Aside from the calming effect that meditation can bring, it is often said to be a path to awaken the spirit and start the journey towards spiritual awakening. Meditation has different schools. Each school has its own thoughts about meditation. There are also different techniques. There are meditative techniques which focus on a field or a background perception, while there are others which focus on a specific object.
Meditation is used to calm the mind and relax the body. Tension, stress and anxiety can be relieved by performing simple techniques. Aside from the inner peace that meditation brings, it can also improve the body’s general health. It is also a great way of improving your concentration. There are studies showing the relationship between meditation and the performances of athletes and other professionals.
Health benefits of meditation include better circulation, deeper levels of relaxation, increase in exercise tolerance among heart patients, regularizing blood pressure, reduction of anxiety attacks and muscle tension, relieving arthritis pain and among many other things.
With meditation, you get to listen to the inner self and separate from the pressures of daily life. Understanding the inner self leads to understanding of the higher self. This increases our knowledge and understanding of how the higher self unites with the universe. In meditation, you get the chance to tap in and see your life and problems from a different perspective. Getting in touch with the inner self will provide guidance towards happiness and fulfilment.
There are religions which advocate the use of meditation to reach enlightenment. As mentioned, there are different schools of thoughts and focus that each religion adapts. But the method or the technique used is not as important as the underlying concept behind meditation. Meditation is about listening to the inner self and controlling your attention and focusing. There are so many distractions that it is very hard for some to focus their attention on what is important and keep their attention on fixed objects. When focused on a fixed object or field, oneness could be experienced and could take a person to a completely different state. This oneness is not easy to achieve though. There are some who would need to meditate for years to achieve it.
When oneness is achieved, the person will experience bliss. Bliss is referred to as a natural state of the soul which cannot be experienced easily in daily life. During this meditative state, the mind expands its consciousness and understanding of nature and the universe. Destructive thinking and behaviour brought about by the materialistic and fast-paced world can be let go and released. A deeper understanding and knowledge will be felt and the body will be in one with the universe. This, is what they say, can link us to the Supreme Being. Attaining this oneness could be compared to a spiritual awakening, where the body and the mind can fully understand what cannot be seen or touched in the material world.