Some common examples of meditating on a function are - breath awareness meditation and walking meditation. There are other lesser know examples, such as meditating while painting, drawing, drumming, writing, dancing, and many more creative pursuits.
In Yoga classes, the most common of the above-mentioned meditation techniques is breath awareness meditation. If you sit quietly in an isolated room, without any background noise, and close your eyes, it is easy to become aware of your breathing.
This is a function we give very little thought to, unless we are trained to make breathing more important in our lives. Some coaches of competitive sports, train athletes to focus on the importance of dynamic breathing techniques. The difference in an athlete's performance can be quite dramatic.
An athlete becomes more balanced during a performance, as a result of focusing on breath awareness. He or she can perform better, longer, faster, and stronger, due to controlling his or her breath during competition and practice.
If you want to practice breath awareness meditation, sitting up straight is the beginning of preparation. You can perform this anywhere you go. Some of my students perform breath awareness while waiting to meet their physician.
Many people rush to a doctor's appointment, only to wait in one room and then wait in another. Waiting to see a surgeon for an appointment, or check up, can last hours. Instead of creating anxiety in the waiting room, and the exam room, one can practice meditation, which results in optimum blood pressure readings and a relaxed frame of mind.
You can perform breath awareness meditation in a chair, when you are in public places, or on the floor at home. The primary emphasis is to focus on your navel, expanding out slowly during inhales, and to slowly draw the navel in toward the spine on exhales.
If a student has spent a lifetime of breathing incorrectly, it may be better to focus on slowly drawing the navel in toward the spine during exhalations and relaxing during the inhalations.
As you continue this practice, become aware of the expansion and contraction of your lungs in every possible direction. There is no force needed. This is just a natural breath, but with time your lungs will be able to expand completely.
This method can be practiced with eyes opened or closed. It is most commonly taught with the eyes closed; most students become more aware of sound when the eyes are closed. If this happens to you, experience the sounds of life, and do not judge them.
Your sessions can be as long as you like, but five minutes is a good start. When teaching this method to groups in auditoriums, and meeting rooms, participants remark at how much better they feel after a five minute introduction to breath awareness. This is why you commonly see this meditation method taught in introductory Yoga classes.
© Copyright 2008 - Paul Jerard / Aura Publications
Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500, has written many books on the subject of Yoga. He is a co-owner and the Director of Yoga Teacher Training at: Aura Wellness Center, in Attleboro, MA.
aurawellnesscenter.com aurawellnesscenter.com
He has been a certified Master Yoga Teacher since 1995. To receive Free Yoga videos, Podcasts, e-Books, reports, and articles about Yoga, please visit: yoga-teacher-training.org/member-offer.html yoga-teacher-training.org/member-offer.html
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