Wellness of a person is measured by the state of mental and physical health. It represents the overall health and well-being of the individual. The term wellness has been applied in many ways.
Some of the Dimensions of Wellness are:
- Physical
- Mental
- Emotional
- Energy
- Occupational
- Social
- Spiritual
The mind and body are not separate entities, and physical health can affect emotional wellness as well. Poor physical health can have a serious impact on our mental wellness or vice-versa. From ancient times, meditation has been the technique used to achieve the wellness of mind and body in different cultures and societies.
What is Meditation
Meditation happens when the body, mind, emotion and energy is at a certain level of preparedness and awareness. It is a natural process and it happens when everything is conducive and atmosphere the right. Meditation occurs naturally when the body, mind and all faculties are calm and silent.
Meditation – by Swami Shivabhaktananda, Sivananda Yoga Camp, Val-Morin, Quebec, Canada
It helps us to look inward to discover, reinvent and to develop a good understanding of our true potential. In the process towards its preparedness, it peels out the emotional layers of our mind and re-calibrates the rhythm of our life. In the state of meditation one can experience the blissfulness, and restructure our own karma to achieve the new possibilities of life, according to our own wish and vision.
Regular meditation nourishes and develops you to be at a peaceful energised state at all time. This trans-formative experience brings everything about life into total harmony.
Some Benefits of Meditation
- Meditation reduces stress and helps to relax the body and mind
- It helps with the increased awareness of being in the present moment
- It improves emotional wellness by reducing anxiety & fear
- It improves concentration and focus of mind
- It helps with regulating the breath, blood pressure, heart rate and more
- Meditation helps to open up your mind to accept, adjust and adapt
How to start Meditation practice
Preparing mind, body and energy to meditate is often challenging. It takes time and patience to learn how to consciously bring all focus inward. Our senses are outbound and we continuously create perceptions and judgements based on our understanding of life. It is a difficult process to break free from the thoughts and ideas that we have perceived and to let go of our emotions.
A peaceful mind and a healthy body is important to experience meditatiion. Proper relaxation of body and mind are essential prior to beginning the meditation process.
It is a common misconception that meditation happens only when you are sitting in cross-legged position with your eyes closed. Meditation can happen at any time when your level of alertness and awareness is high and you are feeling that blissfulness within. The practice of meditation is a tool to help train the mind to keep that level of peace and joy at its optimum without being affected by any external influence.
A few tips to help to become meditative
- Have a comfortable seat on the floor with spine erect (use cushion if required). Make sure you are buttocks are raised enough from the ground for a comfortable seat to help relax your knees and legs. You can also sit on a chair if you prefer.
- If you are a beginner then start with a short duration of 10-15 minutes ideally or even less. Set a timer so that you don’t have to worry about time.
- After sitting comfortably, close your eyes and try to focus and listen to your breath.
- On each inhalation and exhalation recite Om silently.
- Keep the focus within and do not get distracted by any sounds around you
- Empty the mind by letting go of all your thoughts
- Do proper relaxed breathing with complete awareness
- Bring the mind to a stand-still and feel the peace within