How to Understand Different Types of Meditation

There are many ways in which to meditate, and one of the frustrations beginners have is to understand the various ways to do it.

Steps

1.  Consider the many forms of meditation.  They include:

• Focus on breathing.  Note that the simplest method of meditation (and possibly the most common) is to simply focus on one's breath.  Concentrate on your breath--it's that easy.
• Mantras, which are words repeated over and over.  Herbert Benson, author of The Relaxation Response (RR), recommends the mantra "one" which is said with each exhalation.  Many people use different mantras, such as "aum" or others.
• Focusing your attention on a specific sense.  For instance, you might focus solely on what you hear.  Alternatively, you might focus on what you feel.
• Visualizations (many forms of these exist).  These involve trying to envision a particular object.  One of my favorite forms of this is visualizing yourself from outside of your body (i.e., from a 3rd person perspective).  This requires great discipline for some people to do.  Others find it easy.
• Walking meditation.  This involves focusing on the process of walking.  There exists a multitude of books on this matter if you are interested in further reading on this matter.
• Passage meditation.  This involves memorizing and slowly repeating the words of a simple, positive, inspirational passage from on the world's great spiritual traditions (for example the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi).

2.  Research further.  For those interested in Buddhist meditation, you might consider reading up on Wikipedia's extensive collection of Buddhist thought.  A good place to start is with the article on "kammatthana," or the Forty Objects of meditation.

Tips

• Meditating while laying down is tricky due to the constant threat of falling asleep.  However, if one has insomnia, this can be seen as beneficial.
• It is helpful for the beginner to find the quietest environment possible for meditative practice.  Eventually, meditation can be done anytime, anywhere.
• A common theme among meditative practices is focusing one's attention on an object.  This might clarify the objective of the aforementioned methods.
• It can be helpful to sit for a short while in silence prior to meditating, until the heartbeat slows.
• The beginner meditator shouldn't try to meditate for a period greater than her or she is comfortable with.  In time, as meditation becomes more natural, one may find the length of meditative practice gradually increases naturally and without strain.

Warnings

• There are reports of hypoglycemia resulting from meditation.  This may be rectified by eating lightly prior to practice (overeating is strongly discouraged).
• Hypo tension (low blood pressure) may result from meditation.  Therefore, it is not prudent to stand up suddenly after a long sitting, as one might faint.  Although this has been noted rarely, it is feasible.