Meditation is a relaxation method that stimulates self-knowledge, with exercises that work on mental and body balance, through breathing techniques and positions, seeking to find inner silence, disconnecting from the outside world for a few moments.
This practice from the East has conquered more and more followers here in the West and has been used a lot in the treatment and prevention of diseases of emotional origin: such as hypertension, gastrointestinal disorders and chronic pain, as well as depression, anxiety and stress. In some American companies, for example, the method is applied in the middle of the daily routine, so that employees can relax and return to work more productive.
According to some experts, this practice allows for a better mastery of the brain areas that control emotions, logical reasoning and the most basic physiological functions, such as breathing or digestion, which may explain how monks and fakirs manage to manipulate normally automatic body reactions, facing hunger, pain or fear.
There are different types of meditation. The ideal is to find the one that best suits you, for example, Kundalini requires an instructor who guides the student to have calmer thoughts and breathing and can be done anywhere, during a walk or even a dance.
In Transcendental Meditation, the practitioner has a much more intense and practical experience, usually done sitting down with eyes tightly closed, in some cases people even fall asleep. The best known is Zazen, also known as "sitting in silence", thoughts arise freely and disappear, emptying the mind while breathing is controlled.
By including meditation in the daily routine, it is possible that your self-knowledge and control over your body will increase., which will help you manage your life better: pushing away bad thoughts, learning to deal better with problems and frustrations, balancing your emotions, stimulating your ideas, etc.
- Text written by Carolina Peixoto from the Eu Sem Fronteiras Team.
