# data[].attributes.headline
Could meditation be dangerous? Simple tips for wary beginners

# data[].attributes.subject
Could meditation be dangerous? Simple tips for wary beginners

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Could meditation be dangerous? Simple tips for wary beginners

# data[].attributes.headline
A Guided Meditation on the Body, Space, and Awareness with Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche

# data[].attributes.subject
A Guided Meditation on the Body, Space, and Awareness with Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
A Guided Meditation on the Body, Space, and Awareness with Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche

# data[].attributes.body
There are indications that at least two types of meditation produce changes in the hippocampus or insula. These mechanisms may help improve memory.

# data[].attributes.body
A study by Richard Davidson and Jon Kabat-Zinn showed that eight weeks of awareness-based meditation produced significant increases in left-sided anterior brain activity, which is associated with positive emotional states.

# data[].attributes.body
Research in Massachusetts in 2006 evaluated whether meditation practice might be associated with changes in the physical structure of the brain. The study concludes that meditation may be associated with structural changes in areas of the brain that are important for sensory, cognitive, and emotional processing.

# data[].attributes.headline
5 Tips To Help Deepen Your Meditation Practice In The New Year

# data[].attributes.subject
5 Tips To Help Deepen Your Meditation Practice In The New Year

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Whether your New Year's resolution is to start meditating, or you're already an avid meditator looking to deepen your practice, it's no secret dropping in can be challenging. The mind races, the body can't sit still, and we can wind up feeling frustrated-which is, well, not the goal. To help you tap in next time you go to sit, here are five tried-and-true meditation tips:

Not only does the rate of our breath directly translate to heart rate and physiological state, but most meditations have some sort of breath component to help you stay focused and relax the body. Deep belly breathing is an excellent way to bring your body into a state of ease and also gives you something to concentrate on.

How to deep belly breathe:

With the hands resting on the belly, breathe in deeply, sending the breath away from the chest and down toward the abdomen. Imagine there is a balloon in your belly, and on the inhale, that balloon expands into your hands, and on the exhale it deflates. Try extending the exhale slightly to further encourage the body back to its natural resting state.

From vipassana to transcendental, there's no shortage of different kinds of meditation to try. Release any notions of what you think meditation should look like, and do what comes the most naturally, or feels right. Maybe that's an active meditation, such as mindfully walking or even doing the dishes, or a lovingkindness meditation if you want to offer your practice to a greater good. Guided or mantra meditations are a good option for those who have trouble focusing. Long story short: You've got options.

The truth is, meditation is not about stifling or burying your thoughts. Particularly in the beginning, a novice meditator will have to get used to witnessing their thoughts as they arise, without judgment, and letting them be. It's easier said than done, as any number of things can pop into your head while trying to feel Zen: I'm stressed and this isn't helping. I'm bad at this. I have to go to the store when I'm done. Why can't I focus? These trains of thought aren't uncommon, but they are OK. Let them be there, and find the place within you that is separate from the mental chatter. In time, you will find it gets quieter and quieter.

Meditation can help us with inner growth, as we learn to overcome the mental barriers we create on the path to the best version of ourselves. One way to give this process a bit of a boost is to intentionally reflect either during or after your meditation practice for a moment. You can do this weekly or monthly, or on milestone days like a birthday or the New Year. It's about taking the time to notice the changes you achieved within yourself and reflect on and appreciate how far you've come.

And lastly, as mbg class instructor and meditation teacher Light Watkins previously explained to mbg, one of the most common meditation hurdles people come up against is trying too hard. Rather than straining to concentrate, "it's about stripping unnecessary things away-removing the focus, the concentration, the letting-go, and all of the other 'doings,'" he says. "Instead, just be in it. Being is as much of a skill as doing." This ties back to our third tip; the idea is to simply allow, rather than resist, the present moment, regardless of what that moment is bringing up for you.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dropping Into Meditation Can Be Hard: Here Are 5 Tried-And-True Tips

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Whether your New Year's resolution is to start meditating, or you're already an avid meditator looking to deepen your practice, it's no secret dropping in can be challenging. The mind races, the body can't sit still, and we can wind up feeling frustrated-which is, well, not the goal.

# data[].attributes.headline
Can Yoga and Meditation Help Us to Connect With Nature?

# data[].attributes.subject
Can Yoga and Meditation Help Us to Connect With Nature?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
By Anne-Sophie Brändlin

If, this time last year, the world had been told it would spend much of the coming months in lockdown, few might have believed it. But that reality came, and it did so almost overnight, bringing with it a crashing end to the busy flow of life, which sees billions rushing from one appointment to the next without much time to think. Left to their own devices at home, people have had to find new ways to spend their time, and deal with anxiety and silence.

While some have taken to endurance sports in tiny spaces or been drawn to walk in nature or just breathe in fresh air, others have turned to practices like meditation, yoga, Tai Chi and shiatsu to calm their minds and decrease stress levels.

Seasoned practitioners believe these ancient mind and bodywork traditions offer an opportunity to better deal with crises such as the coronavirus pandemic. This doesn't only have a positive impact on our health and immune systems, but potentially on society and even the environment.

"These practices help to bring us into the present moment and help to connect us to the reality of the situation," said Jenny White, a British shiatsu practitioner who has been meditating for over two decades.

Creating an Awareness, One Breath at a Time

Though White says that doesn't mean living in constant state of bliss and harmony. Rather, it allows people to acknowledge why they might be feeling scared, overwhelmed, stressed or lonely. It can also prevent them from running away from those emotions and looking for distraction in alcohol, Netflix, food or spending sprees.

In short, White explains, traditions such as yoga and meditation help create an awareness of what is happening in our world and allow us to tackle difficult situations and our reactions to them.

"Our body response to big crisis situations, like climate change, and now the pandemic, is often to freeze, be numb and to run away," she said.

"The more we can connect with our body responses, the more we can tune into our own personal and collective responsibility to a crisis, whether it's the pandemic or climate change, without going into that trauma response."

Overcoming Crises

The coronavirus pandemic and climate change are two of the biggest issues facing humanity at this point in history. Whether it's the global quest for a COVID-19 vaccine or the world pulling together to slash greenhouse gas emissions, solutions to both require an effort from the international community.

This is where the ancient Indian concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam comes in. Rooted in yoga, it means the world is one family and has to act as such. And in times of crisis, collaboration becomes more essential than ever.

"Yogis believe that all life is connected, that we are all one and should live in harmony with each other," said Alexander Bütow, who runs a yoga and meditation studio in Berlin.

"The problem is that many humans take themselves out of that and create divisions, groups, and start disconnecting - from themselves, from others, from the world around them. Once we stop this disconnect, we can overcome crises together."

'We Are Part of Nature'

He, like others who practice regularly, sees meditation and yoga as a means to slowing down, emptying our minds and calming our thoughts. And that, so the thinking goes, facilitates a connection not only to ourselves, but to the world around us.

"Every human being is intrinsically connected to every other human being and also to nature, animals, plants, everything on this planet. But you are often not aware of it because you are too busy with too many things. When that stops for a moment, when you calm down, you realize these connections," said A.G. Ramakrishnan, a professor for electrical engineering at the Indian Institute of Science, who also researches in the fields of meditation and breathing exercises.

"The concept of yoga, for instance, is holistic. It teaches you that we can't live without others, we cannot live without animals, we cannot live without nature." Ramakrishnan continued.

Yet that, says Bütow, is not in keeping with the way we live.

"It has become a bad habit these days that we take ourselves out of nature. We are part of nature way more than we pretend to be. Nature is where we came from. But we have totally detached ourselves from that."

He says breathing exercises can help us reconnect, because through our breath we are in constant contact with the outside world.

"We just have to remember this connection, which will help us to see ourselves as part of nature."

Slowing Down to Help the Planet

For many, the pandemic has also brought our mortality into sharp relief. It has served as a reminder that life as we know it is susceptible to massive disruption.

In restricting what we can do, where we can go and how we can keep ourselves occupied, it has also made our worlds smaller, forced us not only to slow down, but in many cases to take a genuine pause. And that, says Jenny White, can reap rewards.

"Once you give yourself that time to pause and breathe, you will become kinder and softer and more understanding when it comes to your own shortcomings and difficulties. And this will make you more compassionate and understanding when it comes to other people and their needs and ultimately also our planet's needs."
Reposted with permission from Deutsche Welle.
Related Articles Around the Web

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Can Yoga and Meditation Help Us to Connect With Nature?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
By Anne-Sophie BrändlinIf, this time last year, the world had been told it would spend much of the coming months in lockdown, few might have believed it. But that reality came, and it did so almost overnight, bringing with it a crashing end to the busy flow of life, which sees billions rushing from ...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Meditation comes from the term "mediate" which signified mediation/ connection between you and your inner self or your inner self with 'God' or the source of which ever power you wish to connect with.

Image: Shutterstock

Meditation as a practice has been going on for decades in the country to enhance our mental and emotional way of being and connect deeper to our spiritual self. It has various connotations depending on intent and purpose. For some, it can be done by concentration towards a light, thought, breathe, music, chant, idol etc. Another way of meditation is by silencing the mind.

Is It Time Consuming?

Image: Shutterstock

It's ironical that in order to find balance in life, almost all ways of meditation can also become extreme fast. One needs to understand that in the old times when these tools of meditation were designed, they were designed keeping in mind the lifestyle and time that people had at that point to focus on themselves. Given the new-age, fast-paced lives we live, while our problems are ever increasing, our time to deal with them and finding balance is limited. This is one of the reasons why people get demotivated to meditate because they think it has to be time-consuming. On the contrary, the beauty of meditation is it can be made as personal as one wants it to be. There is no right and wrong way, provided we follow certain basic steps.

Basic Framework To Meditate

Image: Shutterstock

1. Find a quite spot. While we may not always have the power to shun the noises that exist in our mind, it's imperative that we control and minimise the noise outside of it.
2. Create an environment personal to you. You can play some soft music; light candles or incense sticks if you please. This step is not always imperative but it's something that just adds to the experience.
3. Sit or lie down in a comfortable body. If your body is restless, the mind will follow. For the mind to be at ease, first the body needs to be at ease and comfort.
4. Before you begin your meditation it's important to set an intent of your meditation. Setting an intent for your meditation creates a flow of energy in that direction. You can work around the following intentions or even create your own intentions-
- Relaxing your body and mind.
- Seeking clarity within for certain situations.
- Letting go of the past and present thoughts bothering you.
- Balancing your energy chakras.
- Forgiveness towards someone or people in general that have hurt you.
- Law of attraction or manifestation for an abundant present and future.

What Is Intent?

Image: Shutterstock

An intent is basically the desired result you'd want out of the meditation you are doing. Once the intent is clear and created, you can just allow yourself to follow your breath work and flow with it.

Benefits Of Meditation

Image: Shutterstock

* It helps you take a step back from the daily clutter of life.
* It brings a sense of clarity towards your own emotions and thoughts.
* It helps you focus on self-love and self-priority.
* It helps you tap into your intuition, which is basically your guiding tool.
* It helps you release and heal unwanted supressed thoughts and emotions of the past so you can create space to enjoy the abundance and grace the universe you blessing you with in the present.

Also read: Expert Speak: Causes And Prevention Of Hair Loss

Subscribe to our YouTube channel

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Meditation comes from the term "mediate" which signified mediation/ connection between you and your inner self or your inner self with 'God' or the source of which ever power you wish to connect with. Image: Shutterstock Meditation as a practice has been going on for decades in the country to enhance our mental and emotional way of being and connect deeper to our spiritual self.

# data[].attributes.headline
Meditation can improve mental health and wellbeing but exercise may be just as effective

# data[].attributes.subject
Meditation can improve mental health and wellbeing but exercise may be just as effective

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Mindfulness involves focusing on your thoughts in the present moment

The form of meditation is said to help reduce anxiety, stress and depression

Researchers from the University of Cambridge have analysed 136 studies

Their findings indicate that the mental health benefits of mindfulness may not apply to everyone

While 'mindfulness' was once a term only known by devoted yoga fans, the form of meditation has grown in popularity in recent years.

Mindfulness involves sitting silently and focusing on your thoughts in the present moment, and is said to help reduce anxiety, stress and depression.

Now, a study has warned that these mental health benefits don't work for everyone.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge say that we shouldn't assume mindfulness works for everyone, and highlight that exercise may be just as effective for some.

WHAT IS MINDFULNESS?

Mindfulness involves sitting silently and focusing on your thoughts, sounds and sensations in the present moment.

It is often touted as a universal tool for boosting mental wellbeing by reducing stress, anxiety and depression.

Randomised control trials (RCT) have been conducted around the world to determine whether this is the case, but results have varied.

Now, researchers at the University of Cambridge have reviewed these studies to provide more 'robust conclusions'.

Dr Julieta Galante said: 'For the average person and setting, practising mindfulness appears to be better than doing nothing for improving our mental health, particularly when it comes to depression, anxiety and psychological distress.

'But we shouldn't assume that it works for everyone, everywhere.'

People often practice mindfulness in community settings such as universities, workplaces or private courses.

The researchers identified 136 RCTs, which looked at whether mindfulness in a community setting promotes mental health.

These trials included 11,605 participants aged 18 to 73 years from 29 countries, more than three-quarters (77 per cent) of whom were women.

The researchers found in most cases mindfulness did indeed reduce anxiety, stress and depression compared with doing nothing.

But in more than one in 20 trial settings, it did not work.

Dr Galante said: 'Mindfulness training in the community needs to be implemented with care.

'Community mindfulness courses should be just one option among others, and the range of effects should be researched as courses are implemented in new settings.'

It could also be that meditation works best for people who are highly strung to begin with.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF MEDITATION?

Dr Galante said: 'The courses that work best may be those aimed at people who are most stressed or in stressful situations, for example health workers, as they appear to see the biggest benefit.'

When compared with other feel-good activities such as exercise, mindfulness was no more effective, the researchers also found.

Co-author professor Peter Jones said: 'While mindfulness is often better than taking no action, we found that there may be other effective ways of improving our mental health and wellbeing, such as exercise.

'In many cases, these may prove to be more suitable alternatives if they are more effective, culturally more acceptable or are more feasible or cost effective to implement. The good news is that there are now more options.'

The number of mindfulness classes on offer has jumped significantly over the past few years and particularly since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the effectiveness of online courses has yet to be determined, preliminary research suggests they work, despite the lack of direct contact.

Dr Galante said: 'If the effects of online mindfulness courses vary as widely according to the setting as their offline counterparts, then the lack of human support they offer could cause potential problems.

'We need more research before we can be confident about their effectiveness and safety.'

Other factors could be responsible for the variation in success between settings, the researchers caution.

For example, where and by whom the courses are implemented or who they targeted towards, is likely to have an impact.

Dr Galante said: 'The techniques and frameworks taught in mindfulness have rich and diverse backgrounds, from early Buddhist psychology and meditation through to cognitive neuroscience and participatory medicine.

'The interplay between all of these different factors can be expected to influence how effective a programme is.'

The findings were published in the journal PLOS Medicine.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Meditation can improve mental health but exercise may be as effective

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Mindfulness involves focusing on your thoughts in the present moment The form of meditation is said to help reduce anxiety, stress and depression Researchers from the University of Cambridge have analysed 136 studies Their findings indicate that the mental health benefits of mindfulness may not apply to everyone While 'mindfulness' was once a term only known by devoted yoga fans, the form of meditation has grown in popularity in recent years.

# data[].attributes.body
Web: https://www.artofliving.org/pa-es

# data[].attributes.body
Web: https://www.dhamma.org/es/schedules/noncenter/pa

# data[].attributes.body
Web: https://www.3yogapanama.com/

# data[].attributes.body
Web: https://www.brahmakumaris.org/es/acerca/introduccion

# data[].attributes.body
Web: https://www.ecohorqueta.com/meditacion

# data[].attributes.headline
What Do We Really Know About Meditation and Health?

# data[].attributes.subject
What Do We Really Know About Meditation and Health?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
University of California Television (UCTV)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What Do We Really Know About Meditation and Health?

# data[].attributes.body
The meditation process is simple but long, so you must be patient, it is not so much to detach ourselves from our conscious side in order to have a pleasant meditation session.

# data[].attributes.body
Meditation is basic within Buddhism. According to Zen, meditation is the natural condition of human consciousness, capable of understanding for itself the meaning of its existence. This perception is interrupted by agitation or interest in the particular matters that absorb our attention.

# data[].attributes.body
In Christianity, meditation has a Christological focus. The Christian tries to direct his thought about himself to God, to his word about him, and to his work on him. Meditation is an expression of Christian prayer.

# data[].attributes.body
In Hinduism, in the schools of Yoga and Vedānta, meditation is part of two of the six branches of Hindu philosophy.

# data[].attributes.body
Various meditation techniques are used in Sufism.

# data[].attributes.body
In most religions based on paganism and neopaganism, such as Wicca and Druidism, meditation is a fundamental pillar to maintain a connection with divinity.

# data[].attributes.body
in the same way that nobody thinks of starting to go to the gym and perform routines as long as those carried out by the most experienced bodybuilders, with meditation, we cannot start wanting to meditate more than five or ten minutes at the beginning.

# data[].attributes.body
these parts of us and our brain are involved in well-being and are positively affected when we smile. If you keep a slight smile during your meditation, the practice will be much more pleasant.

# data[].attributes.headline
3) Meditate without sleep and without too much hunger

# data[].attributes.subject
3) Meditate without sleep and without too much hunger

# data[].attributes.body
the ideal is to meditate when we are not too sleepy and on an empty stomach, but never so much that you feel hungry, as this will distract you.

# data[].attributes.body
make sure that your meditation is always at the same time and in the same place, if possible. It will be easier for you not to quit if you can create a routine.

# data[].attributes.body
once you are seated, with your back straight, in your favorite place and away from noise and stimuli, begin to observe your breathing. Inhale slowly through your nose and breathe out, also slowly, through your mouth.

# data[].attributes.body
once calm, begin to observe the thoughts that come to your mind. At the same time, keep your attention on your breathing. You will be able to observe that all kinds of thoughts come to your mind, do not cling to any of them.