I attended a Yoga teacher intensive in Attleboro, Massachusetts on meditation in 2006. At that intensive, we were taught so many different forms of meditation over the course of a Columbus Day weekend that I filled a note book. One method that really stuck to my mind was a mantra meditation that is so easy to practice. It consists of just two syllables and both are English words. Sometimes, this mantra helps me in prayer, sometimes this mantra helps me gain control of my breath, and sometimes this mantra helps me to meditate or relax. Here are the two magic words: “Thank You.” For breath awareness purposes, “thank” goes well with an inhale, and “you” goes well with an exhale. Until 2006, I never met anyone who could break down the most complicated Yogic ideas into mentally digestible concepts.
With Yoga teachers and bestsellers touting an endless array of meditation styles, the whole concept can be intimidating. As soon as we think we have figured it out, here comes another workshop or article making us wonder if we are meditating at all, much less doing it correctly. No wonder the process seems so mysterious and confusing.
Perhaps meditation is like religion or politics; controversy may sometimes stem from individual interpretation of words rather than major differences in beliefs. People to others with similar backgrounds initially taught all kinds of meditation – regardless of whether it is called mindfulness, centering prayer, Yoga, qigong, or one of many other names -. Many styles have survived for thousands of years, an indication of their universal truth, but the question of whether one is “better” than the other remains. » Read more: Can Gratitude Be a Form of Meditation?
