Meditation techniques have existed in history since the first religions and philosophies appeared. Meditation exists in Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam and other spiritual and secular paths. The best meditation techniques are shared by many cultures.
A common misconception about meditation is that it involves only a sitting posture and an emptied mind. Actually, there are many different types of meditation, some involving physical movement and mental activity, and others requiring forms of exercise.
Sitting Meditations
Sitting position meditations often involve being seated on a cushion or chair, with eyes closed, monitoring one's breath, clearing one's mind of its constant chatter, and then focusing the mind on a sacred image, sentence or word.
Other sitting meditations involve staying seated, keeping one's eyes open, engaging in contemplation of a ritual object, and keeping one's mind focused on the holy idea represented by the object.
Sitting meditations can be done in a secular manner by clearing the mind and thinking about a positive non-religious concept like peace or relaxation.
Movement Meditations
But some Westerners don't do well with sitting meditations. They are accustomed to lots of mental and physical activity, and may be better suited for movement meditations. Typical movement meditations involve remaining in one place, but moving parts of one's body, in addition to focusing on a mental image, the text of a prayer book, or the words of a chant.
Examples of movement meditations include ritual swaying, known as shuckling, during Jewish prayer; chanting Catholic prayers while moving one's fingers from one bead to the next bead on a rosary; and the ritual gestures and prostrations customary during Islamic prayer.
While yoga exercises originated as a Hindu spiritual practice, "secular yoga" is now offered to secular Westerners who are not interested in yoga's Hindu religious roots.
Exercise Meditations
Not all meditation techniques require meditators to remain in one spot while meditating. Some forms of meditation encourage physical exercises done while moving from one location to the next.
Examples of exercise meditation include Tibetan Buddhist journeys to a religious site. The journeys consist of walking a few steps while praying, prostrating oneself on the ground, and then walking a few more steps, until the journey is completed. A less strenuous form is the Buddhist walking meditation, in which a person focuses on the movements of walking and empties the mind of other thoughts.
Another example is the "practice of the presence of God" tradition established by Brother Lawrence, a seventeenth century French Carmelite lay brother, who silently "spoke" continuously with God while doing all kinds of daily work, creating a profound state of happiness.
A secular meditator might consider walking a labyrinth, which is a structured maze of pathways, and can be used for either spiritual or secular meditation.
Many Options
Meditation techniques come from a vast treasury of options created throughout human history, and meditators can "mix and match" to create a set of meditations that personally work for them.
References
- "Jewish Spiritual Practices"; Yitzhak Buxbaum; 1990
- "Mysticism"; Evelyn Underhill; 1910
- Indianetzone: Buddhist Meditation
- Awakenings: Walking the Labyrinth
- "The Relaxation Response"; Dr. Herbert Benson; 2000
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