.

The transcendental meditation technique recommends practice of 20 minutes twice per day. Whilst positions such as the full-lotus , half-lotus, Burmese , Seiza , and kneeling positions are popular in Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism, other postures such as sitting, supine lying , and standing are also used. Meditation is also sometimes done while walking, known as kinhin , or while doing a simple task mindfully, known as samu. Some ancient religions of the world have a tradition of using prayer beads as tools in devotional meditation. The Hindu japa mala has beads the figure in itself having spiritual significance, as well as those used in Jainism and Buddhist prayer beads.

Richie Davidson has expressed the view that having a narrative can help maintenance of daily practice. In Jainism , meditation has been a core spiritual practice, one that Jains believe people have undertaken since the teaching of the Tirthankara , Rishabha.

Mahavira practiced deep meditation for twelve years and attained enlightenment. Jain meditation and spiritual practices system were referred to as salvation-path. It has three important parts called the Ratnatraya "Three Jewels": The practitioner strives to be just a knower-seer Gyata-Drashta. Jain meditation can be broadly categorized to Dharmya Dhyana and Shukla Dhyana. There is a rich tradition of Mantra in Jainism.

All Jain followers irrespective of their sect, whether Digambara or Svetambara , practice mantra. Mantra chanting is an important part of daily lives of Jain monks and followers. Mantra chanting can be done either loudly or silently in mind. Yogasana and Pranayama has been an important practice undertaken since ages. Contemplation is a very old and important meditation technique. The practitioner meditates deeply on subtle facts. Acharya Mahapragya formulated Preksha meditation in the s and presented a well-organised system of meditation.

Asana and Pranayama , meditation, contemplation, mantra and therapy are its integral parts. Buddhist meditation refers to the meditative practices associated with the religion and philosophy of Buddhism. Core meditation techniques have been preserved in ancient Buddhist texts and have proliferated and diversified through teacher-student transmissions. Buddhists pursue meditation as part of the path toward awakening and nirvana. Buddhist meditation techniques have become increasingly popular in the wider world, with many non-Buddhists taking them up for a variety of reasons.

According to the Theravada and Sarvastivada commentatorial tradition, and also the Tibetan tradition, [95] the Buddha is said to have identified two paramount mental qualities that arise from wholesome meditative practice:. Through the meditative development of serenity, one is able to weaken the obscuring hindrances and bring the mind to a collected, pliant and still state samadhi.

What exactly is to be seen various withing the Buddhist traditions. When this happens, one develops dispassion viraga for all phenomena, including all negative qualities and hindrances and lets them go. It is through the release of the hindrances and ending of craving through the meditative development of insight that one gains liberation. In the modern era , Buddhist meditation saw increasing popularity due to the influence of Buddhist modernism on Asian Buddhism, and western lay interest in Zen and the Vipassana movement.

The spread of Buddhist meditation to the Western world paralleled the spread of Buddhism in the West. There are many schools and styles of meditation within Hinduism. In some Hindu traditions, such as Advaita Vedanta this is equated with the omnipresent and non-dual Brahman. In others, such as the dualistic the Yoga school and Samkhya , the Self is referred to as Purusha , a pure consciousness which is separate from matter. Depending on the tradition, this liberative event is referred to as moksha , vimukti or kaivalya.

The earliest clear references to meditation in Hindu literature are in the middle Upanishads and the Mahabharata , the latter of which includes the Bhagavad Gita. Later developments in Hind meditation include the compilation of Hatha Yoga forceful yoga compendiums like the Hatha Yoga Pradipika , the development of Bhakti yoga as a major form of meditation and Tantra. In Sikhism , simran meditation and good deeds are both necessary to achieve the devotee's Spiritual goals; [] without good deeds meditation is futile.

When Sikhs meditate, they aim to feel God 's presence and immerge in the divine light. Guru Nanak in the Japji Sahib daily Sikh scripture explains:. Visits to temples, penance, compassion and charity gain you but a sesame seed of credit. It is hearkening to His Name , accepting and adoring Him that obtains emancipation by bathing in the shrine of soul.

All virtues are Yours, O Lord! I have none; Without good deeds one can't even meditate. Taoist or Daoist meditation has a long history, and has developed various techniques including concentration, visualization, qi cultivation, contemplation, and mindfulness meditations. Traditional Daoist meditative practices were influenced by Chinese Buddhism beginning around the 5th century, and later had influence upon Traditional Chinese medicine and the Chinese martial arts. Livia Kohn distinguishes three basic types of Daoist meditation: The late 4th century BCE Guanzi essay Neiye "Inward training" is the oldest received writing on the subject of qi cultivation and breath-control meditation techniques.

And you can maintain the One and discard the myriad disturbances. This is called "revolving the vital breath": Your thoughts and deeds seem heavenly. Confucius asked his disciple Yan Hui to explain what "sit and forget" means: Daoist meditation practices are central to Chinese martial arts and some Japanese martial arts , especially the qi -related neijia "internal martial arts". Some well-known examples are daoyin "guiding and pulling", qigong "life-energy exercises", neigong "internal exercises", neidan "internal alchemy", and taijiquan "great ultimate boxing", which is thought of as moving meditation.

One common explanation contrasts "movement in stillness" referring to energetic visualization of qi circulation in qigong and zuochan "seated meditation", [45] versus "stillness in movement" referring to a state of meditative calm in taijiquan forms. He also encouraged people to reflect on one's actions and worth at the end of each day. There is evidence that Judaism has had meditative practices that go back thousands of years. Similarly, there are indications throughout the Tanakh the Hebrew Bible that meditation was used by the prophets.

Some meditative traditions have been encouraged in the school of Judaism known as Kabbalah , and some Jews have described Kabbalah as an inherently meditative field of study. Meditation has been of interest to a wide variety of modern Jews.

The Musar Movement , founded by Rabbi Israel Salanter in the middle of the nineteenth-century, emphasized meditative practices of introspection and visualization that could help to improve moral character. Jewish Buddhists have adopted Buddhist styles of meditation. Christian meditation is a term for a form of prayer in which a structured attempt is made to get in touch with and deliberately reflect upon the revelations of God. Christian meditation is the process of deliberately focusing on specific thoughts e. The Rosary is a devotion for the meditation of the mysteries of Jesus and Mary.

The first principle is that meditation is learned through practice. Many people who practice rosary meditation begin very simply and gradually develop a more sophisticated meditation. Christian meditation contrasts with Eastern forms of meditation as radically as the portrayal of God the Father in the Bible contrasts with depictions of Krishna or Brahman in Indian teachings. Christian meditation aims to heighten the personal relationship based on the love of God that marks Christian communion.

In Aspects of Christian meditation , the Catholic Church warned of potential incompatibilities in mixing Christian and Eastern styles of meditation. Christian meditation is sometimes taken to mean the middle level in a broad three stage characterization of prayer: In and by the centre different kinds of church services are offered like for example with elements such as expressionist dance , moreover days of exercises of Christian mysticism , contemplative prayer, meditative singing , meditation courses, Zen -meditation courses, days of reflection, spiritual exercises and retreats [].

Early studies on states of consciousness conducted by Roland Fischer [] found evidence of mystical experience description in the writings of Saint Teresa of Avila. In her autobiography she describes that, at the peak of a praying experience " While it lasts, none of the senses perceives or knows what is taking place". Salah is a mandatory act of devotion performed by Muslims five times per day.

The body goes through sets of different postures, as the mind attains a level of concentration called khushu'. A second optional type of meditation, called dhikr , meaning remembering and mentioning God, is interpreted in different meditative techniques in Sufism or Islamic mysticism. It is juxtaposed with fikr thinking which leads to knowledge. Numerous Sufi traditions place emphasis upon a meditative procedure which comes from the cognitive aspect to one of the two principal approaches to be found in the Buddhist traditions: In the Oveyssi-Shahmaghsoudi Sufi order, for example, this is particularly evident, where muraqaba takes the form of tamarkoz, the latter being a Persian term that means "concentration".

Tafakkur or tadabbur in Sufism literally means reflection upon the universe: The sensation of receiving divine inspiration awakens and liberates both heart and intellect , permitting such inner growth that the apparently mundane actually takes on the quality of the infinite. Muslim teachings embrace life as a test of one's submission to God.

Religions and religious movements which use magic, such as Wicca , Thelema , Neopaganism , occultism etc. This is because magic is often thought to require a particular state of mind in order to make contact with spirits, or because one has to visualize one's goal or otherwise keep intent focused for a long period during the ritual in order to see the desired outcome. Meditation practice in these religions usually revolves around visualization, absorbing energy from the universe or higher self, directing one's internal energy, and inducing various trance states.

Meditation and magic practice often overlap in these religions as meditation is often seen as merely a stepping stone to supernatural power, and the meditation sessions may be peppered with various chants and spells. New Age meditations are often influenced by Eastern philosophy, mysticism, yoga , Hinduism and Buddhism, yet may contain some degree of Western influence. In the West, meditation found its mainstream roots through the social revolution of the s and s , when many of the youth of the day rebelled against traditional religion as a reaction against what some perceived as the failure of Christianity to provide spiritual and ethical guidance.

This is often aided by repetitive chanting of a mantra, or focusing on an object. Over the past 20 years, mindfulness and mindfulness-based programs have been used to assist people, whether they be clinically sick or healthy. As stated by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine , a US government entity within the National Institutes of Health that advocates various forms of Alternative Medicine , "Meditation may be practiced for many reasons, such as to increase calmness and physical relaxation, to improve psychological balance, to cope with illness, or to enhance overall health and well-being.

Meditation techniques have also been used by Western theories of counseling and psychotherapy. Relaxation training works toward achieving mental and muscle relaxation to reduce daily stresses. Sahaja mental silence meditators scored above control group for emotional well-being and mental health measures on SF ratings. In this practice one tenses and then relaxes muscle groups in a sequential pattern whilst concentrating on how they feel.

The method has been seen to help people with many conditions, especially extreme anxiety. These techniques are used in conjunction with other behavioral techniques. Originally used with systematic desensitization , relaxation techniques are now used with other clinical problems. Meditation, hypnosis and biofeedback -induced relaxation are a few of the techniques used with relaxation training. One of the eight essential phases of EMDR developed by Francine Shapiro , bringing adequate closure to the end of each session, also entails the use of relaxation techniques, including meditation.

Multimodal therapy, a technically eclectic approach to behavioral therapy, also employs the use of meditation as a technique used in individual therapy. From the point of view of psychology and physiology , meditation can induce an altered state of consciousness. Today, there are many different types of meditation practiced in western culture. Mindful breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and loving kindness meditations for instance have been found to provide cognitive benefits such as relaxation and decentering.

With training in meditation, depressive rumination can be decreased and overall peace of mind can flourish. Different techniques have shown to work better for different people.

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Herbert Benson of Harvard Medical School conducted a series of clinical tests on meditators from various disciplines, including the Transcendental Meditation technique and Tibetan Buddhism. In , Benson published a book titled The Relaxation Response where he outlined his own version of meditation for relaxation. Biofeedback has been used by many researchers since the s in an effort to enter deeper states of mind.

The history of meditation is intimately bound up with the religious context within which it was practiced. In the Roman Empire , by 20 BCE Philo of Alexandria had written on some form of "spiritual exercises" involving attention prosoche and concentration [] and by the 3rd century Plotinus had developed meditative techniques. The Islamic practice of Dhikr had involved the repetition of the 99 Names of God since the 8th or 9th century.

Western Christian meditation contrasts with most other approaches in that it does not involve the repetition of any phrase or action and requires no specific posture. Western Christian meditation progressed from the 6th century practice of Bible reading among Benedictine monks called Lectio Divina , i.

Its four formal steps as a "ladder" were defined by the monk Guigo II in the 12th century with the Latin terms lectio , meditatio , oratio , and contemplatio i. Western Christian meditation was further developed by saints such as Ignatius of Loyola and Teresa of Avila in the 16th century. Secular forms of meditation were introduced in India in the s as a modern form of Hindu meditative techniques and arrived in Australia in the late s [] and, the United States and Europe in the s.

Rather than focusing on spiritual growth, secular meditation emphasizes stress reduction, relaxation and self-improvement. Research on meditation began in , with scientific research increasing dramatically during the s and s. Methods of meditation have been cross-culturally disseminated at various times throughout history, such as Buddhism going to East Asia, and Sufi practices going to many Islamic societies.

Of special relevance to the modern world is the dissemination of meditative practices since the late 19th century, accompanying increased travel and communication among cultures worldwide. Most prominent has been the transmission of numerous Asian-derived practices to the West. In addition, interest in some Western-based meditative practices has also been revived, [] and these have been disseminated to a limited extent to Asian countries.

Ideas about Eastern meditation had begun "seeping into American popular culture even before the American Revolution through the various sects of European occult Christianity", [36]: The World Parliament of Religions , held in Chicago in , was the landmark event that increased Western awareness of meditation.

This was the first time that Western audiences on American soil received Asian spiritual teachings from Asians themselves. More recently, in the s, another surge in Western interest in meditative practices began. Observers have suggested many types of explanations for this interest in Eastern meditation and revived Western contemplation. Thomas Keating , a founder of Contemplative Outreach , wrote that "the rush to the East is a symptom of what is lacking in the West. There is a deep spiritual hunger that is not being satisfied in the West.

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Another suggested contributing factor is the rise of communist political power in Asia, which "set the stage for an influx of Asian spiritual teachers to the West", [36]: A review of the literature on spirituality and performance in organizations found an increase in corporate meditation programs. As of around a quarter of U.

Aetna now offers its program to its customers. Google also implements mindfulness, offering more than a dozen meditation courses, with the most prominent one, "Search Inside Yourself", having been implemented since Research on the processes and effects of meditation is a subfield of neurological research.

Since the s, clinical psychology and psychiatry have developed meditation techniques for numerous psychological conditions. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of meditation on empathy , compassion , and prosocial behaviors found that meditation practices had small to medium effects on self-reported and observable outcomes, concluding that such practices can "improve positive prosocial emotions and behaviors".

Preliminary studies showed a potential relationship between meditation and job performance, resulting from cognitive and social effects. Concerns have been raised on the quality of much meditation research, [] [] including the particular characteristics of individuals who tend to participate. Evidence from neuroimaging studies suggests that the categories of meditation, as defined by how they direct attention, appear to generate different brainwave patterns.

Many major traditions in which meditation is practiced, such as Buddhism [] and Hinduism, [] advise members not to consume intoxicants , while others, such as the Rastafarian movements and Native American Church, view drugs as integral to their religious lifestyle. The fifth of the five precepts of the Pancasila , the ethical code in the Theravada and Mahayana Buddhist traditions, states that adherents must: If you are not the copyright holder or its agent and if the content is clearly infringing the copyright of a well-known work, please select "Infringes a well-known work" from the dropdown menu.

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