More and more people are becoming curious about meditation. From being something that only a few, slightly fuzzy, people dabbled in, meditation is becoming mainstream. These days, there are yoga studios, meditation and mindfulness centers on every street corner, and meditation apps downloaded on almost every phone. But what exactly is meditation and how can it help me?
Anyone who has practiced meditation for a while knows that meditation is something fundamental. It is something that you can use in all life situations. Meditation is about the quality of one's mind and the mind is our window to the world no matter what we do.
A healthy mind means a good life. A good life has little to do with how much money we have, what work we do, our love relationships. Of course, such circumstances play a role in how we value our quality of life, but in the end they are not what determines our well-being. For example, who hasn't felt sad, depressed and lonely even though all one's needs have been more than adequately met? What we have heard so many times, that happiness cannot be acquired in external circumstances, is now being realized more and more for real.
Many people who seek meditation have some kind of basic problem in life that they wish to resolve. For example, they look for ways to manage stress and worry/anxiety, overcome trauma, overcome fears or improve relationships.
On a closer look at these reasons, we see that the root cause of the problems lies in the mental, i.e. in mind. Simply put, you can say that the reason we stress is that we carry stress inside. If we didn't have stress inside, life wouldn't be experienced as stressful either. The same applies to worry, anxiety and fears. If we didn't have expectations, contradictions and judgments inside, we wouldn't have problems with our relationships either. The permanent solution to dealing with these types of problems is to root them out of your mind and get rid of them.
Many may think of meditation as something demanding where you sit in the lotus position, breathe deeply and try not to think about anything. Perhaps they think that meditation is not for them. However, this is far from the truth. There are certainly many different methods and ways to meditate, but basically meditation is about emptying the mind of thoughts, feelings, worries, stress, etc. To do this, no special equipment is needed, nor does one need to sit or breathe in a certain way. Meditation is something that can be practiced anywhere, anytime.
To meditate means to look inward. It is a research process where you go through what you carry and let it go. Anyone who does this realizes that they carry an enormous number of layers of thoughts, feelings, beliefs, concepts inside. These express themselves through stress, anxiety, inability to accept changes, judgments, thoughts of disaster, etc. The more aware you become of everything you carry inside, the clearer it becomes that you cannot live the life you desire if you continue to carry this.
Through meditation, the mind is freed from wandering thoughts, worries, stress, attachments and identifications with good/bad, good/evil, etc. In step with this depletion, our mind/consciousness gradually returns to its original form, a being that can be called the origin or the truth.
With the empty, original mind, we handle complicated situations better because we live in a state of natural flow and wisdom. We have no distracting thoughts and can devote ourselves wholeheartedly to what we need to do. We also don't worry about failure. This means that we dare to try new things and develop ourselves. Unhealthy power balances in our lives are also even out. Where we have been at a disadvantage, we have the opportunity to speak up and be strong. In cases where we have not listened to or belittled others, we realize that we need to accept, and let those people bloom. We dare to be honest with ourselves and others and act without any hidden agenda or expecting anything in return. People around us therefore feel comfortable and at ease, and we can build meaningful and rewarding relationships. A natural inner strength and confidence emerges.
Our original, true, mind is always naturally positive. It is a positivity that is always there and does not depend on particular external circumstances to be at peace. With such a mind, we can handle life in the best way. In the future, meditation will surely be as natural as brushing your teeth. Meditation is something that all people need.
Michael