Meditation Corner

What is Meditation?

Meditation is the technique of calming the mind and bringing awareness to our thoughts and surroundings. There are many techniques to relax the mind and each one requires different mental skills. During meditation, it is important to realize that there is not a way to "empty the mind." The common misconception of meditation most people have is that they have to clear their mind of all thoughts. However, this is a very difficult and impossible thing to do. Our minds continually process thoughts even while we are relaxing to help us perform the daily functions critical to survival. If we were to stop our thoughts and to "empty our minds" we would not have the thoughts that help regulate our survival such as the rhythmic contractions of our diaphragm for breathing regulated by our mind. It is our mind that helps regulate our heartbeat and our breathing, these involuntary functions that keep us alive are the result of electrical impulses sent from the mind to those parts of the body to tell our heart to beat and our diaphragm to expand and contract. Simply put, meditation allows us to tune into the thoughts in our mind and gain a deeper sense of awareness about our bodies. When we meditate, we relax rather than "emptying our mind" which leads to health benefits such as increased focus, lower blood pressure, higher energy levels, and overall immune system health. Sine meditation helps us focus and reduces tension in our bodies, it helps strengthen the immune system. Our body's immune system is constantly working on defending us from pathogens and harmful substances in our environment and stress can compromise our immune system making its role in defending against disease less effective. Meditation helps individuals relax their bodies, relieve tension and negative energy that leads to dis-ease. When people feel stressed, they often feel ill at ease and tense, being in a state of dis-ease. Over time, the stress may manifest as physical symptoms of illness or disease. It makes sense that if you feel stressed or ill at ease (dis-ease), you are more likely to contract an illness or disease because stress weakens your immune system.

The thoughts in the mind are like cars passing by on the road. Often times, people try to be the traffic light that tries to control the movement of the thought cars. We get so worked up trying to regulate the flow of traffic of our thoughts that we feel stressed. People try to stop their negative thoughts and bring their positive thoughts to mind or they try to clear their mind of all thoughts and try to focus but the thought cars keep driving on the street and it gets busy causing the person to be in a state of dis-ease. Our thoughts are like cars driving on the street and it is difficult to regulate them. In meditation, we take a step back to observe the thoughts in our mind without getting involved with them. It is like sitting on the side of the road watching the thought cars pass by without judging them. Meditation helps us relax by disengaging from our thoughts and taking time to just let them pass in our minds without judging their content. The goal of meditation is to not clear the mind but allow the thoughts to drift by like the cars on the street and become aware of the patterns your thoughts may have. Do some of the thoughts make you feel negative, positive or neutral? Observing the thoughts in your mind without trying to judge their content and accepting the feelings that come up is known as Mindfulness Meditation.

All meditation becomes easier with consistent practice and dedication. It is important to reassure yourself when you feel doubtful that the meditation is working. Practice does not mean that you have to be able to relax your mind after the first week or so. Studies have shown that the shortest time for a practice to become a habit and for the most significant results is for three weeks or twenty-one days. So at first, if you don't see results right away, don't give up! The important thing is to make peace with yourself and to accept that your mind will wander at times. When it wanders, take five minutes (it may be helpful to use a timer) to acknowledge where your mind wandered and gently bring your focus back to non-judging. You can say either out loud or to yourself "I appreciate your concerns and this may seem silly or boring and it's okay." Think of yourself at the center of a wheel while the spokes radiating out from the wheel's center are the thoughts of the mind. As the thoughts in your mind drift and the wheel spins and the spokes of your thoughts turn, keep your attention on the wheel's center and let the thoughts in your mind drift around with your attention being at the center and not engaging in the thoughts.


There is no such way to fail at meditation. When starting out, it can be helpful to set a small amount of time to focus on something as simple as your breathing. Focus on your breath as you inhale and exhale. You can think about inhaling peace and exhaling stress. The breath is a good focus point for mindfulness meditations. Focusing on your breath allows you to bring your awareness back to your body and be grateful in its daily functions to keep you alive. When we are born, we cry which means we can breathe and when we die, our breath leaves us. The breath is an important life energy in each of us and is a great way to relax and relieve tension. When people are anxious, their breath quickens and becomes rapid, their heart rate increases delivering blood to their body to help them decide whether to fight-or-flight which is the basic stress response. The next time you are stressed, notice that your breathing quickens and your muscles feel tighter. Notice the reactions your body has due to stress. Clench your muscles and feel the tension in them. How do they feel? Be aware of the sensation in your body and think about what is causing this stress. Is it a physical threat to survival? If it is, find a safe place and get help if needed then when the danger is over, work on releasing the tension. Assess the stressor and why it makes you feel the way you do, be open to the feelings you have without judging them. Now unclench your muscles from your toes to your feet up your legs, clear tension in your hips, relax your abdominal muscles and slow your heartbeat, relax tension in your arms, neck, shoulders and finally your head. Imagine as if your body was a boat and you are just floating on the water allowing the waves to rock you. Slow your breathing down, focus on each inhale and exhale. You can also count the number of in-breaths and out-breaths, inhale for a count of four and exhale for a count of the same amount. Feel the rise and fall of your belly as you inhale and exhale with deep breathing and relax your body slowing the breathing pace. Be aware of your breath and make sure to follow each breath into your belly for deep rhythmic breathing from your diaphragm rather than the shallow breathing that breathing from your chest near the lungs. Most people take air in through their nose and it flows into their lungs for the inhalation causing their chest move up (exhalation) and down (inhalation) for breathing, but the healthy breathing is diaphragmatic breathing where you allow the air you inhale from your nose to enter your lungs and have the air go to your diaphragm causing it to expand (exhale) and contract (inhale) allowing for the rise (exhale) and fall (inhale) of your belly for deep breathing.

Set a timer for 3-5 minutes early in the morning before work, later at night or whenever you feel you have time for some relaxation. You may want to put a specific task on your calendar or to-do-list that tells you to meditate to avoid putting it off and keeping your routine on task. The only way you can fail at anything in life is if you give up, then you have no more chances to improve because you have decided that things won't change so you will remain stuck and things won't change. Best wishes to everyone! Feel free to post suggestions, make edits:)

*Post subject to edits by the author

Sun meditation to start a new day:

When the dawn breaks, I look at the lightening sky. I decided to get up and and thought possibly I might see the sun rise in the upstairs window. Well, my timing was exactly on point because while I was just getting ready, the sun was in the sky and its golden rays on the horizon. when I looked at the sky the sun was a glowing orb in the sky. After a few minutes of stretching and meditating in my room, at 7:45 am my room was aglow with natural sunlight.
so I let myself be immersed in the sunlight and intoned a mantra for the day: "May my spirit guides, angels and the divine watch over me. May I be guided in my knowledge to attain the light of enlightenment. May my body, mind, and spirit be a vessel for the healing of the universe to flow in and spread healing along my path as I walk upon this Earth. Just for today, I will not anger. Just for today, I will not worry. From this moment onward, I am blessed with divine wisdom and surrounded by the universe's loving embrace." I felt quite energized and alive after that and I think the sun seemed brighter when I looked at it again.

Reiki Life Purpose Healing Meditation


Attune yourself to the reiki energy.

With your eyes closed:

Imagine a blackboard in front of you as you count down the numbers from 5-1.
5 Your thoughts are starting to lessen in intensity as your body begins to relax.
4 Your thoughts are becoming like clouds now fading and fleeting as the tension in your body begins to melt away.
3 Your body is traveling down a path of ancient stairs as your thoughts begin to melt away until your mind is like a clear blue sky on a summer day
2 Your body releases its physical heaviness as you go deeper down the stairs until you come upon a door, Open this door and allow yourself to sink into the basement of your subconscious mind
1 You are in trance now, feeling wonderfully good and eager to meet your guides and angels to awaken your inner healing

Imagine yourself standing on a beach letting the sun's rays fill you with energy, smell the crisp salty air around you, hear the waves crashing

As you lie there on the sand, feel the sun's energy coursing through your body's chakras energizing you from your root to your crown

Imagine a light coming from the divine entering into your crown chakra and say "My consciousness is aligned with the divine"

Allow the light to flow to your heart chakra and say "I am spreading divine love and light. I am initiated with the power to heal."

Imagine the light wrapping around you like a bubble, fusing with your aura and say "I am breathing in divine healing energy and radiating divine love. I am calling upon my spirit guides and angels to help me channel this Reiki energy through me now."

Surround your aura with light and intone "Spirit guides and angels, may I ask your name?"

Listen with your subconscious mind to the insights and images you receive. As your guides and angels a question such as "What is my life's purpose?" and "How may I heal and attain my life's purpose?"

Listen to the images you receive. Imagine your guides and angels wrapping you with wings of divine light and healing.

Feel the energy of healing course through your body and out through your hands and send it where it may go to yourself, a loved one or the planet.

Tell your spirit guides and angels "Thank you for helping me awaken my healing abilities."

As you begin to climb the stairs back into your physical body, know that you can call upon your angels and guides at any time to assist you in healing.

Open your crown, open your heart and feel the energy coursing through your hands and send it wherever it may go

Archangel Raphael is the angel of healing and I often call upon him to heal. If you have any beings you call upon to assist you, feel free to use them to help you.

Define "trance".

Edit 5 hrs. later-
OK. I will define "trance".

From the Cambridge Dictionary -
"Trance ; noun (MENTAL CONDITION)
a temporary mental condition in which someone is not completely conscious of and/or not in control of himself or herself."

@Zotron A trance, the way he is using it, is a state of meditation. It is a state of mental calmness which can aid in becoming more self-aware with your surroundings. When you place yourself under a trance, you are temporarily focusing on your breathing, and anything that the meditation instructions may state while remaining calm and at peace. Meditations are great for helping you to feel less stress, relieve anxiety, and to become more self-aware and to put you in a relaxing state, mentally and physically. I hope this helps.