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Essay on the benefits of meditation
Easy on meditation _A medicine for the mind
Essay on the benefits of meditation
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This paper is about my experience with mindfulness based meditation and scientific inquiry of these experiences. Mindfulness based meditation is describes as technique used to cultivate nonreactive, non-judgmental and stable awareness of the present moment (Garland and Gaylord, 2009). The end goal is to sustain this meta-cognitive state for a long period of time. I practiced non-denominational form of mindfulness based meditation for the first time in my psychology class, which was devoted towards intellectual and experiential examination of meditation. The practice was conducted in a group it was instructed by our own professor and it begun at the end of class. There was one sessions per week and each session was structured meaning it was timed and the focus was on the out breath.
I experienced numerous emotions, sensations and mental states while I practiced meditation. During my practice the focus was on the out breath and by doing so the idea was to have non-judgmental and non reactive awareness of emotions, thoughts and sensations that arise in my mind while I practiced meditation. Firstly, for me meditation served as a tool for self awakening, by ‘’awakening’’ I mean meditation made me realize the existence and dominance of mind wandering and ignorance. In a scientific study it was shown that mind wandering was the majority of the conscious experience (Hasenkamp et al., 2012). Before I practiced meditation I was unaware of the effects of mind wandering not only on performance towards certain task but also towards sustaining attention to the present moment. For example on my very first session of meditation I realized how I completely zoned out for the first few minutes until we took a break and that made me further realiz...
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Proponents of the Transcendental Meditation program initiated by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi have expressed their ideas in various web sites on the World Wide Web, through pages such as The Transcendental Meditation Program at http://www.tm.org and the Scientific Research on Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program of the Maharishi University of Management at http://www.miu.edu/TM_Research. In these sites positive messages are conveyed about the benefits of meditation to its practitioner within the physiological, psychological, sociological, intellectual, and interpersonal realms. Within these sites, the web-browser is presented with an abundance of information relating the vast array of health benefits offered to an individual through the regular practice of what is described as the simplest, most natural form of awareness--what practitioners of the technique term "transcendental consciousness." Through this technique, its advocates assert, one can:
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Over twenty-five hundred years ago, Buddha Guatama practiced meditation and came to what is known as “The Four Noble Truth,” an important principle in Buddhism (Elder, 2010). This principle informs the reader of what suffering is and how affect is. This is a great example of how valuable meditation is- on the very first session ever recorded, the awareness that came from it would later be the foundation of a new religion. This proves how powerful meditation can be. Furthermore, some form of meditation can be found in various religions. Although the styles, techniques, and ideology behind the meditation can vary per religion, personal transformation is the key goal (Modi, Singh, 2012). Today, in Western society, mindful meditation (a form of meditation) has grown in popularity, used for relaxation and to help treat those who suffer from mental illness’ and mood disorders. Viewed as alternative medicine for the mind and soul, it is beneficial for our emotional and mental
For thousands of years people have practiced mediation for spiritual, emotional, and physical well-being. Albeit there are many mediation types, in this paper I will be discussing and focusing on mindfulness mediation. Before further exploring mindfulness mediation, it is crucial to define mediation as a whole. Tang, Holzel, & Posner, 2016 state “Meditation can be defined as a form of mental training that aims to improve an individual’s core psychological capacities, such as attentional and emotional capacities” (p.213). Having that in mind, we can dive into mindfulness mediation. Mindfulness meditation is defined as “nonjudgmental attention to present-moment experiences (Tang, Holzel, & Posner, 2016).” A useful analogy to consider is going to the gym, going to the gym allows one to enhance the body, well similarly, practicing mindfulness is akin to taking the mind to the psychic gym, it enhances it. Mindfulness meditation involves focusing on your breathing and then bringing your mind’s attention to the present all while dismissing discursive thoughts and maintaining a special focus on breathing.
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author
Meditation is an age-old practice that has renewed itself in many different cultures and times. Despite its age, however, there remains a mystery and some ambiguity as to what it is, or even how one performs it. The practice and tradition of meditation dates back thousands of years having appeared in many eastern traditions. Meditation’s ancient roots cloud its origins from being attributed to a sole inventor or religion, though Bon, Hindu, Shinto, Dao, and later, Buddhism are responsible for its development. Its practice has permeated almost all major world religions, but under different names. It has become a practice without borders, influencing millions with its tranquil and healing effects.
...chiatric Association. (2012). “Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders” (4th Ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
To begin with, mindfulness is when someone can pay attention to the present moment “without being devoted to different points of view” (Martin, 1997). Along with staying focused on the present moment, mindfulness is when the particular person does not judge the current experience as the person tries to comprehend the present situation. Mindfulness makes a person reflect on one’s self by not only figuring out one’s thoughts, but also the feelings that go along with it. The complex nature of mindfulness demonstrates that it has multiple purposes that cultivates a person into realizing the potential of the brain (Davis & Hayes,
The proposal study will identify the mindfulness of each participant as they go through the training program to analyze their own actions/reactions and behaviors within their selves. To develop an effectiveness meditation program, the study will help maintain the healthy, functional development of a healthy individuals within the sixteen universities. The appropriate study will become beneficial and reliable to evaluate and acknowledge the self-aware and the environment of individuals within the six-month study.
American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
Using the open monitoring concept of meditation, I become disconnected from my feelings and thoughts. This is a process of expanding attention and growing detached from the ongoing experience (author, pg 212). Meditation allows me to reduce rumination and guide my thoughts towards a more positive direction. The process enables me to evaluate the thoughts and understand that some are insignificant, which means there is no reason to obsess over them. I wake up and spend twenty minutes meditating, and this allows me to disconnect my negative thoughts and will enable me to focus on an upcoming day. If my thoughts are still prevalent, then I can not concentrate on what is being taught or said to me because I am in a spiral of negative what-ifs. Studies show that physical relaxation occurs during meditative periods. Oxygen consumption, heart rate, and carbon dioxide elimination all decrease in response to meditation (author, pg 212). Meditation allows an individual to block distraction and improve cognitive processes (Tsuji, 2017, 47). All these factors contribute to lowering stress levels in my body and allowing me to stay calm and concentrated on the right things instead of panicking. Overall, after beginning to meditate, I know how to detach myself from dark thoughts and gain more control over my
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). (2010). Health info. Meditation: An introduction. Retrieved from http://nccam.nih.gov/health/meditation/overview.htm