What is meditation?

Meditation is a step-by-step process that enables you to have greater control over your mind, to the point where you can quiet your conscious mind and gain access to your subconscious mind. Apparently, our subconscious mind holds an immense storehouse of knowledge: everything about our past, our present, and even our future. Every question you could possibly have about yourself is already stored within you. To access this knowledge, however, can be very difficult because your conscious mind does not want to be quiet long enough for you to access your subconscious mind.

Why is meditation important?

Meditation is important because it allows you to access your spiritual self, giving you the ability to communicate with God, the higher being that created all of the universe. Spiritual guidance is crucial if you want to discover your destiny. Without it, you are like a car stuck in the mud, spinning its tires, moving back and forth, yet never really going anywhere. It is true that many people go through life without ever meditating. More than likely most people have heard about meditation, yet few have ever bothered finding out what it involves and why it is important. Even though meditation is not a prerequisite to live your life, it can help you live a better life.

Benefits arising from meditation:

Relaxation: You can learn to relax. Too much constant stress in your life can make it very difficult to relax at the end of the day or even during the day. If you can relax, you will have less stress in your life and be able to sleep properly.

Greater concentration: You can obtain the ability to have greater concentration. You can focus on one task at a time, giving you the ability to accomplish more during the day.

Improved health:

• It can lower your blood pressure.
• It can open your body's air passages, allowing you to breath better.
• It can relieve muscular tension.
• It can improve your body's immune system by increasing the production of white blood cells.
• It can drop your heart rate, improving your cardiovascular system.

Attain inner peace: You can obtain a sense of inner peace in the midst of what can seem to be a chaotic world. A feeling of harmony can fill your life.

Attain your goals: You can improve your overall performance to the point where you can attain your goals in life much easier. Whatever you want to achieve, your mind will cause your body to bring about success.

Increase your self-awareness: It can enable you to become more aware of your body and mind. If, for example, you have a tendency to put on weight, then you can become more aware of what your current diet is doing to your body, and you can switch to a more healthy diet.

Attain greater insight: You can obtain the ability to step back from your concerns or worries and see how to overcome them. Also, you can use this ability to obtain greater creativity.

Feel connected to God: Meditation is basically a process of spiritual communication with God. You will feel connected to a higher being and feel like you have a place in the world and universe.

Discover your destiny: You can discover what your destiny or mission in life is, which can help give you direction and guidance throughout your entire lifetime. While others may be confused and stumble, you can remain on-track and move forward, no matter what the circumstances.

Why is the term "God" being used?

Some people may be worried once the word "God" is mentioned. The mention of God is not being made to promote a particular religion or a set of religious beliefs. The term is only being used to denote the higher power that brought the universe as we know it into being. The universe is not a man-made creation. It does not matter whether you acknowledge God's existence or not: God's existence is not negated by your disbelief. The sun will rise in the East and set in the West till the day you die, and will continue to do so for thousands of years to come. That is just how life works. Accept the obvious.

Is spiritual guidance necessary?

Yes, it is not only necessary, it is vital for your happiness and success. You only have two potential sources of guidance available to you: The non-spiritual and the spiritual. If you ignore the spiritual guidance, then you have only the non-spiritual guidance from your conscious mind available to you. The non-spiritual source can involve yourself or it can involve others. It entails your conscious mind telling you what you think you need or want, e.g. a new job or a new relationship. Others can also give you advice on your needs, yet their advice is also flawed as it is bias, involving strictly what the conscious mind is telling them to say.

You will soon discover that your conscious mind has absolutely no limit on its desires and absolutely no direction. One day your conscious mind can tell you that you would be happy if you "dump" your present spouse or partner and find another. The next day it can tell you that you will only be happy if you make more money. A year later when you are alone and working yourself to death trying to obtain more money, your conscious mind can tell you that true happiness can only be found if you find your right soul-mate, and so on, and so on.

In the end you can be like a dog chasing its own tail! Asking advice from others can be just as devastating: Most people have enough problems trying to keep their own lives together, which does not make them good advisors on how to do something that they cannot do themselves! The strange thing is that there is no shortage of people who want to advise you on how to run your life. Ensure that any advice that you seek is from a wise, trusted source, otherwise it is like asking a beggar for financial advice on how to become wealthy!

What questions should I ask?

When you undertake a regular meditation schedule you can ask any number of questions to God and receive an answer. Some questions you might want to ask are as follows:

1. What is my destiny in life?
2. What improvements should I make to my life?
3. How can I meet my soul-mate?
4. What are my strengths?
5. What can I do to make this world a better place to live?
6. How can I help others? Where should my talents and abilities be directed?
   
   

What do I need to do to learn how to meditate?

You have several options available to learn how to meditate. Some of these options are as follows:

• Go to your public library and take out books or videos on meditation. Or buy one or more books from a local book store. Start reading or viewing a video about it. (Visit the Books & Movies section of this web site for possible books. Also, do a search on the Internet for possible books to borrow from your public library or to buy.)
• Take a meditation course (e.g. energy awareness meditation, yoga, etc.) given through your local school board or private institution.
• Attend weekend retreats given at a spa or health resort, which give workshops on how to meditate.
• Have someone who is familiar with the techniques of meditation guide you through the process (either one-on-one or in a small group setting). Many times these instructors place ads in local New Age-type magazines.