Did you know? That there are many ways of meditating and meditation is not what you think. (VIDEO)

Did you know? Did you know that there are many ways of meditating? Seated still mind meditation is one type, but only one type.



Formal "seated" meditation in a full lotus position



Meditation is any practice that allows us to transcend our thinking minds and the suffering that they produce. Swimming, running, chanting are all ways of experiencing the deep peace found beyond the mind. It is also interesting to note that the Tibetan Buddhist Meditation tradition does not have seated still mind meditation as one of their practices whatsoever. The meditation practice given by the Buddha to all his disciples is called Vipassana and is a practice of keeping attention on the relaxed breath as the focus of meditation.

Vipassana means 'to come and see'. To be more precise – ‘to come inward and see’, and thus is often referred to as ‘insight meditation’. The practice of Vipassana meditation as instructed by the Buddha is ‘To watch your breath with awareness’. That's all! It’s just that simple, to remain watchful of your breath as it comes and goes. That is Vipassana. It’s the easiest meditation technique of all time. It’s the kind of friendly meditation which can be practiced by anybody, anywhere and at any time.

It has been said that the most fruitful meditation becomes ‘seamless’ and you’ll know you’ve attained real success when you can be aware of your breath while doing all kinds of daily activities like reading, playing, driving a car, even running errands or doing simple domestic tasks. This stage will come after continuing the regular practice of bringing your attention back to the breath for a considerable amount of time. At that point you will become aware of two basic aspects of your existence, ‘doing’ and ‘being’. You will notice that you’re doing everything, fully involved in your tasks, yet inside you’ll have established a center of awareness that is completely undisturbed by outer circumstances. That will be the true state of a meditator.

Of related interest: Video - Meditation after Yoga Class - Fred Busch Power Yoga