This episode is called Why Meditate?
So why should we make time to meditate?
Hopefully I'll be able to give you some answers to this question in this podcast.
I'm not going to fill it with scientific proof,
That you can find for yourself on the internet.
What I want to talk about is my own experience of meditation and how it has helped me.
Now I must say at the outset that just because I experience meditation in a certain way,
It doesn't mean you will have the exact same experience.
We're all different and you should keep that in mind whilst listening to this podcast.
So what are the benefits of meditating?
I've listed below some of the benefits I have experienced over the last 30 years or so.
This is not an exhaustive list,
Just some key points.
Firstly,
Meditation can help us to understand our inner self.
It helps us gain self-knowledge.
We all carry around concepts,
Patterns and beliefs.
We have learned from parents,
School,
Friends,
Society,
Religions and so on.
Sometimes these concepts and patterns have become a habit.
So meditation helps us to look at what is driving us,
What makes us act in a certain way.
We can only make changes to the way of our thinking and acting once we are fully in tune with our inner self.
It is at that point we are able to let go of the harmful concepts,
Patterns and beliefs so we can engage with the helpful ones.
Meditation also helps calm down our restless mind or monkey mind as it is sometimes described.
We go on holiday to give ourselves a break.
What about giving our minds a break?
This is where meditation comes in.
It gives us mental relief.
If our minds are stressed and under a lot of pressure,
We will not be able to make the right decisions.
But if it is calm and relaxed,
We are more likely to make good decisions.
A clear mind helps us concentrate better and so will improve our productivity.
Also it opens our minds and helps us become more focused.
In meditation we are giving ourselves a period of freedom from our daily chores and the things that are stressing us out.
Finally meditation is good for our health.
If we are frustrated,
Impatient,
Suffering from stress and tension,
Becoming angry very easily we are obviously going to harm ourselves internally which in turn will damage our quality of life.
So by meditating we are helping to alleviate these things and becoming more patient,
Tolerant and stress free.
This helps to reduce our blood pressure and it is claimed can also strengthen our immune system.
This is because one cause of a weak immune system is stress.
So meditation will help reduce your stress and so strengthen your immune system.
What these three points show clearly is that meditation helps improve your quality of life.
It helps you to find what is driving you and what outdated concepts and beliefs are causing you to suffer.
It helps you to calm your mind and free yourself from stress.
It is also good for your mental health.
I believe these three points go some way to answer in the question,
Why meditate?
If you are still not sure if working on your mind is important,
Give this some thought.
Whatever you achieve in your life is the result of your actions.
The actions you choose to take are the result of the decisions you make.
The decisions you make stem from your thinking processes.
These thinking processes are completely dependent on the quality of your mind.
I hope you can now see why you should give meditation a go.
Some people are not willing to try it out until they have firm scientific evidence.
For you guys,
I would suggest you have a look on the internet as there is a lot of evidence to be found.
Others are happy just to give it a go on the back of someone else's experience.
So for you,
I hope this podcast has encouraged you to give it a go.
If you have never meditated before,
Don't worry.
It is easy to do.
Just find a quiet place and sit on the floor or an unarmed chair.
Straighten your back but don't make it too rigid.
Gently close your eyes and bring your awareness onto your breath entering and leaving your nose.
Theoretically,
Thoughts will arise and try to distract you.
Don't worry.
This is totally natural.
Once you realise you are thinking,
Just gently bring your awareness back to your breath.
Do this for 2 or 3 minutes to start with and then slowly increase it to 10 to 15 minutes.
That is meditation.
It is nothing magical or mystical.
Just simply focus in your attention on your breath.
Go on,
Give it a try.
