| ion is a group of mental training techniques .You can | | | | MEDITATION |
| use meditation to improve mental health and | | | | Hypnosis may have some of the same relaxing and |
| capacities, and also to help improve the physical | | | | psychotherapeutic effects as meditation. However, |
| health. Some of these techniques are very simple, so | | | | when you meditate you are in control yourself; by |
| you can learn them from a book or an article; others | | | | hypnosis you let some other person or some |
| require guidance by a qualified meditation teacher. | | | | mechanical device control you. Also hypnosis will not |
| WHAT IS MEDITATION | | | | have a training effect upon the ability to concentrate. |
| Most techniques called meditation include these | | | | A SIMPLE FORM OF MEDITATION |
| components: | | | | Here is a simple form of meditation: |
| 1. You sit or lie in a relaxed position. | | | | 1. Sit in a good chair in a comfortable position. |
| 2. You breathe regularly. You breathe in deep enough | | | | 2. Relax all your muscles as well as you can. |
| to get enough oxygen. When you breathe out, you | | | | 3. Stop thinking about anything, or at least try not to |
| relax your muscles so that your lungs are well | | | | think about anything. |
| emptied, but without straining. | | | | 4. Breath out, relaxing all the muscles in your |
| 3. You stop thinking about everyday problems and | | | | breathing apparatus. |
| matters. | | | | 5. Repeat the following in 10 - 20 minutes: |
| 4. You concentrate your thoughts upon some sound, | | | | -- Breath in so deep that you feel you get enough |
| some word you repeat, some image, some abstract | | | | oxygen. |
| concept or some feeling. Your whole attention should | | | | -- Breath out, relaxing your chest and diaphragm |
| be pointed at the object you have chosen to | | | | completely. |
| concentrate upon. | | | | -- Every time you breathe out, think the word "one" |
| 5. If some foreign thoughts creep in, you just stop | | | | or another simple word inside yourself. You should |
| this foreign thought, and go back to the object of | | | | think the word in a prolonged manner, and so that |
| meditation. | | | | you hear it inside you, but you should try to avoid |
| The different meditation techniques differ according | | | | using your mouth or voice. |
| to the degree of concentration, and how foreign | | | | 6. If foreign thoughts come in, just stop these |
| thoughts are handled. By some techniques, the | | | | thoughts in a relaxed manner, and keep on |
| objective is to concentrate so intensely that no | | | | concentrating upon the breathing and the word you |
| foreign thoughts occur at all. | | | | repeat. |
| In other techniques, the concentration is more | | | | As you proceed through this meditation, you should |
| relaxed so that foreign thoughts easily pop up. When | | | | feel steadily more relaxed in your mind and body, |
| these foreign thoughts are discovered, one stops | | | | feel that you breathe steadily more effectively, and |
| these and goes back to the pure meditation in a | | | | that the blood circulation throughout your body gets |
| relaxed manner. Thoughts coming up, will often be | | | | more efficient. You may also feel an increasing |
| about things you have forgotten or suppressed, and | | | | mental pleasure throughout the meditation. |
| allow you to rediscover hidden memory material. This | | | | THE EFFECTS OF MEDITATION UPON DISEASES |
| rediscovery will have a psychotherapeutic effect. | | | | As any kind of training, meditation may be |
| THE EFFECTS OF MEDITATION | | | | exaggerated so that you get tired and worn out. |
| Meditation has the following effects: | | | | Therefore you should not meditate so long or so |
| 1. Meditation will give you rest and recreation. | | | | concentrated that you feel tired or mentally emptied. |
| 2. You learn to relax. | | | | Meditation may sometimes give problems for people |
| 3. You learn to concentrate better on problem | | | | suffering from mental diseases, epilepsy, serious |
| solving. | | | | heart problems or neurological diseases. On the other |
| 4. Meditation often has a good effect upon the blood | | | | hand, meditation may be of help in the treatment of |
| pressure. | | | | these and other conditions. |
| 5. Meditation has beneficial effects upon inner body | | | | People suffering from such conditions should check |
| processes, like circulation, respiration and digestion. | | | | out what effects the different kinds of meditation |
| 6. Regular meditation will have a psychotherapeutically | | | | have on their own kind of health problems, before |
| effect. | | | | beginning to practise meditation, and be cautious if |
| 7. Regular meditation will facilitate the immune | | | | they choose to begin to meditate. It may be wise to |
| system. | | | | learn meditation from an experienced teacher, |
| 8. Meditation is usually pleacent. | | | | psychologist or health worker that use meditation as |
| THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HYPNOSIS AND | | | | a treatment module for the actual disease. |