Preparing To Meditate

By Owen Jones

There is a great deal of rubbish talked about meditation. I do not mean what it can do for you because that is difficult to prove one way or the other. I have read people saying that they found all sorts of things in meditation and who am I to say that they did not merely because I have not had the precisely same experience.

I believe that there are numerous stages of evolution and so what one person experiences in one way another may experience in a completely different way.

No, I mean that there is a lot of rubbish talked about how one has to meditate. I am reading an piece right now by someone who says: '... for a successful meditation practice, everything has to be perfect ..... the room has to be set up in such a way ...' and so it goes on. The person who wrote that piece seems never to have even thought leave alone ever meditated.

Meditation has always been most frequently carried out by people with a spiritual bent. Of those people, most people who meditated were monks, because they were seeking enlightenment and had the time and tranquility to meditate. It was difficult to find the time or the peacefulness if you were a subsistence farmer with ten kids running around.

Anyway, lower orders of monks are not famous for living opulent lives where 'everything ... is ideal'. They live quiet lives and when they want to meditate, they will not be disturbed, no matter where they are but particularly in their cells.

My father used to drive out to a cliff top and meditate behind a bush gazing out 100 feet over the Bristol Channel. Frequently he did it in the middle of the night.

It is best that the people you live with understand that when you want to meditate that they should endeavor not to make a great deal of noise and certainly not call you by name or barge into the room where you are.

How you can accomplish this in your household, you know better than I, but talking to cohabitants and displaying a sign in a prominent position can help as can always meditating at the same hour of the day, but is not usually practical. Most of us have to take our free time while we can.

Turn off anything that makes a noise. Turn off phones and even the door bell, if you can. Open the window, if it is not unbearably cold or raining cats and dogs. Take a shower and put on loose-fitting comfortable clothes like pyjamas.

Sit on the floor, if you can; cross-legged, if you can. If you are nearly there, try sitting on a cushion or pillow. There are things called zafu or meditation pillows, which are small and thick.

Some are round and others are square, but a round zafu may be 12 inches in diameter and four to six inches thick. This is to raise you off the ground enough to take the strain off your hips and knees, if you are not used to sitting cross-legged.

It will encourage a good posture, that is a straight back. It is also softer on the behind and when you are sitting comfortably, you may begin.

About the Author:

Owen Jones, the writer of this article, writes on a variety of topics, but is now concerned with the waterproof mattress pads. If you would like to know more, please visit our website at Egg Crate Mattress Pad For Sale.

The Power Of Mind Is Everything!

By William J Stevens

All of us remember the United Negro College Fund commercials of the 80s; or at the very least, we remember its slogan: 'the mind is a terrible thing to waste'. While we're talking about something different than going to university today, the slogan is definitely on point here. Our minds have a lot of potential which most of us are letting go unused. The power of the mind is something that none of us should waste and when we know how to tap into these unused resources, we can change our lives and event the world.

You're certainly at least somewhat familiar with The Secret, whether or not you've ever read the book or watched the film, you probably know the basics of the law of attraction which is the central idea of the work. When you think about things, you attract them to you - whether you do so consciously or not.

One prime example of the efficacy of this idea is what is called the placebo effect. This is named for the clinical trials which use placebos for the control group while giving the actual medication to the other. Both groups think they're getting the medication, so both often believe them to be experiencing the effects that have been described to them.

You've no doubt seen the effect in your own life as well. For instance, you've no doubt woken up thinking that a particular day isn't going to be a good one. It shouldn't really be too much of a surprise when these days turn out not to be among your favorites. It has to do with the power of your mind - when you think a day is going to be a bad (or a great one) then your subconscious has the ability to make this happen.

The scientific evidence is starting to point towards the idea that there is a scientific basis for the power of the mind as well. One which is particularly intriguing is that matter exists only when there is an observer there to describe it (or rather, matter may be in one of several possible states until it is observed - or all of them at once). What this means is that human beings may be able to exert much more influence on their surroundings than has been previously thought.

It is thought by some scientists that many of the phenomena we have always thought of as supernatural (such as remote viewing, telepathy and the like) are actually perfectly natural and explainable phenomena, though science may be a few years away from understanding the precise mechanisms behind them.

You may not have really given it any thought until now, but the power of the mind is something which you can put to work to make positive change in your own life. Wouldn't you want to learn how to work with the universe to get what you want using your own thoughts? There are a few techniques which can help you to do just that; keep reading to learn more about these methods.

The first step is to have a goal; this has to be a specific, rather than a general goal. Instead of thinking 'I want to be rich', think 'I want three million dollars'. Having a specific goal makes it easier for you to focus your mental energies on achieving your objective. Learning to focus is the key here; most of the time, you may have dozens of different thoughts going on at once.

Many people already know about the power of the mind and use it every day to make their goals a reality. They are able to decide on a specific goal and put all of their mind power towards this objective - and this is exactly how some of the world's most successful people have managed to become who they are today. It's not difficult to do, though learning to focus your mind on your goal does take a little metal training.

When you learn to control this power of the mind, you can use it to make changes in your world; in fact, you can make almost anything you can imagine a reality. Let's say that you want to buy a particular house. You put all of your mental energy into it, imagining even the small details like the color you want to paint the rec room. You start expending effort into areas that will help you to achieve your goal (like working more so you can save up the down payment) and research how to get favorable mortgage terms.

After you've put your effort towards it, your dream starts coming true - the house goes up for sale, you are able to secure the mortgage, your offer is accepted and everything goes fine. It's all because you've been putting your thoughts and your energy into achieving your goal; this is what makes it happen for you.

Every one of us can do this. It's just a matter of understanding your own inherent abilities and believing in the power of the mind to achieve the things you want out of life. Start with a small goal and you can work from there to accomplish ever greater things.

About the Author:

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