In my opinion, the happiest looking people in the world are lamas, Tibetan monks. I always feel good when I look at a photo of a Iama’s radiant smile. Their joy shines through the photo, evoking feelings of joy and wellbeing in my being. These steadfast Buddhist masters spend hours a day in meditation. They embrace all of the love in the world and don’t get distracted by the pain in the world.
Scientists have been studying the differences between the brains of Iamas and others who spend numerous hours in meditation and found stark differences in the structure of their brains. It would take a dissertation to explain all of the neurological benefits the studies have reported, however, in short we can say that brain research shows that meditation is beneficial to our overall physical health and emotional well-being.
Evidence continues to suggest that meditation encourages more positive functioning. This is true for all levels of practitioners. You don’t have to be a Buddhist monk or any form of a meditation master to gain a sense of equanimity, acceptance and living life in the present moment. Even 5 minutes of quieting external stimuli benefits your overall cognition and awareness.
The state of mindfulness increases when you meditate in a group. A recent study suggests that watching others meditate strengthens the feelings of social connectivity. It might seem counterintuitive that sitting in front of a screen or near each other in silence promotes togetherness but it does. When we come together for a common cause whether it is online or in person, we start to break down the walls of social isolation.
While in meditation, we increase our own sense of peace and love and that energy influences our surroundings. Since the 1960’s people have found a correlation between group meditation and reduction in crime rate, known as The Maharishi Effect. In 1976, it was first suggested that when 1% of a community practiced Transcendental Meditation, there would be a reduction in crime by 16%.
Contrary to what a lot of people think, meditation is not about clearing the mind, rather it’s about freeing the mind of distractions (untruths / hindrances). The drunken monkey mind that plagues us all at times is a reflection of how much activity our unaware mind normally has. The mind, like the rest of our muscles, needs to be trained up. And that’s why there are so many techniques for meditation. The various meditation techniques are tools to help develop concentration and calm. There are many different techniques because everyone is going to resonate with something different.
Freeing distractions takes practice, patience and compassion. In meditation one goal is to watch the fluctuations of the mind and note our response and train up the ability to come back to an anchor. Some thoughts are easily redirected back to an anchor into the present moment, the busy mind. This type of redirecting is very beneficial to train up being present. This also helps us with other types of thoughts that may be hindrances to our wellbeing.
Overtime we recognize the thoughts that we may need help to understand. Meditation is a practice that takes patience and persistence. Every time you meditate is different. It takes time to navigate this and being in a group can support your uniqueness.
In our Chakra Meditation Class, we use techniques described by Paul Grilley in A Yogi’s Guide to Chakra Meditation. The goal of this approach is to cultivate calm and observe. Each person’s subjective experience is unique and important. We are not looking to change anything or to find a color or sensation. The technique involved in this Chakra meditation is to place our awareness along the spine in the physical body and associated 7 chakras in the subtle body, using the breath as a tool to place awareness. As we focus, our unique experience and associated feelings and memories come up. We are supporting the balance between sensation and consciousness.
To keep the mind focused, we invite you to mentally repeat uplifting sounds called mantras with the breath. A mantra is a tool that may deepen your awareness of how thought, breath and energy are interrelated. We commonly use the mantra So Ham (pronounced “Hum”) or reverse the sounds to get Ham Sa. Sa means that or the source of all things. Aham (gets shortened to Ham) means I. Therefore when you repeat So Hum you affirm That I Am and accept all that is within you in a calm safe environment. When you repeat Hum Sa you affirm I am That. When you silently repeat the sounds you support being more calm and focused on the present moment with less reactivity, notice the interaction of the emotions, intellect and body.
To get a better sense of the Chakra Meditation technique, you can watch the Chakra Meditation (Yin Pranayama So Hum, Descending Nyasa #6) for free until February 28 with discount code GroupMeditation.
We welcome you to join us in the next Chakra Meditation right after Friday’s Mindful Movement and Yoga class. At the end of the meditation, we share our experience to further social connection. This week as part of Service week, we will also have opportunities to practice other meditation techniques. Sign up for any of our group meditation practices on our website.
Aviva Chaye Tulasi is a team member at Dogwood Studios. She is a certified yoga therapist (C-IAYT). She applies the teachings of classical yoga to reduce the effects of negative stress and to balance the nervous system. Aviva teaches Mindful Movement and Yoga Mondays at 10 am and is available for private sessions. Email Aviva at yogawithtulasi@gmail.com. She is here to help.
SAM Sather, founder of Dogwood Studios, is a certified yoga therapist (C-IAYT), individualizes the yoga practice with appropriate modifications for participants’ unique bodies and medical histories with a focus on finding calm and improving health. She offers several live, online and in person yoga classes as well as private sessions so you can focus on your needs one-on-one.