With lives busier than ever, more and more people are trying to find ways to help them relieve stress and sort out their complicated thoughts. Meditation, the simplest and most effective method, has attracted more and more attention. However, it is not easy for beginners to focus their thoughts while meditating, so how should beginners start to meditate? This article introduces three suggestions for beginners, as well as two meditation methods taught by Grandmaster JinBodhi to take beginners into a peaceful meditative state.
Meditation: A Clear Mind
What is meditation? Meditation is a way to clear the mind and unite the body and mind. Meditation is mostly practiced in a seated position to relax the body and mind and enter a state of peace and tranquility. With professional guidance and practicing on their own, over a period of time, a beginner’s body and mind can be trained, and substantial changes can occur. Examples include a more flexible brain, more logical thinking, more wisdom and inspiration, the disappearance of physical ailments, improved immunity, and overall health.
A study conducted at the University of Wisconsin, featuring more than 100 Buddhists and meditation practitioners, found that meditation can improve neural adaptability, and brain performance, and even help ease tense muscles, chronic pain, and depression. Today, many well-known international companies, such as Google, incorporate meditation sessions to help their employees achieve relaxation and maintain enthusiasm and creativity in the workplace. This shows that the world is recognizing the benefits of meditation.
Summary of the 5 Benefits of Meditation
Many studies have confirmed that meditation contributes to improved physical and mental health, and has a stabilizing effect on emotions. What benefits can meditation bring exactly? Let’s take a look at the following benefits of meditation:
Benefit 1: Relieve Anxiety and Enhance Positive Energy
Meditation does not just allow the brain to rest, it also helps alleviate anxiety and uneasiness. This helps relieve stress, calm the mind and in turn, gain positive energy.
Benefit 2: Relax the Body and Mind, Improve Sleep Quality
Meditation can alleviate the tension in the body and mind, achieving a relaxing effect. It helps us fall asleep more easily and improve our sleeping quality, leading to a more restful night and a significantly better mental state the next day.
Benefit 3: Strengthen Immunity and Replenish Life Energy
Meditation can boost the immune system and reduce inflammatory responses caused by immune system imbalance. It also helps to replenish life energy and boost the immune system, preventing diseases and keeping the body healthy for a long time.
Benefit 4: Enhance Mental Clarity and Focus
Meditation helps clear away distractions and calm our thoughts, keeping the mind in a state of peace. This practice improves mental clarity, cognitive abilities, focus, and thinking skills, helping us perform better in daily life.
Benefit 5: Broaden Perspective and Mindset
Meditation practice broadens one’s mind, thereby improving the understanding of things and allowing us to see through the law of nature of this world. It teaches us to see things from a different perspective and let go as needed, promoting overall peace and clarity of mind and body.
Three Meditation Suggestions for Beginners
Most beginners have physical issues and are easily agitated and distracted when meditating. The following three suggestions help calm practitioners during their meditation.
1. Choose a Tranquil Environment
In order to minimize external factors that might interfere with your practices, it is best to pick a quiet, comfortable, and safe place to meditate. Look for a room where you won’t be interrupted, a quiet spot outdoors, the practice hall in a formal meditation center, etc. For indoor practitioners, try to avoid directly facing air conditioning and adjust the temperature so it is not too cold or too hot. For those who choose to practice outdoors, avoid practicing in bad weather, such as storms, heavy rain, or lightning.
2. Correct Body Positions
Sit cross-legged: When sitting cross-legged, put both feet under the opposite thigh. This is the most common seated position for beginners. As you develop more flexibility, you may go for the half or full lotus position. For the half lotus position, put one foot under the opposite thigh, and the other foot on top of the other thigh. For the full lotus position, put both feet on top of the opposite thigh.
Hand position: The most common hand position is resting the wrists on the knees with palms facing up.
Upper body position: Keep the upper body naturally upright, neither too straight nor too bent forward. The emphasis is on relaxation. A cushion can be placed behind the back for support. Relax the shoulders and lower the chin.
3. Follow the Instructions
Visualizing as instructed by an accomplished meditation practitioner helps the practitioner quickly relax and calm down in order to tune into a meditative state. This is an effective and safe way to meditate.
As you master these three basic skills, you can start meditating 20 minutes a day and slowly increase the time to half an hour, and then one hour as you get more familiar with meditation.
Practicing the correct way increases meditation effectiveness.
Here are two meditation practices recommended by Grandmaster JinBodhi:
Method 1: Meditation of Purity
The Meditation of Purity is a meditation practice created by Grandmaster JinBodhi. During this practice, practitioners listen to calm and serene meditation music and are guided into a state of calmness and purity through guided visualization. Using the method of “one thought replaces all thoughts”, practitioners can quickly clear the mind, get rid of afflictions and fatigue, and tune into a meditative state.
Method 2: Meditation of Greater Illumination (GI)
Grandmaster JinBodhi created GI and it is one of the basic meditation practices of Bodhi Meditation, helping practitioners quickly recover physical and mental health. In a standing position, practitioners follow the guided instructions to attain a state of purity by uniting body and mind. This meditation practice is effective in relieving stress and stiffness in the body, sorting out thoughts, awakening potential, getting rid of negativity, and recovering health and wisdom.
When is the Best Time to Meditate? An Introduction to Meditation at Different Hours
After understanding the basic knowledge of meditation, are you curious about the best time to meditate? There is actually no best time as any time of the day is good. However, it’s best to avoid meditating when you are overly full or extremely hungry. Being too full can make you drowsy and less alert while being hungry can leave you feeling weak and anxious. Therefore, it’s recommended not to eat too much or too little before meditating—about 70-80% full is ideal. It’s also best to wait about an hour after a meal before starting your meditation practice.
Additionally, it is not advisable to meditate during times of emotional fluctuations or dramatic mood swings. At such times, it’s difficult to maintain inner calm and peace, and trying to suppress emotions through meditation can be detrimental to your health. Thus, it’s better to meditate when your emotions are relatively stable. Here are the benefits of meditating during the three main times of the day: morning, noon, and night:
Morning Meditation
As the saying goes, “The early bird catches the worm.” The morning sets the tone for the day. In the morning, the mind is free from distractions and is often at its most focused and clear state. Meditating during this time can help you start the day with a positive mood and abundant energy, achieving an ideal meditation effect.
Midday Meditation
During the lunch break at work or school, find a quiet place to close your eyes, relax your body and mind, and meditate. This not only helps eliminate the fatigue and distractions accumulated in the morning but also boosts your afternoon work efficiency and creativity. Even a short 15-minute meditation can be much more refreshing and energizing than an afternoon nap.
Evening Meditation Before Bed
Many studies have shown that meditating before bed helps to relax the body and mind and relieve stress. Whether it’s 10 minutes, 20 minutes, or even 30 minutes to an hour of sitting meditation, it can help you relax and fall asleep more easily, improving sleep quality and making you feel refreshed and energized the next day.
30 Years of Professional Meditation Teaching Experience
Bodhi Meditation is an international meditation organization founded by Grandmaster JinBodhi, who has not only set up meditation centers in more than 10 countries around the world but has also taught various kinds of meditation practices at an international level to help more people regain health and happiness. Bodhi Meditation offers an extensive variety of meditation courses, including meditation retreats, chanting classes, stress-relief classes, Energy Bagua, and so on. These programs are suitable for everyone regardless of age, language, or gender, and bring remarkable results. With 30 years of teaching experience, Bodhi Meditation ensures practitioners learn and practice meditation in the most accurate way to improve their physical and mental health.
For more information on group practices and meditation courses, kindly contact your nearest Bodhi Meditation Center. Do not forget to LIKE, follow, or subscribe to Grandmaster JinBodhi’s official Facebook page and YouTube channel for information on live-stream events, teaching videos, etc.
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