Meditation

(courtesy of http://www.moonsinger.com/meditation.htm)

   Meditation, from the Latin root meditatum (meaning 'to ponder'), has been practiced since the beginning of man.

   Typically, when one hears the word meditation, he or she thinks that it is sitting in a cross legged position and chanting sounds. This is only one type. There are many techniques, and often times, people meditate without realizing. Getting 'spaced out' is a very basic form of meditation, in that we forget about our surroundings. 

   To meditate is to focus one's mind on emptiness. No thoughts must cross the mind, no sounds must catch the ear. This state allows the practitioner to achieve enlightenment---an understanding of the universe, the world, and one's soul. I call it Awakening. And as far as I know, meditation must be practiced if one is to Awaken.

 (courtesy of http://spiritualreality.wordpress.com/2008/02/04/)

   Meditation is used to clear one's mind and increase one's compassion and love, creativity, focus, and flow of inspiration. It also decreases stress, anger, fear, hatred, pain and sickness.

   The above effects can be felt quickly, often in the first meditation, but it may take months and sometimes even years to achieve enlightenment. (Remember, if it takes years for you to become enlightened, there is nothing wrong with that, for we all learn at different rates).

   For those who achieve enlightenment, they begin to greatly increase the rate of their spiritual growth, realizing that  they have powers they never knew of, such as psychokinesis---levitating objects, bending fire and water and air, harnessing electricity, and so on.

   But before one can Awaken, he or she must practice meditation.
   Eager to get started? This technique, excellent for advancing to higher meditation, requires little effort and time. Simply lay down---on a bed, on a floor, on the roof---and close your eyes. It is good to turn off the lights and practice in a place with little noise.

   Once you feel comfortable in the place you will meditate, close your eyes and focus on your breathing. 5 minutes is adequate for a start. I would not recommend having an alarm set, as the jolt is quite unpleasant. To begin, slowly deepen your inhalations, feeling the air expand in your chest, in your diaphragm, and then in your belly. Then slowly release the breath. Do not force the breath to deepen, it will happen naturally. Aim for your inhalations and exhalations to be 10 seconds long. 

   This breathing exercise (excellent to get you relaxed prior to meditation) helps to focus the mind only  on your breathing, so as to forget about the stressing thoughts of your daily life. It also heals the body, for you are getting in many more times worth of oxygen than normal. It also relieves stress---an effect anyone notices during this exercise. It's also great for those whose jobs demand sitting long hours at a computer, for it will increase the flow of oxygen to the brain and help energize the thought process.

 (courtesy of http://danielpmacdonald.com/)

    Now, if you're eager, you can continue as soon as you feel five minutes have been spent. Or, you can start again at a later time. After the focused breathing, begin scanning your body from head to toes. You no longer need to concentrate on your breathing. Just visualize a disk that stretches all the way across your scalp, going down slowly and picking up any sign of pain. If you sense something hurting, focus your attention on that pain and imagine the disk curving around the pain and eliminating it. Continue, once going over your muscles, and another time through your bones. You can do this for the skin as well. And for those with vision problems, it may help to focus on the eyes as well---visualize the disk filling the eyeballs and healing them. During the exercise, you may have felt some tingling were you focused the disk.This is good, for it means you sensed the chi healing that very spot.

    Afterward, continue laying there, completely calm and relaxed. You can now begin the transitional step towards complete self-awareness. Watch your thoughts drift across the front of your mind. Do not focus on them, simply let them glide across, acknowledge them, and  have them disappear. Do this until no more thoughts occur. (This may take anywhere from a minute to an hour.) The reason for doing this is because throughout the day, the mind is constantly recording everything that happens as thoughts and stores these thoughts onto "shelves" to be looked at later. Often these thoughts grow too many and stress is produced, along with a drop in inspiration. One way the mind "cleans" theses shelves is through dreams, where it will pick up some thoughts and examine them, extracting any useful information. Though this helps, most thoughts are not cleared and they can prevent you from efficiency and creativity. That is why in all meditation, it helps to look over every single thought your mind brings up (and it will do this naturally---you don't have to worry about finding them). Eventually, no more thoughts will appear and your mind will be completely blank. You will feel as though time has stopped and that there is no future and no past. You will forget that you are on Earth and instead feel that you are just "there." Everything is calm, the calmest it has ever been, and perfect. You no longer think you are human, simply an entity in the universe, one with the universe---a soul with a purpose.
    Once you have reached this state, you have Awakened.
   All experience this differently, for we are all unique (for in the words of science, we all vibrate different frequencies) as do our souls. For instance, I saw the universe and its stars and galaxies drift past me in a breathtaking array of light, glowing all around me, hearing the words "I am one" over and over again and being applied to everything. It was truly beautiful, one of the most beautiful moments I have ever experienced. I felt as though I was in space itself.

 (courtesy of  http://www.wallpapershell.com)

   If you feel nervous about this, there is no need to fear. Your body will not actually be in space, (your soul might) it will still be in the same place as where you began meditating. Also know that if your soul is in space (if you're not sure you're in space, then you are not---this is something you know for certain) if your soul is in space, your soul cannot be harmed, for it is energy, and energy cannot be destroyed.
    And, once you are in this state, the beauty of it will be forever etched into your memory. 
   Now, as I have mentioned, to Awaken may take the practitioner between several months to a year to achieve. However, I do not doubt the possibility of Awakening on the first try. If this happens to be you, please email me (ayasenev@gmail.com) for this is a rare event and one I wish to know more about.
    Do not worry if you cannot clear all the thoughts in your mind or if they keep returning. Keep acknowledging them and visualize them disappearing. You are in control of your mind and you have the ability to direct it anyway you please. Oftentimes, music helps one to achieve a relaxed state. 

    The steps in brief are: (1) breath deeply for five or more minutes (2) scan the body to heal any pain (3) clear the mind of all thoughts. Remember, the first two steps are for relaxation---they are optional, yet highly recommended. It would be beneficial to practice all three steps everyday for one to three months. Afterwords, you can start on step three.
    Here are more meditation techniques:

   Zen meditation---it is a meditation practiced most often by Zen Buddhists (aka 'meditation Buddhists') which involves sitting in various positions and focusing on one's breath to achieve the total awareness state. 

Here is the most common position:

Burmese Position

(courtesy of http://www.dharma-rain.org/zazen/legs.html)

   This position is the standard cross-legged position. Sit on the edge of a pillow (specifically called a zafu) and cross your legs, trying to get your knees to rest on the floor. (If you can't do this at first, do not strain yourself. Position your knees where they are comfortable and they will naturally drop to the floor.) Keep your spine straight and place your hands in front of your navel. Have one hand rest in the dominant hand with the tips of your thumbs gently touching.
   Now, just focus on your breathing, counting each inhale and exhale until you reach ten. If a thought appears, restart the count until your mind is completely blank by the number ten. Once you do this, count only your exhale breaths until you reach ten. Again, no thoughts must appear. Once you do this, no longer count your breath. You should be in the total-awareness state.  

   The beauty of meditation is that is so simple to do, yet so life-altering and healthy. Practice meditation daily and you will see great results. You will gain ideas for whatever it is you want, whether you're a writer, an inventor, student, parent, employee or employer.

   No matter what profession, or what area you need inspiration in, meditation will help.
   I will cover various meditation techniques later. Keep in mind that no meditation is better than another. They simply have variant goals, all of which relate to the same thing---the soul.

   My friends, see for yourself what meditation can do for you. 

Namaste.