Meditation is an approach to training the mind, similar to the way that fitness is an approach to training the body. But many meditation techniques exist — so how do you learn how to meditate?

“In Buddhist tradition, the word ‘meditation’ is equivalent to a word like ‘sports’ in the U.S. It’s a family of activities, not a single thing,” University of Wisconsin neuroscience lab director Richard J. Davidson, Ph.D., told The New York Times. And different meditation practices require different mental skills.

It’s extremely difficult for a beginner to sit for hours and think of nothing or have an “empty mind.” We have some tools such as a beginner mediation DVD or a brain sensing headband to help you through this process when you are starting out. In general, the easiest way to begin meditating is by focusing on the breath — an example of one of the most common approaches to meditation: concentration.


CONCENTRATION MEDITATION
Concentration meditation involves focusing on a single point. This could entail following the breath, repeating a single word or mantra, staring at a candle flame, listening to a repetitive gong, or counting beads on a mala. Since focusing the mind is challenging, a beginner might meditate for only a few minutes and then work up to longer durations.

In this form of meditation, you simply refocus your awareness on the chosen object of attention each time you notice your mind wandering. Rather than pursuing random thoughts, you simply let them go. Through this process, your ability to concentrate improves.

MINDFULNESS MEDITATION
Mindfulness meditation encourages the practitioner to observe wandering thoughts as they drift through the mind. The intention is not to get involved with the thoughts or to judge them, but simply to be aware of each mental note as it arises.

Through mindfulness meditation, you can see how your thoughts and feelings tend to move in particular patterns. Over time, you can become more aware of the human tendency to quickly judge an experience as good or bad, pleasant or unpleasant. With practice, an inner balance develops.

In some schools of meditation, students practice a combination of concentration and mindfulness. Many disciplines call for stillness — to a greater or lesser degree, depending on the teacher.

OTHER MEDITATION TECHNIQUES
There are various other meditation techniques. For example, a daily meditation practice among Buddhist monks focuses directly on the cultivation of compassion. This involves envisioning negative events and recasting them in a positive light by transforming them through compassion. There are also moving meditation techniques, such as tai chi, qigong, and walking meditation.

BENEFITS OF MEDITATION
If relaxation is not the goal of meditation, it is often a result. In the 1970s, Herbert Benson, MD, a researcher at Harvard University Medical School, coined the term “relaxation response" after conducting research on people who practiced transcendental meditation. The relaxation response, in Benson’s words, is “an opposite, involuntary response that causes a reduction in the activity of the sympathetic nervous system.”

Since then, studies on the relaxation response have documented the following short-term benefits to the nervous system:

Lower blood pressure
Improved blood circulation
Lower heart rate
Less perspiration
Slower respiratory rate
Less anxiety
Lower blood cortisol levels
More feelings of well-being
Less stress
Deeper relaxation

Contemporary researchers are now exploring whether a consistent meditation practice yields long-term benefits, and noting positive effects on brain and immune function among meditators. Yet it’s worth repeating that the purpose of meditation is not to achieve benefits. To put it as an Eastern philosopher may say, the goal of meditation is no goal. It’s simply to be present.

In Buddhist philosophy, the ultimate benefit of meditation is liberation of the mind from attachment to things it cannot control, such as external circumstances or strong internal emotions. The liberated or “enlightened” practitioner no longer needlessly follows desires or clings to experiences, but instead maintains a calm mind and sense of inner harmony.

HOW TO MEDITATE: SIMPLE MEDITATION FOR BEGINNERS

This meditation exercise is an excellent introduction to meditation techniques.

Sit or lie comfortably. You may even want to invest in a meditation chair or cushion.
Close your eyes. We recommend using one of our Cooling Eye Masks or Restorative Eye Pillows if lying down.
Make no effort to control the breath; simply breathe naturally.
Focus your attention on the breath and on how the body moves with each inhalation and exhalation. Notice the movement of your body as you breathe. Observe your chest, shoulders, rib cage, and belly. Simply focus your attention on your breath without controlling its pace or intensity. If your mind wanders, return your focus back to your breath.
Maintain this meditation practice for two to three minutes to start, and then try it for longer periods.

Yogic Diet Importance
Ancient yogis, through diligent observations, understood how human bodies worked internally. They postulated that human body consisted of a fire referred to as “Agni” via which, everything that a person eats was consumed and transformed into a finer substance called “Ojas” that could later be used to build a human body.

However, this could only happen if the food that was consumed was pure. If the food is impure or harmful, Agni needs to work harder to break it. This results in the creation of lesser amounts of Ojas, which is required to build a healthy and strong body, and an additional substance called “Amma”, which can cause the body harm.

Ayurveda defines Amma as the main problem for all health issues as it clogs the body and blocks the flow of life or Prana. When Amma is formed, it most easily finds its place in fat cells, which according to western science is responsible for the toxins that are harbored in human bodies.

As a human, you tend to consume foods that can create Amma when:

You have any unresolved past emotions that govern our present actions.
Follow a poor diet.
Surrounded by physical and emotional stress.
When you keep bombarding your bodies with the wrong kinds of foods, the Agni inside us too grows weaker.

A good diet is essential to reverse this cycle as Agni is greatly affected by the quality of food you eat. Yogis believed in a healthy yogic diet that was essential to bring Agni to full health. Hence it is essential to consume a diet that compliments your practice.

Enhance your Health

Mostly people are unable to keep up with their diets because of the cravings and emotional instability created by the Amma deposit, present in the body. It is your responsibility towards your body to understand what it likes. If you feel dull, heavy, and uncomfortable after a meal, it’s your body signaling that the food was not right. Always remember that good foods always make you feel energized and light.

We cannot say that there is any prescribed diet that ancient yogis advised and even if they did, it would be highly unlikely that we would find those food items in that form now. Milk in ancient times was healthy, but with commercial diaries around the world, a good number of people are lactose intolerant.

So, to make the entire process of choosing the right kinds of food for your body, as you practice yoga, ancient yogis divided foods into the following three main categories:

Rajasic Foods
Sattvic Foods
Tamasic Foods

Of all three, Sattvic food is considered as the healthiest. Let us talk more in details about these three categories to understand them.

Sattvic Foods
Ayurveda considers Sattvic foods as the purest and most harmonious foods for a yogi’s body. This category of food derives its name from the Sanskrit word Sattva, which means Purity. Fruits, dairy products, nuts, seeds, whole grains, natural sweeteners like honey, and anything edible that is in its purest form.

These foods promote a peaceful state of mind, healthy body, emotional stability and mindfulness, and a longer life. Traditional Yoga Diets were mostly Sattvic in nature. If not taken in measured quantity or if cooked with spice, Sattvic Foods can become Tamasic.

Rajasic Foods
These foods derive their name from the way that kings dined in ancient times; their menu consisting of no less than 56 food items at one given time. Foods that taste bitter, spicy, or salty and are dry or hot come under this category. This category of foods includes fried foods, sweets, and beverages, which are undesirable for yoga practitioners as they are heavy and full of fats.

Tamasic Foods
Mostly, non-vegetarian foods are considered as Tamasic. However, if any food item is created using too many spices and an excess of salt and chilli it can be called Tamasic. This food category is responsible for the heat created in the human body, thus resulting in outbursts of anger and a coarse temperament. Yogis believe that this food category makes people quarrelsome, impatient, and intolerant, thus completely ruling it out for yoga practitioners.
Conclusion
A good yoga diet is not something difficult to follow. There is a common yoga diet misconception that a person must give up on all types of foods to achieve good health.

But, that is not true.  It’s all about understanding your body’s needs. You need to understand whether the hunger you are feeling is really a want for food or your body asking for water. Your body can only digest as much as its capacity and overburdening it can cause an emotional breakdown.

Give your food a thought and lead a healthy life. Happy Yoga to You!!!

S.Ramesh Reddy M.Sc (Yoga),P.G.Dip in Yoga Therapy,Y.I.C. 
Yoga Therapist.
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