Meditation is a practice that has been around for thousands of years and has been used by various cultures and religions for physical, mental, and spiritual growth. There are many different types of meditation but what they all have in common is taking time to consciously focus of one’s attention.
The terms meditation and mindfulness may be used interchangeably by some, but there are subtle differences between them.
Mindfulness is a practice of paying attention to the present moment without judgment. It may involve being aware of one’s thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations in a non-reactive way.
Meditation, on the other hand, is a practice that can involve mindfulness, but can also involve other forms of paying attention such as focusing on a mantra, object or spiritual relationship.
This means that mindfulness is always a form of meditation because it involves conscious focus…. but meditation is not always mindful because some meditations invite people to pay attention to things outside of the present moment.
In today’s fast-paced world, where stress, anxiety, and distraction are at an all-time high, the benefits of meditation have become more widely celebrated. Meditation has been shown to:
Meditation is a great wellbeing tool because it can be practiced anywhere, at any time, and does not require any special equipment or training. The main challenge is to explore different forms of meditation in order to see which ones you enjoy and will therefore regularly engage with.
Here are a range of meditations that you might like to explore:
There are also more spiritual forms of meditation such as Transcendental Meditation, Vipassana Meditation and Zen Meditation which use slightly different methods of connecting with one’s deeper consciousness, purpose or wider connection to humanity. These are often taught by specialist meditation teachers.
These are just a few of the many different types of meditation that exist, each with its own unique approach and benefits. The key is to find the type of meditation that resonates with you and to make it a regular part of your daily routine.
When you are first starting out it is important to begin with small manageable chunks – often 2-5 minutes can seem like a long time to focus your attention on a meditation practice.
To make your meditation practice work for you, consider:
Remember it is the regular practice of small chunks of meditation that help people to build their inner calm and cope with the demands of day to day life. Slow and steady wins the race!
The Self Leadership Initiative is a personal development training provider specialising in Wellbeing and Self Leadership. Get in touch today for support on building a meditation practice into your daily wellbeing routine.
