Meditation Techniques for Beginners

It is said that people who perform meditation are able to achieve higher success than others. Well, the secret to this may lie in the higher concentration levels achieved by the people who perform meditation. Meditation provides a path to our inner self. Meditation helps in balancing the mind, it controls breathing, and changes our overall outlook towards life. Meditation involves focusing of the mind to gain an elevated state of consciousness. Meditation has existed in some forms, for more than 5000 years, and in all cultures and religions of the world. People all over the world are getting fitness conscious, but what everybody seems to forget is that the secret of happiness and well-being lies in the mind. The following meditation techniques for beginners given below are a way to cleanse the mind from all evil thoughts, fears and tension.

Meditation to Help You Relax

Before starting with the techniques, the following tips can improve and enhance your experience of meditation.

• Decide on a place that is quiet and serene. A spot within nature's beauty will be best. Remember that the place must make you feel divine and extremely peaceful.
• Next is the posture, make sure it is comfortable for you. Lotus pose is preferred for performing meditation. Also wear loose comfortable fitting clothes.
• Always take deep breaths and concentrate on every breathe. Experience the inhaling and exhaling of air by closing your eyes. All your muscles should be at ease.
• Try to avoid any external thoughts. This can be very difficult in the beginning, but don't get discouraged, you will get better with practice.

Vipassana Meditation
The term 'vipassana' refers to seeing things as they actually are. This meditation is a self-observation technique. It open up the windows of our mind to make it aware of the feelings, sensations, thoughts, smells, sounds and images experienced. To practice this technique, one has to sit in a quiet place with eyes closed. One has to merely experience everything that is going through his or her mind. One should not react or get blinded by the memories. This will help to achieve self-transformation through self-observation. It helps to focus on the deep interconnection between the mind and the body. It helps to delve into the roots of the mind, to make it free from mental anguish, frustration and pain. Vipassana meditation helps to cleanse our mind to make it attain clearer and calmer state.

Yoga Nidra
Yoga nidra meditation is a simple, but quite effective. It is a stunning method which involves reaching deeper levels of awareness as we sleep. Yoga nidra meditation is performed by lying down on the floor in a sleeping position. Keep the legs apart at a distance of 1 to 1.5 feet. The hands should be at the sides, away from the body. Entire body should be in a relaxed state. After this, one must close the eyes and concentrate on every part of the body. The key is to feel the sensations in one's body, as one shifts his consciousness from one part of the body to the other. Experience the vibrations, the warmth or the sensations, in every part. Start from right toe fingers to the head. You can also say positive things in your mind, as you are concentrating on all the parts one by one. This technique will slowly help you to fall asleep, making you free from all stress and fears of life.

Chakra Meditation
There are seven high energy points or chakras in our body. They are located in the top of the head, on the forehead, in the throat, in the center of the chest, above the navel, at the sacral bone and at the base of the spine. Each of these chakras are representative of various powers of consciousness. The chakra meditation involves focusing one's mind on each of these chakras, for 3 - 4 minutes. Each of the chakras is said to govern different aspects of our body. This technique involves relaxation and enlightening of each of this chakra, so as to benefit every aspect of our life.

These were a few simple, basic, and helpful techniques which you can try. In this era of stress and insecurity, we should make meditation a way of life. Instead of finding happiness outside, we should find it in our inner self through meditation.