Yoga and meditation go hand in hand. Yoga is practiced to reach that level of physical flexibility and mental calmness. There are various postures that improves your physical capacity whereas certain postures take care of your mind too. Yoga on the whole takes care of your holistic improvement.
People believe in this form of exercise as it has effective results in all the cases. Hope you find this article on yoga and meditation useful. Yoga is a way of life. It is an art that has been referred to in the ‘Puranas‘ and the ‘Upanishads‘.
However the entire credit goes to Patanjali for his work on yoga in ‘Yoga Sutra’ written around 2000 years back. However, he has divided the yoga into eight basic principles and it has been followed likewise ever since. The basic text for the reference on yoga is the ‘Yoga Sutra’.
Eight disciplines of yoga
The disciplines are as follows:
- Yamas (related to self-control)
- Niyamas (observances)
- Asanas (the exercising postures)
- Pranayama (controlling the prana or life through breath)
- Pratyahara (Withdrawing the senses)
- Dharana (contemplation)
- Dhyana (meditation)
- Samadhi (super-conscious state)
Meditation is one of the eight principles of yoga. Dhyana or meditation, is the practice of constant contemplation and observation of the mind. The process to meditate is by concentration on any external point while emptying the mind of any thought. However, you can perceive only yourself while your mind meditates. This helps you to attain higher sense of purpose and will power. You also gain a clarity of mind, a sense of wisdom and higher ability to concentrate. Thus yoga and meditation are intrinsically related to each other.
Principles of Yoga Meditation
Yoga meditation can be in different forms as yoga has been modified over the ages to suit various needs. The following are the three principles that forms the basic of meditation.
- Concentration requires the focus on one object: The focus is on the breathing. You have to keep repeating the words in your mind. Concentrate, concentrate and concentrate. You have to just focus on the point you have selected and your breathing. Breathe deep and keep it going till your outer world becomes unimportant. Forget about the past and don’t think about the future, be in the present and just at that moment.
- Focus harder if your concentration sways: To bring your mind to the required calmness is a difficult task, specially for people who have a restless mind. If you are unable to gain the calmness of mind, do not reprimand yourself. That would decreases your capability to concentrate further. Let the thoughts pass your mind. You are not meditating to forget yourself, so let the thoughts be. Suppressing them or tying to get rid of them can only harm your mind. Use the point of focus to gain concentration if you have been distracted by any thought.
- Ignore irrelevant thoughts and sensation during yoga meditation:Yoga meditation cannot change your world completely. Remember you are an earthly being with people around you. You will be able to hear voices and noises too, let them be, you just focus on your point. The property of distraction can be fought with a willful mind.
Postures of Meditation
Check out the best poses for meditation.
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Padmasana or full lotus posture:
This is the perfect posture for meditation if you are able to perform the right pose. For the lotus pose you have to sit straight and be completely relaxed. Sit on the floor in a cross legged posture. Hold your left foot with both your hands and place he right feet over the left groin. This is called the lotus posture.
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Ardha Padmasana or the half lotus posture:
In this case only one leg is folded under the other thigh. This posture is a warm up session before you proceed to the full lotus form.
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Burmese posture of meditation:
This is a simple one. You have to be cautious while doing a Burmese pose as you might get a cramp with wrong folds. In this pose the legs are not crossed. The knees are spread and stay down. The heels are brought together by folding the legs and the feet are pulled towards the pelvis. Hen place your cupped hands on the thighs or the heels. You need a good cushion to sit on for this posture. You can also use a folded blanket or a rug for the same. This prevents any kind of pain in your ankles or your posterior as it exerts some pressure while you practice Burmese posture.
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Egyptian posture of meditation:
This is called practicing meditation while sitting on a chair. This must allow you to sit upright and support your back and head. You can place a cushion at the back for a better posture. Keep your hands on your thighs by limply making a cup of your palms, the thumbs touching and wrists at the top.
Achievement from yoga meditation
Wondering what do you achieve from meditating? Let us see what:
- You achieve concentration
- You achieve relaxation of body and mind
- You achieve a heightened sense of awareness
- You become more vigilant and observant
- You improve your conscious mind
- You achieve happiness
- You achieve calmness of mind and most importantly
- You achieve a great life
Yoga meditation takes care of your holistic betterment.
Sahaja yoga meditation
This is an unique method or yogic meditation wherein you awaken your “kundalini” or self realization. This is possible with each and every human being. One can gain inner-transformation with the practice of sahaja yoga meditation. This leads to the improvement of the soul by enhancing your morals and bringing unity, integrity and balance o your body.
Yoga nidra
This is also a form of meditation bu it relates to the state of conscious in deep sleep. During the practice of this posture of yogic meditation, one looks naturally asleep but his conscious keeps functioning. The awareness of mind remains. It is the state of mind between dream and wakefulness. When we sleep we lose our ability o use the mind anymore. Yoga nidra enables you to be in sleep yet nurture your power of will, inspiration and enjoy an active life.
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