Question:
What are the different types of meditation?
missladi
2010-03-09 10:05:37 UTC
What is the difference between indian (guru) meditation, buddhist meditation, transcendental meditation, etc. I might even have my categories wrong lol.

I want to learn to meditate to become more serene, to face situations in the outer world with more calmness. I want to find a sense of (inner and outer) acceptance. I don't like the idea of setting up a shrine for some guy who was able to access that sense of total awareness ust because he was able to do it. I also don't want to be giving all my money to some guru because a) i think that personal growth can't be bought with money and b) i just don't have money for that anyway.

Any thoughts?
Eight answers:
sparklingstar
2010-03-10 23:30:29 UTC
Transcendental Meditation (TM.org) is effortless and so easy to learn. Practicing the Transcendental Meditation Technique has given me the ability to deal with very challenging situations in a calm, effective manner. My love and acceptance for myself and others has increased many times over which allows me to experience a great deal of fulfillment in every day life.



There are Certified TM Teachers all over the US who are dedicated to finding loans, grants, scholarships to enable everyone to learn The Transcendental Meditation Technique regardless of their financial situation. Call the Toll Free number on the website and you will find a TM teacher near you. The TM Organization is a non-profit organization and teaches TM in many extremely poor countries around the world, as well as to people in need in the US.



There have been at least 350 published peer-reviewed studies on The Transcendental Meditation Technique including a meta-analysis showing that TM is at least twice as effective in reducing anxiety as other techniques and if the studies are rigorously done TM is found to be 3 to 4 times as effective as any other mental technique on which there has been published research.



Different meditations affect the brain differently. Electroencephalographic (EEG) research has found that different methods of meditation have their own individual EEG signature. This agrees with studies that directly compare one technique with another and analyses of data pooled from all relevant research (meta-analyses). These have found that different methods of meditation or relaxation vary in their effectiveness. Please see this site for more detail: http://www.fredtravis.com/talk.html
2016-04-12 15:06:00 UTC
All meditation has the common feature of trying to still the mind. Thereafter they vary. They vary in physical issues, which I do not think are that important, and they vary with INTENTION. I believe the intention is the most important issue. For example we teach folks to contact angels, and the technique is similar to any other, but there is an intention to make contact. Buddhists who meditate for a life time may never have that experience, because their purpose in meditating is different. The site describing our approach and some testimonials is shown below....
emt
2010-03-09 13:30:08 UTC
I don't know enough about indian meditation, transcendental and other systems.



Buddhist has 2 types of meditation. Concentration and Insight. There are 40 types of meditation objects used to developed concentration. You choose one you like. For example breath, loving kindness, compassion etc.



You do not need to set up shrine or worship to practice Buddhist meditation.

In most monasteries, it is free.
2010-03-09 10:14:17 UTC
There are many different types of meditation.



Breaking it down into the two broadest categories you have Objective Meditation and Subjective Meditation.
Golden Brown
2010-03-09 10:08:22 UTC
Ah, you are aware of that particular sect of buddhism i see - that's the one i am most familiar with (having had first-hand experience of).



Just be aware that you don't necessarily have to conform to any particular type of meditation, so long as you get the fundamentals right.
2010-03-09 10:07:00 UTC
Amen missladi...the peace you are looking for can only come from one place....



The Gospel: Simply know that God loves all of us, however hates our sin. None of us can obey His laws. He is infinitely perfect...therefore even the slightest sin is infinitely offensive to Him. It's not that He "won't" co-exist with sin...He simply "can not" co-exist with sin. Everyone on earth is guilty before God and subject to His judgment...hell (a real place – where unbelievers will go - not mentioned much in today's false churches). But this is where His love for us comes in. Jesus came to earth (God in the flesh), because only He could be an "infinitely-perfect" sacrifice on the cross. He paid the fine for the offenses we have and will commit. God's elect will accept this truth - "turn from sin and trust in His saving work". Is it not a relief to know that God and God alone does the saving? We humans are so full of ourselves to think we have any say in the matter. Rest in Jesus, Christian...that's His great message.
t7ruths
2010-03-09 17:15:48 UTC
Here are some helpful meditations you might find useful:

The Basic WMS Meditations



The Chakra Meditation

Sit or lie comfortably, and immediately begin focusing on the feelings throughout the body. Those new to this practice may begin by focusing upon a very small area of the body, such as the tip of the right index finger. Be carefully aware of every subtle detail of feeling in this area. Allow awareness to spread to the entire finger, then the hand, arm, both arms, chest, torso, head, legs and feet, (not necessarily in that order). Do not avoid any pain, fear or other unpleasantness found anywhere in the body. [Such feelings are usually the result of Intentions which inhibit personal growth, and these can be "reprogrammed". Fear can be replaced by love, confusion by clarity, and pain by vibrant energy/positivity.]



As thoughts inevitably run though the mind, simply relax, and return again and again to a feeling-awareness focus, even if this means doing so a hundred times every minute. Chronic, rampant, seemingly unstoppable thoughts in the mind, are a symptom of stored stress in ones' being. As the practice of meditation proceeds, stress is released, and the tendency of thoughts to intrude upon this process will gradually diminish. Be patient and don't let the simplicity of this method of meditation deceive you. Let your awareness travel freely from one area of the body to the next, as it will be inclined to do. Feel every subtle inner detail. Areas of particular stress or activity will attract your awareness, and hold it for longer periods than the rest of the body. Allow this to happen, as it is a function of natural self-healing processes and energy body activity. Don't be concerned or irritated by intruding thoughts, just continue to return to a feeling/awareness-oriented focus within the body, in a relaxed manner.



One particularly notable value of the above meditational practice, is that is can be done any time during the day, at work, at home or in conjunction with any other activity. It can be done for as little as 5-30 seconds at a time, (as daily inner awareness) and it will still render cumulative benefits, though these are usually more pronounced when the eyes are closed, and the body still. It is recommended that the Chakra Meditation, (or others like it) be performed daily just before going to sleep at night, and before arising in the morning, for 20-30 minutes at a time. Daily inner awareness and meditation compliment each others' effectiveness, acting to improve health, reduce stress, increase psychic sensitivity, clarity and the capacity for love, manifest intelligence and wisdom.



As the meditator becomes increasingly aware of their own inner state of being through meditation, they are also enabled to take greater notice of their psychic environment. The "mood" or "atmosphere" of the workplace is made clearly perceptible to them. The underlying motives and feelings of persons as well as groups, become more and more obvious. Even more importantly, the meditator gains greater awareness of their own patterns of feeling and thought, as well as the Intentions which underlie them. That which is known can be easily addressed, whereas that which is unknown is difficult to change. Self knowledge implies the capacity for self change. The self-aware individual discovers that the task of building a more evolved self, is often easier than expected. They are thus enabled to build a more evolved world with others in the process.



By applying the Chakra Meditation daily, (or others like it) we become increasingly aware of the subtle feelings/Intents in the body, as they exist in each cubic inch of our physiology. This practice then allows the meditator to begin to transform the Intentions held in the body as a residue of past experiences, to ones that are progressively more evolved. Long held fear anywhere in the body, such as in the stomach, (third chakra) or the heart, (fourth chakra) can be transformed to love. Confusion and a scattered focus in the region of the forehead, (sixth chakra) can be turned into greater and greater clarity. A lack of energy in the hips/lower spine, (first chakra) can be made into a state of high vitality. All of these changes of cellular memory and Intent can be transformed in such a manner.



The meditator may do this by Intending changes to come about, by employing the following four steps;



THE EMPLOYMENT OF INTENT

(for rendering internal change)



1) Be aware of your current state of body/mind, (this is accomplished through meditation).

2) Gain familiarity with that which is to be Intended, (such as a higher love and clarity) and the Intent to be acted upon is crystallized.

3) The desired state is held steady in the mind, (for at least 5 minutes). Visualize and feel this state as if it already exists, until the body/mind shifts into it.

4) The desired state is "held in place" throughout the body, (or a given chakra).



Thi
2010-03-09 10:07:24 UTC
Prayer is my meditation.


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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