| Meditation (Latin: meditatio – meditation, thoughts) is an intellectual process. Before the 20th century this term was simply called deep thinking, concentration on a problem, internal worshiping (religious) and also a form of philosophical lyrics (literature). At the end of the 19th century, since the time of Europeans showing an enthusiasm in Buddhism and& Indian yoga, people started to understand the term as a process of a bringing state of mind into a special condition of internal concentration – the state of the conscious, transitive between the corporal and the extra-corporal sojourn, often called a meditative trance.
The description of meditation in a negative term also exists: The state not linked with mental activity (but connected directly with the inherent Spirit). The state beyond the limits of conditions as an exit beyond the limits of determinability through the mind is called the transformation of the spirit. Liberation of the Spirit from the “power” of the mind, passions, desires and fears through complete relaxation and the dampening of thoughts or through a specific technique. Some techniques are connected with contemplation, for example, breathing or actions which are carried out by people daily. Or a special type of breathing (technical free breath). The purpose of meditation is a transition into a more “higher” state of consciousness, in which mind is not the centre but only the tool in which Will is formed.
The history of meditation:
Meditation received special development and concrete orientation in Indian yoga and Buddhism (as one of the basic means of achieving religious emancipation). But, it is possible to find meditation even in the old “Philosophical ecstasy” of Plato s and neo-Plato (whereas it acted as a necessary precondition for theoretical thinking, in particular, mathematical in Platonics), in “exorcism” (spiritual exercises) of Jesuits, in the Jewish Kabbalah, in the doctrine about the “path” of Sufi Muslims and also even in orthodox “clever spiritual and devotional work making” (the so-called. “Logos-meditation” or “Worshipping Jesus”). Nowadays, meditation made its entry into national and religious cultures of many countries, especially Eastern countries.
In the USA, the movement of hippies has provided much stimulus in gaining popularity of meditation in the 1960s and 1970s. Hippies considered meditation as one of the basic means for achieving harmony with themselves and their surroundings. And, though the popularity of the hippie movement gradually died away, meditation gained widespread distribution in developed western countries. In Russia, interest towards meditation appeared during the restructuring (perestroika) and attained a peak in the early nineties.
Meditative methods are very widely applied in modern psychotherapy. It is considered that meditation promotes relaxation, distressing, the purification of the consciousness from unnecessary thoughts and worries, to get peace of mind and internal harmony. In the majority of psychotherapeutic techniques, it is recommended to practice meditation at the peak of muscular relaxation (the so called “Relaxation”). For example, 10 minutes of meditation after 20 minutes of muscular relaxation according to the Jacobson Progressive Muscle Relaxation method. According to modern psychotherapists, for mastering meditation at a comprehensive level, it is enough to practice meditation daily for half an hour for six months.
Modern psychoanalysis (for example, C.G.Jung’s School of Psychoanalysis), which has set an aim of integrating the personality, also widely uses elements of meditation.
Classification of meditation:
Principally, meditation is divided into two types:
* Meditation on the empty mind, which can lead to a special condition of understanding, called “Enlightenment” in the east.
* Unidirectional meditation (the so called “Meditation on one object”) – a meditation, while concentrating on a specific object, for example, ones own breath, consciousness or a visual image. In this case, the aim of meditation “on one” is immersing in the meditation “on emptiness” to find the Enlightenment condition.
Meditative practices:
“Meditative Practices” are being used by many experts around the world for achieving the state of a Meditative Trance. Such experts are divided into:
* Cults;
* Religious – philosophical;
* Psychotherapeutic;
* Didactic- propaedeutic;
Hundreds of various methods for plunging into a meditative trance condition are described in literature. Researches have shown, that most important (and in general for almost all meditative experts) the element of such plunging is deep concentration on monotonously repeating actions. Such actions can be both physical (for example, the ritual dances in African tribes; exercises in martial arts; running one’s fingers over beads; reading a mantra loudly; concentration on breathing etc.) as well as mental imaginary (for example, concentration on the Chakra; concentration on the pulsation of the “Astral body” etc.).
Tens of positions for meditation are developed in various cultures. Though, scientific studies do not confirm the relationship between the meditation depth and posture. The most known posture for meditation is: sitting with a straight back, head slightly lowered, feet crossed, hands on knees with palms up, opened palms, big and index fingers connected.
Basically the meditative experts are divided according to the object of concentration. The most popular objects are:
* Chakra (Kundalini meditation);
* Mantra (Transcendental meditation, abbr. ТМ);
* Inner voice (Naam, Shabd, Anantha Nada);
* Breathing (Anapanasati meditation);
* Candle or reflection in mirror (Tratak);
* Inner consciousness (Vipasana meditation)
Meditation CDs are a way for people to drift into meditation mode. For example, actress Lindsay Wagner produced a CD called "Open To Oneness" which was made to help in "quieting the mind, shift negative thoughts and limited perspectives and bring about a more profound sense of causeless peace, joy and oneness."
During unthinking meditation for long periods, after which all kinds of thoughts and desires disappear and the conscious of I practically disappears, the state of deep peace sets-in, after which the inner consciousness of the person is illuminated with light, leading to a state of inexpressible pleasure. |
