Meditation Practice For Spiritual Growth

Meditation is a natural process of withdrawing attention from external conditions and directing it inward to a chosen focus of concentration.

The beneficial side-benefits of regular meditation practice have been widely reported in a variety of secular news magazines and newspapers. These can include stress reduction, strengthening of the body's immune system, better organized thought processes, improved powers of concentration, enhanced powers of memory, refinement and enlivening of the nervous system, awakening of regenerative energies, slowing of biologic aging processes, development of the capacities of the brain to process perceptions and states of consciousness, and orderly functioning of the body's organs, glands, and systems. For these reasons, regular meditation practice is now increasingly recommended by many physicians and other health practitioners.

The following basic procedure is easy to learn and practice:

1. Meditate once or twice every day.
2. Sit upright in a comfortable chair. It is all right to sit cross-legged if this is convenient. Hold the head up and direct your attention to the front and higher regions of the brain.
3. Inhale and exhale once or twice to relax. Remain still for a few moments until you feel centered. Be aware of your natural breathing rhythm.
4. When inhalation occurs naturally, mentally speak a chosen word, such as "God," "peace," "joy," or any pleasant word. When exhalation occurs, again mentally speak the word. Feel that the sound of the chosen word is blossoming in your mind or your field of awareness. Do this without effort and without anxiety about results.
5. When a state of conscious, calm awareness is experienced, discontinue listening to the word. Be still, letting that meditative calm persist for several minutes until you feel inclined to conclude the practice session.