Meditation is a great practice to train your focus and attention and heal your body and mind. If you hope to start meditating, it can be pretty overwhelming to choose the right type of meditation practice for yourself. There are all different kinds of medication available. In this article, we will discuss the most popular forms of it.
Understanding the Magic of Meditation
Before diving into the different techniques, it is essential to understand meditation. It is a practice that helps you achieve increased mental clarity and brings about emotional calmness. It has gained popularity in the last couple of years in the Western world. However, people from Eastern cultures have been practicing it for thousands of years.
Physical and Mental Health Benefits of Meditation
The top benefits of meditation include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Balanced blood pressure
- Increased focus and attention
- Improved sleep
- Reduced stress and anxiety
- Reduced chronic pain
- Protection against age-related problems and dementia
12 Styles and Types of Meditation to Try
There are various kinds of meditation available. Sometimes, you must try a few types to see what fits you. What might work for you might not work for someone else and vice versa. Let’s begin.
1. Mindfulness
It has hands down the most popular type of meditation. During mindfulness meditation, you pay attention to your current feeling and sensations without trying to clear your mind and change it. The goal is to feel yourself physically, mentally, and emotionally without passing any judgment. The practice often involves breathing exercises in a sitting-down, relaxed position. Try sitting up straight without putting stress on your muscles. Close your eyes and pay attention to your breath and each part of your body.
2. Focused
It involves centering your focus on a particular action or an object. The goal is to slow down your thoughts by bringing your attention to a specific thing. Usually, breath is used as a focal point: you can focus on your breathing. Your thoughts will wander, but try to shift your focus back to the breath.
3. Loving-Kindness
This meditation helps you connect with your feelings of kindness and love towards yourself and others. This metta meditation focuses on directing love and goodwill to others. You can focus on one person or a group and send them positive vibes.
4. Visualization
This technique has gained a lot of popularity in recent times. It involves focusing on the mental image of an object. Sharpens your mind and is supposed to increase creativity. It is called guided imagery if you decide to go to an instructor or listen to a recording.
5. Transcendental
Transcendental meditation is quite popular in Hinduism; Hindu phrases are often used as a Mantra. This meditation involves sitting in a comfortable and quiet space and repeating a mantra for at least 20 minutes daily. Any word or phrase that speaks to you can be used.
6. Mantra
This meditation involves repeating a word, syllable, or phrase throughout the entirety of the meditation practice. It is supposed to improve your concentration. You can either do it in your head or speak out loudly.
7. Body Scan
Body scan meditation increases the connection between your body, mind, and soul. It will create physical sensations, make you aware of them, promote contact with your body, and help you stay mindful.
8. Chakra
This is very popular in the Buddhist tradition. The Chakra essentially defines seven energy points in the body. The meditation is focused on unlocking the blocked chakras to allow the energy to flow freely in your body.
9. Vipassana
Vipassana means to see things as they are. The practice involves carefully observing your mind and body without offering a reaction. This traditional technique has been taught in India by Gurus for thousands of years.
10. Spiritual
This is used across multiple cultures and religions to promote connection with a higher power: God, the universe, or any other spiritual existence you believe in. It involves the use of mantras, prayers, and reflection.
11. Zen
Zen meditation originates from Zen Buddhism. It involves mindful observation and introspection. It focuses on general awareness of your mind and body to improve a connection with your deeper, unconscious mind.
12. Walking
Walking meditation involves focusing on your body movement while walking slowly. It helps to increase the awareness of your muscles, their movements, and how the sensations impact your overall body with every step. It is best to keep your hands tightly clasped in either front or back of your body. As an alternative, you can keep them hanging low by your side. Focus your attention on your feet and legs, the sensation of the ground on your feet, and the environment around you.
Which Type of Meditation Is Right for You?
It doesn’t have to be challenging or complex to be effective. You can try the simplest form and still see results if you do it consistently. Trying a new style can be difficult. But you will never know which form works best for you until you try a couple of them. For beginners, guided meditation works wonders as it helps you stay focused. You can start slow and gradually build your way up. Nobody can do an hour-long on day one. Start with 2 to 3 minutes daily and gradually add one more minute weekly.
Once you get the hang of a particular meditation price, you can branch out to different styles and explore other options. The more you practice, the more you will get good at it and the more benefits you will see. Even the simplest type of meditation can result if you do it daily. We hope you found this article informative and helpful! If you have any questions, contact us in the comments section below.
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