What is Meditation?
Technically, meditation is the act of focusing on one single point or object for a period of time without any stress or distraction inside of the mind. For example; when we listing to our favorite music, we are focused on the song, forgetting about the rest of the things on your mind. It removes any thoughts and other activity on your mind.
Meditation takes control of the mind. Meditation comes from the Latin meditari, meaning to think about. The Yoga tradition reveals the fundamental of union referred as Advaita and meditation is the actual experience of this union, the universe with ourselves. Meditation occurs when we find a space of nothingness between 2 consecutive thoughts.
How Does It Affects You?
According to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, philosophically, meditation is Dhyana the seventh limb of yoga. One of the eight limbs of Yoga. For Instance, Yoga removes the fluctuations of the mind. Everything make sense putting all the knowledge together.
Meditation is the union of the mind, the body, the senses, and the soul.
The first 4 limbs, Yamas, Niyamas, Asanas, & Pranayamas are of external nature and are the preparation for the fifth limb Pratyahara, control of the senses. With the help of the sixth limb Dharana, concentration.
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When the physical body is ready, we get to the seventh limb, Dhyana or meditation. We have to prepare ourselves externally first, and then withdrawal of the senses internally in order to let go all the fluctuations of the mind and be undisturbed by any obstacle or distraction.
In order to culminate the eight limb, Samadhi or the absorption into the Universal. According to Patanjali, meditation starts when we find out that our never ending quest for owning things and cravings for pleasure, never can be satisfied. When we we get to this stage, our external search shifts inside. Then, we have shifted into the real of meditation. Through meditation we get to the stage of Samadhi or self realization. Satisfaction of our own soul, feeling content with what we have and e aware of the present moment.
Obstacles in Meditation are in fact distractions. The mind is very active with obstacles, emotions or feelings that collect from the environment named as Desire – Iccha, Hatred – Dwesha, Happiness – Sukha, and Sadness – Dukna. The desires comes from the mind and are never ending.
No matter what we have, the mind creates desires of something bigger and better. When we realize that there is enough in this planet to fulfilling the needs for everyone, but there is not enough in the universe to satisfy the greed of everyone. For instance, the knowledge of this facts is enough to bring the mind to stage of contentment. We need to remove the obstacle of desired from the mind. We need to let go any emotions and feelings of desire, hatred, happiness, and sadness in order to be content.
Nothing last forever, you cannot be happy for too long, you cannot have everything at the same time. Change is the only constant in the universe.
We need to eliminate the extreme emotions and find a balance and be content all the time.