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A Guide to The Various Meditation Postures
By administrator | April 27, 2009
Since ages past, meditation has been practiced by countless people for its many benefits. Practicing meditation as part of your daily routine might lead to improvements in your outlook and attitude.
Almost all meditative practices teach that the spine must remain straight and slumping is not encouraged. The reason for this is that when you sit erect it promotes the circulation of your spiritual energy. This is considered to be your life force.
Even though a straight back is almost universal in the different approaches to meditation, some spiritual traditions and meditation instructors advise a variety of postures. Let’s take a look at some of them.
1. Seated posture. The person sits erect while keeping the back straight. The head and spine are in alignment and not tilted. Thighs are parallel with the ground. Hands are placed comfortably on the knees or chair arms.
2. Cross legged posture. This is a very common posture; the lotus position is included in this category.
3. Kneeling position. The individual is on the floor in a kneeling position. Buttocks remain resting on the heels and toes, which are close together. The hands are placed on the thighs.
4. Lying down posture. This is also called the corpse position or, in yoga, savasna. The individual lies flat on the floor with the legs straight and relaxed. This position isn’t used often because it copies the innate position of sleep. A person might doze off at times. This is more useful for stress reduction rather than as a meditation method.
In addition to these postures, there are several gestures and movements that can be incorporated into the practice of meditation. Among these are hand gestures called Mudras. There’s a theological significance behind these motions. Coming from the yogic philosophy, they can impact your consciousness. A typical example is the placement of hands in Buddhist meditation. With the thumbs touching, the right hand is positioned on top of the left hand.
Integrating assorted repetitive actions like chanting, deep breathing or humming also assists in bringing on a state of meditation. Some people practice walking meditation. It’s common to keep the eyes closed or partially open while meditating. However, Soto Zen practitioners perform their meditation with their eyes wide open in front of a wall.
To gain the benefits of meditation, follow the training of the type of meditation you have decided to practice. Be aware that persistence and acceptance are required to achieve success. This could be of help at times when you find difficulty in meditating, and it will also improve your concentration in daily life.
Topics: Sleep/snoring | 3 Comments »
April 28th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
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May 16th, 2009 at 10:46 pm
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May 22nd, 2009 at 10:04 am
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