Meditating?

[anxhelino1234]

Okay, I am actualy totally new to this kind of topic and 'category' and hopefully this topic will help some other people too.
But as you lot probably alreday guessed by the subject i basically want to know 3 things;

1. Does meditating help you? if so how?
2. Does it have any down sides to it?
3. And HOW do i actually meditate, like am i suppose to look forward to something, be thinking of something or clear my mind, which i dont know how to do 

Thanks Plenty


Anxhelino1234

[personalreality]

1. Does meditating help you? if so how?

There is a lot of research on meditation's (or mindfulness) positive effect on health, both mental and physical.  It has been effectively used to treat all kinds of things from high blood pressure and breathing problems to sleep and anxiety.  Meditating usually involves awareness of the present moment in an intentional way and could apply to anything from siting and watching your breath to "zoning into" some kind of work (for example i like to meditate while doing the dishes) to a martial arts practice.  Anything that can fully engage your awareness in the moment (like making art or music) can be meditative.  It is particularly good for treating stress because stress these days focuses on concern over past errors or future challenges.  Meditation keeps you grounded in now.

Spiritually/Psychologically meditation helps you face the core of your self.  Sometimes you can meditate just to "bathe in high energy". while other times you can go on a visualization journey to communicate with deep aspects of your subconscious (things you would normally have trouble accessing) or to speak with spirit/power animals and spirit guides.  You might even consider astral projection as a form of meditation in which you become so engrossed as to completely be disassociated from your normal waking consciousness.  Meditation is the foundation of nearly every aspect of almost any spiritual practice.  Everything from Hinduism and Buddhism, to all forms of paganism and shamanism, and even christianity, judaism and islam (especially their mystical forms). 

In my opinion (others may differ) the effect of meditation is greater control over your focus of attention.  most of the time our attention is focused on our physical life (in varying degrees), sometimes we shift into imagination a little more and have daydreams and the like.  when you learn how to control your focus so as to "silence" the different possible directions in which to point your awareness, you can narrow in on one specific area of focus.  for example i may want to astral project, so i narrow in on that area of my consciousness.  during your everyday life you learn to step back and recognize that you don't have to be a slave to habit and reflex.

2. Does it have any down sides to it?

i really can't think of many.  i guess the only downside is if your social situation wouldn't approve of meditation for some reason.  like some younger people who live at home experience a down side if their parents are against the idea, maybe in a really religious household that doesn't understand what meditation is, just that it's not a part of their religion (which as i said isn't true).  but for most there aren't really any downsides.

3. And HOW do i actually meditate, like am i suppose to look forward to something, be thinking of something or clear my mind, which i dont know how to do 

there are all kinds of answers to this.  you should do a search of the forum for meditation, there have got to be tons of great techniques here.  i would say that looking forward to something is kind of the "opposite" of what you do (not in every case).  the simplest meditation is to just sit quietly with your eyes closed and watch.  watch thoughts as they come up, don't engage them, just let them rise and fall.  notice any images, feelings or sounds as well.  but don't stop on any of them, just let them go.  you could start doing that for 5 or 10 minutes at a time, sitting at your desk or laying in your bed or sitting cross legged on the floor.  anytime you have a few minutes to close your eyes.  just be in the moment without reflecting on the past or speculating on the future.

that is the basic practice, learning to just be in the moment, learning to focus your attention, taking control.  from here your meditations can expand into many different things.

but i would definitely search the forum for some different techniques to try.

here are some posts that might help

http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_spiritual_evolution/online_books_vidoes_music_for_meditation_yoga-t26190.0.html;msg218919#msg218919

http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_astral_consciousness/where_can_i_find_good_articlesresources_re_meditation-t27704.0.html;msg229061#msg229061

http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_astral_consciousness/a_guide_to_meditation_by_amitakh-t31515.0.html;msg256469#msg256469

[anxhelino1234]

thankyou alot for the help, now i understand meditating more clearly (yay! )

But there is one thing i need you to answer for me, at the part when you said how to meditate (question 3) i always have had a problem with just closing my eyes and letting things like memories, images, sounds and those stuff pass (from what i found out this could be used as a process to get a lucid dream) But every time i do it i just drift off into a daydream like state or just fall asleep, can you please explain more thoroughly what i do in this process.

Thanks!

Anxhelino1234

[personalreality]

not really.  that's the only part i can't entirely explain, you have to do it.  just don't expect anything.  you're not trying to get anywhere, you're just doing it for now.  the longer you meditate, both in a sitting and as a practice, the easier it will become and the more something "will happen".

i might suggest trying different kinds of meditation, kinds that have you doing something with your mind.

[anxhelino1234]

okay, thanks for the info

[Stookie]

thankyou alot for the help, now i understand meditating more clearly (yay! )

But there is one thing i need you to answer for me, at the part when you said how to meditate (question 3) i always have had a problem with just closing my eyes and letting things like memories, images, sounds and those stuff pass (from what i found out this could be used as a process to get a lucid dream) But every time i do it i just drift off into a daydream like state or just fall asleep, can you please explain more thoroughly what i do in this process.

Thanks!

Anxhelino1234

I find that you want to make small mental notes of those passing thoughts, but you don't want to get caught up in a daydream. It's OK for those thoughts to rise and to note your feelings about them (this is the "mindfulness" part), but don't get suckered into them and let a thought grab all of your awareness away from the present moment.