Meditation, Three Methods For the Beginner

You'll want to set aside twenty to thirty minutes and also be in a quiet place when you first start practicing meditation. If you have never meditated before, you might be easily distracted and you don't want to be disturbed. Once you have been meditating for a period of time you really won't be disturbed by anything during your sessions.
Meditation is a very simple practice and although the benefits are too numerous to list, they include a more relaxed state of being, a clearer mind, and lowered blood pressure. After you have been meditating for a period of time, you might feel cognizant of things that never occurred to you. A peaceful, relaxed state is a good starting point to be aware of in the beginning.
Let's get started. There are three different methods of meditation that I will discuss. Although there are many other ways to meditate, just remember that all roads lead to the same castle. Your ultimate goal is to achieve peace, clarity, a calm mind, and a more relaxed state of being. You are not going into meditation looking for some "answer" or for any metaphysical reason, although you may experience these.
First Method - The countdown. You'll want to sit in a comfortable chair with your hands in your lap. Close your eyes and relax. Breathe a couple of deep cleansing breaths. Now you're ready to begin. The purpose of meditation is to clear your mind of all thoughts. Start with the number 99, and as you are focusing on 99 breathe in slowly and then breathe out. Now go to 98, and as you are focusing on 98 breathe in slowly and then breathe out.
Repeat this process and the countdown until you are unaware of your breathing or counting down. Remember the purpose of meditating is to clear your mind of any thoughts. When a thought pops into your mind, just observe it, release it, and go back to 99, and start your countdown again. In the beginning you might not get out of the nineties for several practice sessions. That's o.k. Don't give up. It will have a long term positive effect. Just observe your thoughts, don't dwell on them and don't string a bunch of thoughts together, just observe, release, and go back to 99 and start your countdown again.
Second Method - The mantra. Seems a little more metaphysical, maybe it is. The practice of meditation was believed to have been started in the Far East and was accompanied by the use of mantras. When "Transcendental Meditation" came to North America, along with it came mantras. A mantra is a word or a sound which you focus upon while you are meditating.
Again, sit in a comfortable chair with your hands in your lap. Take a couple of deep cleansing breaths. Deep breath in, and hold, and deep breath out. Repeat. One mantra, should you decide to use this method, will be two sounds. The first is "AH". As you breathe in, focus on (do not say) the sound "AH". Deep breath in "AH". The other sound is "HUM", so as you breathe out, focus on "HUM". Breathe in "AH", breathe out "HUM", and so on and so on.
Remember, whichever method you choose to use, the purpose is the same, clear your mind of thoughts. Think of your mind like the surface of a pond. You want the surface to be flat calm. Any thought which comes into your mind causes a ripple, or disturbance, on the pond. Your focus for the entire exercise is on "AH" "HUM", when your mind wanders, bring it back to "AH" "HUM".
Third Method - Follow your breath. Seems simple. It is, and its very effective. One thing that you have with you everywhere you go - hopefully - is your breath. We often forget about it or take it for granted, or are just unaware of it, breathe in . . . breathe out.
Sit in a comfortable chair with your hands in your lap. Take a couple of deep cleansing breaths. Deep breath in, hold, deep breath out, a couple of times. Now as you continue to breathe, observe your breath as it comes in your nose and follow it into your lungs, now back out of your lungs, and follow it out of your nose. Breathe in, breathe out. Remember that the purpose of meditation is to clear your mind of all thoughts, so when thoughts come into your mind, and they will, just observe them, release them, and go back to following your breath. Breathe in, breathe out. Its that simple.
You'll want to start with a daily routine of about fifteen to twenty minutes per session. Once you've practiced for a week or two, you'll realize that you have fewer and fewer thoughts interrupting your sessions. You'll also begin to realize that the sessions seem more even, and you'll feel more calm afterward and for an extended period of time.
Your mind will gain clarity and you will operate in a more relaxed state of being. Eventually after practice, you'll realize that everything in your life is a little more even, including you. Its amazing what meditation can do, once you've practiced long enough, you'll never stop.
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