Do you want to unwind at the end of a hard day? Here’s how: how to meditate.

You can how to meditate in many ways. They say the Buddha taught 84,000 different types of meditation But that doesn’t mean it’s hard to learn to meditate.

Most mystical schools teach various meditation techniques.

One type of meditative practice that you’ll find in most religions involves quietly contemplating a sacred text or prayer, looking for how it applies to your life, or illuminates some aspect of reality.

Also, every mystical school has meditation techniques where you stop your thoughts through concentration.

Here in the West, researchers have been trying to demystify meditation. They’ll show you ways of meditating without any connection to a religion or spiritual lineage.

A small obstacle when you’re exploring meditation is that every tradition will usually tell you it has the best way to meditate.

Some of the arguments about why one technique is better are just silly.

Sometimes there have been arguments over the ways you hold your hands when you meditate.

What do you do if you’re new to meditation?

My suggestion is take it lightly. If a meditation teacher says “I have THE way,” know that there are many others who say the same thing.

Try a technique and see if it is something that you like. If it seems to take more effort to do the technique than the amount of benefit it gives you, maybe that’s not the best technique for you.

There’s nothing wrong with trying different techniques[/span] until you find one you like.

Boise.

Don’t believe anyone who says Zen meditation is the best if it doesn’t seem to be working for you.

Meditation should be satisfying right away or you won’t continue, especially at first.

Learn meditation to bring enjoyment to your life, now.

Thanks to the internet, you don’t need to go to some far away land or climb the top of a mountain to learn to meditate.

In fact, you don’t even need to leave your house. And, for the fun of saying it, you don’t even need to get up out of the chair you’re currently sitting in!

There are many ways to learn meditation online.

You can download free meditation CDs or MP3s, you can find an online class that happens in real-time, you can find instructions for Transcendental Meditation online and save yourself $2,500 (the current cost of a TM course).

I will add, though that no matter how you learn meditation, you’ll want access to the meditation teacher so she or he can answer questions that will definitely arise as you learn to meditate. So make sure that’s an option.

I found a great online course that produces very dramatic results, with a teacher who is extremely active and available, at AdvancedMeditation.com.

The techniques taught in this course are not the standard fare that you find online. They’re based in cognitive psychology, don’t have any religious baggage attached to them, and they work even if you have trouble quieting your mind or don’t have time to meditate (you can do some of them while you do anything else during your day).

In ancient Greece, Apollo was the god of both music and medicine . In the Old Testament, poetry attributed to King David is considered some of the most provocative literary and lyrical works in history . Music Healing Therapy - It is undeniable that there is a connection between art and healing. Lani Star, internationally known for her music performance, is a firm proponent of music as a form of healing . She uses Hawaiian musical wisdom, Eastern yogic sound patterns, and angelic chants in order to improve the state of the mind, body, and spirit, which extends to success in the rest of one’s life. For Lani Star, who offers voice lessons while participating in a music retreat, the voice is the manifestation of the soul. Anything that heals the body improves the voice, and anything that is healthy for the voice is healthy for the body. Lani Star’s musical specialty is New Age and mystic jazz, and she makes it a point to spread the healing power of music .

Lani Star states, “A singer must reach within, connecting heart and voice, to produce a powerful resonance that can move their audience to tears. This same power can be used in all areas of life – and not just by professional musicians.” With the power that comes from music, an individual who uses music for healing can manifest the internal self-development in the rest of their life – in their work, their relationships, their hobbies, their friendships . You don’t have to be a musician at a professional level . You don’t even have to have prior skill. Music doesn’t have to mean anything beyond what you want it to mean for yourself. Even so, any audience appreciates emotional sincerity and intensity, maybe more than the musicality of the performance. It is said that an audience will forgive a missed note – they will not forgive an inauthentic performance.

The author of The Mozart Effect, Don Campbell, said that music has its own power and vibrating energy, even when it seems quiet and peaceful. When singing, that energy and power spreads through your body and affects your physical as well as your mental state, and comes out all the more intensified.

Lani Star’s advice for those who wish to achieve self-healing with music is to attend to your health as you’re learning your craft . Your body needs protection and health-conscious treatment, and your mind needs to be nourished for the emotional purity of performance . A good diet and lots of water is clinically proven to enhance your mood, and it’s also good for your voice . Lani Star also believes that things you sing or say uplift your mood and your spirit , so it is good for you to listen and sing positive and reinforcing music . Not only does it help you, but it improves the mood of your audience . Songwriting can also allow one of extract the negative energy in your body, transforming it from poison in the body to art in the music. Singing can also act as a form of meditation, which helps your internal balance just as meditation does.

Foundational meditation

1. Sit in a comfortable chair or lie down on a comfortable spot and relax.

2. Imagine and will, with each inhale, not only your lungs are breathing, inhaling air, but also your whole body is breathing in energy. You inhale with your entire body. The breath acts as a focus for absorbing energy.

3. Know that along with your lungs, each single inch of your body simultaneously absorbs energy. Like a dry sponge when dipped into water absorbs, your body should absorb energy with each inhalation.

Since everyone is individual, how each of us feels the energy will be different in some respects.

To reverse this, exhale energy out. This can make you tired and shouldn’t be done regularly other than to get a grip on how to do it.

* Exhaling energy is for empowering talismans, healing, and just about everything when you want to put energy into something or to direct it.

Energy can also be inhaled and absorbed and then directed to a specific area of your body for healing.

In a very short time, you should be able to feel the energy when you breathe it in. As you advance, you will be able to see it without trying to visualize it.

Feeling in this exercise is most important, especially when you are new. Do not try to see the energy as this can be a distraction. Just get a feel for it.

This exercise is the most important for working with your mind and manipulating energy.

As you advance, you can use this technique of energy absorption to absorb energy from the Sun and from just about anything you choose.

Chakra Breathing

To perform this meditation, you should already be experienced with the Foundation Meditation which is posted.

Relax and enter into a trance state, then, instead of breathing in energy into your entire body as with the energy meditation, breath in energy into each one of your chakras, for seven breaths each. Seven breaths is only a guideline, you can do more or less, but it is important to keep your chakra’s in balance. It is important to not only breathe in the energy, but also to visualize it.

You can breathe in colour of the sun energy (the most powerful) or the color energy of the chakra.

When you are finished breathing each of the chakras, breathe in energy through all of your seven chakras, front and back to meet in the middle.

After this, perform the Foundation Meditation.

This meditation can also be done on just one chakra that is lacking in energy or that is blocked. Just apply the breathing one or more times a day. The rest of the meditation is unnecessary if you are working on a specific weak chakra.

Some may be familiar with drawing down energy from the moon and other planets. The sun is hundreds of times more powerful. The energy of the sun contains all of the colors of the spectrum in their purest forms. Performing this full meditation out of doors under the sun can give you incredible energy and is also very healing. Just affirm “I am breathing in powerful whitey-gold (or whatever color) energy from the sun, into my ______ chakra.” Repeat this several times and then visualize yourself absorbing the energy and brightening your chakras with it.

Additional readings: Merkaba meditation, emotional freedom therapy and emotional freedom technique EFT.

Opening the Feet chakra’s

Please refere to foundational meditation thread for guidlines.

This exercise is done standing.

Relax and “breathe” in energy through the bottoms of your feet, mainly your heels. The feet chakras tie directly into the base chakra and sacral chakra. This may result in stimulating your sexual organs, as the feet are tied to orgasm.

Continue drawing the energy up through your feet into your base chakra and up your spine and out your crown. Continue breathing the energy in for a few minutes.

Ok, i now i have not added numbers to some of my threads but this is for the reason of ease of finding.

I have added the topic in the title so you can find a topic easier.

If i have repeated myself i am sorry, but at least it will sink in!

Energy Meditation

This meditation is excellent for beginners as it helps to give one a feel for energy. This meditation also strengthens the aura when done regularly.

1. Begin by relaxing your entire body. The deeper the trance, the more effective, but this meditation can be done at any time and a trance is not necessary.

2. Breath in and at the same time, draw in energy from all sides of your body, front, back, top of your head and bottom of your feet. You should visualize a colour like the sun.

3. Exhale and visualize the energy expanding your aura

4. Breathe in again and visualize the energy getting brighter and more powerful, radiating from your entire being.

5. Exhale again and visualize the energy expanding your aura, and the center of your body shining brilliantly like the sun.

6. Repeat this several times, each time visualizing the energy becomeing brighter and brighter as it increases in intensity.

When working with colors, visualize the color becoming more and more powerful and vibrant. You will notice each color has a different feel to it. Colors can be used to attract according to their nature.

You can also breathe in energy from the front and back sides of your body at the same time to meet in the middle, then do the sides and top and bottom. After this, let your aura expand outwards.

With this meditation, you can also practice expanding and contracting your aura.

Basic Chakra Spin

This meditation only takes a few minutes or less and can be done at any time when you can tune in and focus. It is easy to do and can take the place of a full or extended meditation for people who lack the necessary privacy and/or are short on time.

Turn your attention to the base of your spine and visualize your base chakra as a vortex (like a small tornado). Color the energy a rich vibrant red and spin it. Keep spinning it until it spins fast and on its own.

Work your way up through each chakra, visualizing each one and spinning it until it spins fast and on its own. Visualize each one as a spinning vortex with a powerful vibrant color-

1st - red

2nd - orange

3rd - yellow

4th - green

5th - rich sky blue

6th - indigo (Bluish-violet)

7th - purple

When you spin the 6th chakra, focus *behind* your 3rd eye, in the middle of your head. Many people erroneously believe the third eye to be the 6th chakra. The 3rd eye is an extension of the 6th chakra, not the 6th chakra.

Each of your chakras should be a powerful vibrant color. Chakras that are dark or tainted are not functioning properly. Keep spinning them and focus your visualization to restore them to their own powerful color. You might also want to clean them if this is the case.

When our chakras spin at a faster rate, this helps to protect us from misfortune and disease. It also opens us to the astral and protects us astrally as well as in the physical world. Remember though, energy work must be done every day as each day builds on the day before and until a strong energy field is permanently established.

Read more about Mer Ka Ba, emotional freedom technique EFT and emotional freedom therapy.

THIS IS PART 4 OF THE PROGRAM.

Opening the Heart Chakra

Crossing of the arms in a perticular way completes a circuit that directly affects the heart chakra.

1. Sit comfortabley, relax and go into a meditative state.

2. Cross your arms as in the example in my photo albums under Heart Chakra. Your hands should be touching your shoulders near your arm pits.

3. Position your hands so your thumb connects with your ring and little finger, leaving your index and middle fingers pointed straight. Photo under my albums!

4. Take a deep breath and nod your head so your chin is gently pressed into your chest. Keep your chin firmly against your chest during each exhale, only raising your head to inhale.

5. Focus your attention on your heart chakra. Exhale and vibrate

AH-AH-AH-AH-M-M-M-UH-UH-UH-N-N-N

Focus your attention on your heart chakra.

6. Extend the N-N-N-N-N until you have completely exhaled. Try to adjust the tone so you feel it in the middle of your chest where your heart chakra is located.

7. Repeat eight times.

8. Visualize the image in my albums under heart chakra, where your heart chakra is and yourself engulfed in a vibrant green aura and focus your attention on feeling your heart chakra for several minutes.

Try to adjust the tone so you feel it in the middle of your chest where your heart chakra is located.

This really is the most important chak in the body so take your time and this is why this meditation is all on its own.

We hear this message of “love”, of how the heart chakra is the “love” chakra - compassion, self sacrifice, giving, etc. This is a delusion, a delusion to prevent us from knowing its true power.

The heart chakra is the powerhouse of the soul.

The heart chakra has power over anger, courage, fear and dynamic energy. This energy can be explosive. The element of fire rules the heart and increases the adrenalin for a fight or flight response. The heart chakra is the center of our offense and defense, it is where we can attack with aggression or run. The heart chakra under will and controlled breathing techniques can warm the body to resist extremes of cold. When directed, the heart chakra can fill us with vigor, vitality, fearlessness and confidence. A powerful heart chakra enables us to enjoy life more fully.

It is the connection point between the upper and lower chakras, like the corpus collossum connects both hemispheres of the brain.

The upper chakras deal with the astral; astral sight and telepathy, connecting with others psychically and transferring one’s will, sending receiving telepathic messages (3rd eye), astral hearing and communication (throat) and astral knowledge and understanding of the universe (the crown).

The lower chakras deal with earthly matters- survival (base), sexuality, creativity (2nd) and the will, rebellion (3rd).

The heart chakra is where we have our life’s purpose. Because it is so important, it is where the enemy usually attacks. The Gods and Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt are often seen with their arms crossed over their chests. This symbolizes protection of the all important heart chakra.

Read more about Merkabah issues here.

For this about emotional freedom therapy and emotional freedom technique training, check these web sites.

OK people this is still LESSON 1 but PART 2

Please make sure you protect yourselves each time you before you do any form of spiritual work.

Trouble with visualising.

For those who have trouble visualising try these methods.

Void Meditation

“Void Meditation” is what is known as “stilling the mind.” The benefits of void meditation are the ability to turn off unwanted thoughts and influences at will, being able to control your thoughts instead of your thoughts controlling you (as with the average person), and a sense of inner peace. Void meditation is essential. Power meditation which will come later changes the strength of our thoughts and it is very important to be able to control thoughts and to turn them off or focus them at will. Thought power, also known as ‘witch power’ is needed for success in anything you are tring to do. Power meditation, strengthens our thoughts, and people who are more aware or sensitive will be able to pick up on our thoughts and feelings telepathically. Void meditation will train your mind to be silent so others will not know what you are thinking. The Japanese Ninja use this technique to avoid being detected while carrying out important missions that require one to advance or infiltrate, unnoticed.

Void meditation trains your mind so you can focus during spiritual work and in every day life so your mind brings you the desired result.

There are several techniques for void meditation. The goal is to turn off all of your thoughts and focus on the here and now. You get your mind to be completely still for a specified length of time. In the beginning, this can be extremely difficult, as thoughts will come into your head continually. Before you know it, you will again be thinking about something. Don’t get upset with yourself as this is very normal and even for advanced practitioners, certain meditation sessions may not go as smooth as usual. Just keep bringing your mind back to focus. Patience and persistence are the keys here. It definitely helps to do some breathing exercises beforehand to induce a trance state. Some people find meditating after a heavy meal causes the mind to be easily distracted.

Always try to meditate when you are fully awake and alert. If you try to do void meditation when you are tired, chances are you will quickly fall asleep.

1. Breathing exercises are optional. This is a simple method of breathing that will induce a trance state:

Breathe in for a count of 7,

Hold your breath for a count of 7

Exhale for a count of 7

Repeat this several times until you feel relaxed.

2. Now, get your entire mind to be completely still and free of any thoughts for a specified amount of time with no thoughts or music in your head. Your mind should be a total blank. You should focus on being in the here and now. For beginners, five minutes is fine. Intermediate and advanced practitioners can go anywhere from 15 minutes to however long they feel is essential.

Void meditation can be done with your eyes open or closed. When your eyes are open, you will more than likely see a mist around objects as you settle into a trance state. This is normal. If you choose to close your eyes, you may fall asleep, but this is an individual choice and use whatever method works best.

For meditation with your eyes open:

Choose something small to focus on. This can be a point on the wall, a second hand on a clock, or even a piece of lint on your clothing. Many choose to meditate on a candle flame. The important thing is to concentrate on your object of choice

For meditation with your eyes closed:

Focus inside of yourself and relax. You can put yourself deeper and deeper into a trance with a feeling of falling. This is normal. For people who are new, this falling sensation that often accompanies a deep trance can make you feel dizzy. To stop the sensation, focus on the front of your body.

Everyday void meditation:

Void meditation can be done anywhere and at any time with just focusing on the here and now and concentrating totally on whatever you are doing. This method works best for those of you who are unable to secure any privacy. Just set a goal to focus on the here and now for a specific amount of time each day and you will benefit.

Advanced Void Meditation:

Visualize an object and hold the image in your mind. At first, it will fade in and out, but as you progress, it will remain longer and longer. This is definitely a needed ability for any spiritual practice and focusing your mind power.

Focus on a specific chant or sound. You can do this either aloud or in your head. This is what is known as a “mantra.” You breathe in and on the exhale, chant a specific mantra or tone of your choice. One common chant used is the OM mantra, or Ohm.

Focus on a specific emotion- anger, happiness, sadness, love, hate. You can choose an emotion going by how you feel on a specific day.

Focus on a specific texture, for example, running your fingers back and forth across velvet or a terry towel.

Focus on a specific odor or taste.

Advanced void meditation that includes adding physical positions trains both your mind and develops an iron will, and extreme inner strength.

1. Keep your entire body still. Do NOT move. This is what the advanced yogis do.

Get into a comfortable position. Don’t scratch any itches, just ignore them and stay focused. Muscle cramps may come and go. Ignore any physical fatigue or mental fatigue. Just continue to remain focused.

2. Add uncomfortable and/or awkward positions. Make sure these are taken from a Yoga or Tai Chi book, so that they are physically beneficial. This is a discipline that is taught in many Martial Arts schools where one learns to ignore pain, while retaining intense focus. This strengthens the mind for physical combat and drastically increases your sense of self-confidence. This will also increase your resistance to pain.

Many martial arts masters meditate under cold waterfalls, in snow or other painful conditions. One’s physical health must be built up here, for obvious reasons. A cold shower can be substituted. As with anything new, be sure to start out gradual.

These techniques, when mastered, will give one total control over one’s mind and emotions. If one faces death, one will not freeze up or panic with fear and the odds of one’s survival will greatly increase.

3. Running and meditating; focusing on your running steps, increases endurance both mentally and physically.

Read more about Merkaba meditation, emotional freedom therapy and emotional freedom technique training.

This is a basic start and may seem boring to some but it is a necessary start.

Ok, well we will start with the most important lesson of all PROTECTION. But to properly learn protection we must learn how to breath.

For those who have some knowledge I want you to forget what you have learnt as this is possibly disinformation used to enslave your souls.

Lesson 1

The breath,

Lets start with a little intro. The tarot deck starts with the Fool, the rest of the cards symbolise his journey through to enlightenment.

The Fool is often holding a flute and this symbolises the mastery of the breath. This is the first lesson to achieve enlightenment.

Technique 1:

Inhale slowly through your nose, visualise and imagine energy being drawn in to your base chakra (the bottom of your spine, the tail ) and with this inhale, draw up that energy through the 7 chakra’s to the crown charka illuminating each one. (just imagine this, in time you will be able to see without having to imagine it) Do not worry about the colours you can just use each chakra as the colour of the sun as this is purifying and empowering the charka unblocking any negativity.

Where the chakra’s are on the human body? From the bottom up is, the base chakra, reproductive area, the stomach, the heart, the throat, the 3rd eye and then the crown chakra.

2. Hold for a count of four for new people, a count of ten and for advanced meditators. This should be the same count throughout the meditation.

3. Exhale slowly through your nose and visualize and focus upon energy being drawn into your crown chakra and with the exhale, direct this energy back down through all of your chakras to the base, illuminating each one.

Technique 2

THE BREATH OF FIRE, known as “Kapalabhati” (purification of the nasal passage and lungs)

1. Contract your abdominal muscles, forcefully, creating an exhale (don’t hold your breath), by sucking your stomach in real hard and fast. Immediately relax and air will enter the top part of your lungs by itself. Use the rapid contractions of your abdominal muscles to inhale and exhale with this exercise. The contractions should be rhythmic.

2. Practice a few times, and get a feel for it.

3. Do 20 in a row, in and out, using your abdominal muscles in rapid succession at the end of the 20th breath, exhale, inhale and fill your lungs, contract your anus, lower your chin to your chest, hold your breath as long as you comfortably can - DO NOT PUSH YOURSELF!

4. Exhale slowly.

The above constitutes one round. The exhalation should be brief, and the inhalation should be passive and longer. Rounds are increased by adding the number of pumps with your abdominal muscles. First, try doing three sets of 20 pumps and then after some time, increase to 30, then 40 until you are doing 60.

What this breathing exercise does:

1. It increases the amount of oxygen in the body

2. It increases the amount of heat - alchemists in the Gothic and medieval times were referred to as “puffers” and the bellows by the fireplace in alchemy paintings was symbolic of this exercise.

Do these excises at least twice a day.

I now need to brief you up on aura’s for the next part of the training so I will explain the aura in layman terms then get onto the exercises for protection.

Everything has an aura, whether it is living or inanimate. The aura is an energy field created by the vibrating atoms and molecules that comprise all matter. The universe itself vibrates to a certain frequency and the gravity that holds everything together is electromagnetic in nature. Everyone’s aura is as unique as his or her own fingerprints. No two auras are alike. The aura can be used to protect, attract, influence, maim, or even kill. This field of bioelectricity surrounding living things can be programmed using the power of one’s mind.

Those who are trained and have an active third eye can see auras clearly and discern much personal information just by reading the colour, strength, size and shape of one’s aura. I will teach you to see and read aura’s later.

To strengthen and build your aura, you must take in energy. This can be done through power meditation. The Energy Meditation is excellent for charging up your aura.

Hatha (physical) Yoga and Tai Chi also help to strengthen and build the aura. Both of these disciplines tend to balance the auric energies as well.

Cleaning your aura is very important. A clean healthy aura strengthens the immune system and prevents harmful energies from invading one’s body. Nearly all harmful entities are invisible to the naked eye. Energies, as most physicists know, can be broken down into sub-atomic particles, for example, light can be broken down into photons. The energy radiated by a powerful aura will burn these harmful energies and entities up before they can do any harm. A powerful aura gives health, happiness, charisma, and energy. People with weak auras are usually in poor health and are depressed. Our personal energies act on our environments and direct our fate. People who have weak auras are usually prone to misfortune.

Lesson 2

Programming ones aura.

Start by shutting your eyes and breath in the colour of the sun. (If you have trouble imagining the colour of the sun please use electric blue instead)

With the inhale breathe let the colour meet in the middle of your body, packing it in brighter and brighter. With the exhale, keep expanding it. The energy should grow brighter and brighter.

Affirm: My aura is very powerful and is protecting me at all times. Always affirm as ‘in the now’. Eg: do not say ‘my aura will be’ as that is not in the now and all you are asking is that you will be… but when. Its all about the now.

This a good exercise to be done on a regular basis, for building a strong, protective energy field.

For health,

A lot of energy is needed for healing. Breathing in energy from the Sun is excellent for empowering one’s aura. The Sun also contains all of the colours of the chakra’s in their most pure and vibrant states. The Sun is one of the most powerful sources of energy there is. When one is ill, there is an imbalance in the chakras ruling over the body part/s that are injured or ill. To heal, you must work breath in the colour of the sun into the appropriate chakra.

Breathe in the colour of the sun into the ruling charka (if the problem is lungs the closest charka would be the heart) and affirm:

”I am breathing in __(name of color)__ energy that is balancing my __chakra__ and healing my_______.

Do this 4 times.

The auras of others can also be worked with and programmed.

Healing others:

Visualize a powerful white-gold (colour of the sun) aura surrounding and glowing about the loved one.

Affirm: I am putting powerful healing energy into ______’s aura; this energy is effectively fighting the _______ and restoring him/her to perfect health. In cases of serious illness, this may have to be done often every day. Healing others can be extremely draining. If you are inexperienced, remote healing is best.

From reading the above, you should by now be getting the idea and able to improvise your own affirmations.

The true colours you can use for protection are ONLY THESE.

1: Electric blue

2: The colour of the sun.

Please only use these colours for protection, You may have heard of use a bright white light, this was invented by the enemy to pinpoint people and steal energy. Do NOT use white.

I know this may sound incredibly boring for some but we have to start from the beginning. What I have just written is very basic so everyone from all levels can start. We will be getting to some very exciting training later on. This will include, Levitation, Telekinesis, Mind reading, becoming clairvoyant/audient to name but a few.

Do these excises at least twice a day.

P.S. Read more about Merkaba meditation, emotional freedom technique EFT and emotional freedom therapy in the quoted publications.

The topic of meditation techniques is often heard in the news and is almost considered trendy in the popular culture of the Western world these days, yet it will likely never be considered a fad. After all, various types of meditation have been practiced in many different countries for hundreds of years and is a significant part of many cultures, regardless of the fact that the Western world has only recently caught on. Zen meditation is one approach that many people have heard of.

There are numerous meditation techniques that people who are interested and want to learn to meditate can choose from. While all forms of mediation have some commonalities, the techniques do differ based on what part of the world and what culture the particular practice is rooted in. Zen meditation has developed out of Zen Buddhism. It is also known as Zazen and incorporates various seated positions, special breathing techniques and chakras.

The approach of Zen meditation is designed to help make the participant become fully engaged in their lives and live in the moment through full and complete awareness of themselves and their environments. With these meditation techniques, people can break free from living on “auto-pilot” and can regain the awareness and control of their existence.

When people fall into the trap of operating primarily on automatic pilot, they rarely notice all of the things that are happening around them; even within their own minds and hearts. This certainly can interfere with a person’s ability to be enlivened spiritually or to be on the path to spiritual development. Zen meditation can help to break the cycle of automatic living and help a person to engage more fully in their own life.

Through Zen meditations, people experience each moment of a day directly and with awareness and responsiveness. They consciously practice being aware of everything that they encounter and try to enliven their senses by paying attention to everything that they might hear, see, smell, feel and taste.

Another way of expressing this concept is by attempting to be completely and fully aware, while engaged in any activity, at any particular moment. Some people also call this, “living in the moment” or “living consciously.” The idea is to “become at one” with whatever they are currently engaged in doing.

Some examples of this would be: when eating, the practitioner is totally focused on the meal and their actions involved in eating; when they are engaged in a Zen mediation session, they stay concentrated on the reality of that moment and they do not allow their thoughts, their feelings, or their sensations to preoccupy or distract them; when they are engaged in work, they only work; when doing routine tasks such as brushing their teeth, they focus on that task and do not let their minds wander to think about other things.

While the Zen practitioner does not have to be engaged in meditation all day, every day, regular meditation practice will help you sleep, helps to calm, center and focus the mind so that the person is able to focus and retain keen awareness. The Zen practice recognizes that all thoughts are a natural and beneficial function of the human mind and that thought should not be ignored, rejected or stopped. Instead, the practice allows wandering thoughts to be acknowledged then set to the side, keeping the mind from being carried away by anxieties, worries, fears and other discursive notions.

This method of meditation practice allows the person to enjoy a sense of liberation from the “pollution” of negative thoughts that can often cloud the mind and confuse thinking. Zen meditation helps to alleviate unnecessary suffering of the mind and allows the person to focus on truth, clarity and spiritual enlightenment.

Managing anger is a full time occupation for some people. Their anger and rage episodes seem to control their lives making relationships with family, friends and coworkers difficult at best. They often take out their frustrations on other people. Road rage is a growing problem everywhere, as more drivers hit the road and take out their frustrations on others. Sure we all get angry at times and it is even healthy if in the right circumstance. Anger management is about knowing how anger affects you, knowing the consequences of uncontrolled rage and hopefully, learning some anger management techniques.

Anger aggression can happen for various reasons. In children it often manifests itself after or during an emotional trauma such as the loss of a parent or parents divorcing.

In adults one of the most common reason is a general irritation at some other situation that may be out of your control. Take for example a problem at work. You may be holding back from showing your feelings toward a frustrating co-worker or a boss. You bury the anger until a time comes when you take it out on someone else. How many times have you honked your horn or cursed at a fellow driver for a mistake made while driving? That one poor soul becomes the epitome of all the things wrong in your life. Or it may be teen anger that has you frustrated. You do not know how to deal with your child during one of his or her outbursts so you take it out on your spouse.

Anger management is extremely important to your sense of well-being. There have been far too many people injured due to rage. This includes shootings resulting from road rage gone bad. It is also about spousal abuse. The emotional and psychological issues are immense but there are physical issues as well. Adrenaline rushes happen, but becoming an adrenaline junkie feeding off the rush from anger can lead to high blood pressure, stroke or even a heart attack.

Anger management depends entirely on your ability to seek out help and be willing to follow the advice of the counselors or therapists. With the right attitude and a willingness to address underlying problems, you can find the help you need to control your anger. Do not let your anger affect your life and ruin great relationships. Maybe there are issues you need help with by medication. Whatever the underlying problems are, help is available, so reach out and take it.