| Meditation is simply making a choice to focus your | | | | flames of their fires. Over thousands of years, |
| mind on something and opening to each moment | | | | meditation evolved into a structured practice. |
| of life with calm awareness. Mediation is inspired | | | | Indian scriptures ?tantras? mentioned meditation |
| by a variety of spiritual traditions, both Eastern | | | | techniques 5000 years ago. Buddha, ?one of |
| and Western, helping people to experience the | | | | history?s major proponents of meditation,? and a |
| sacred. | | | | major meditation icon, first made his mark around |
| Meditation is a very powerful tool for healing | | | | 500 B.C. His teachings were spread far and wide |
| body, mind, and spirit through reducing tension, | | | | across the Asian continent. |
| anxiety and stress; lowering blood pressure and | | | | Separate countries or cultures adopted different |
| cholesterol; creating stronger focus and | | | | forms of the word ?meditation,? and they each |
| concentration; and increasing self-understanding | | | | found their own unique way of practicing it. |
| and self-acceptance. ?Meditate? comes from the | | | | Buddhist and Hindu based Eastern style meditation |
| Latin word meditari, which means ?to engage in | | | | practices are still the most popular today. |
| contemplation or reflection.? It also means ?to | | | | Meditation was spread to Western society |
| focus one?s thoughts? on something, or ?to | | | | thousands of years after it was adopted in the |
| reflect on or ponder? over something Meditation | | | | Eastern society. It finally started to gain popularity |
| helps one create a serenity filled experience, | | | | in Western society in the mid-20th century. In the |
| melting away day to day stress and worries. | | | | 1960s and 1970s, many professors and |
| Meditation is both an ancient spiritual practice and | | | | researchers began testing the effects of |
| a contemporary mind-body technique for relaxing | | | | meditation and learned about its multitude of |
| the body and calming the mind. Although | | | | benefits. |
| meditation has a short recorded history, its roots | | | | There are as many types of meditation in the |
| travel back to ancient times. | | | | world as there are religious. Mainly, meditation |
| Researchers think that primitive hunter societies | | | | traditions are divided in two types: Eastern and |
| may have discovered meditation and its altered | | | | Western. In Eastern meditation traditions there |
| states of consciousness while staring at the | | | | are two types - Hinduism and Buddhism. |