Benefits of meditation. What is meditation?

Before i go on about how meditation has improved the quality of my life immensely, i'd like to characterize what meditation is.

Meditation is a method to which you transcend a form or state of consciousness. Meditation does not only consist of sitting down quietly with self in one place, it can be any activity at all that brings about this transcended state of consciousness. Whether it be, listening to music, dancing, painting, anything that brings about inner peace in your daily life can be considered a meditative process.

I started meditating a year ago, in this case i do mean sitting quietly with self in one place. When i first started, it was very hard for me to sit still and completely listen to myself without any form of judgement or labeling. I could barely even keep my eyes closed for a long enough period. And so these were signs that i am not at peace. These "tasks" are so simple yet i can not perform them without feeling irritated.

This here is the first step toward a library of realizations. I realized i was not at peace with the environment around me and the environment in me. As i went on practicing meditation and learning to "ride the surf board", i got better at it and i gained the ability to keep a still mind. So for any beginners out there, who have just started meditation. Please know that it is a process, step by step process, so if you've done it once and find no result, it is only because you've made a very small step or small change. an Unnoticeable one. So really follow through the process, and you will not only find ultimate truths about yourself, you will begin to perceive differently, with more serenity.

How has meditation benefited me? On an experiential level, i find words to be insufficient in what it can really do but here i am giving it a go. Firstly, it has given me a sense of calmness and objectivity which has really helped me in-terms of problem-solving skills. Because when a problem arises, the last thing you want to do is panic and identify yourself with that problem, in order to solve a problem you must rise above it, or objectively look at it like it wasn't really your problem, because there's a solution to it. So it's simply a temporary problem. This applies to ANY problem at all, whether it be financial, relationship, education, personal, etc. A solution exists, therefore be calm and objectively look at the problem

another aspect is, it helped me become more compassionate, and full of energy. It has helped me to look at people with a lot more empathy and understanding for their situation, sometimes even more than they do themselves! This is because when observing self, we notice the unnecessary patterns we fall into which does not benefit our lives in anyway. Whether it's a reaction, a thought process that we're always stuck with, etc.

But enough about me, let's just look at some of the physical benefits that have been studied:





In general, if you can just spend 5-10 minutes of your time sitting with yourself instead of watching TV, or doing any other menial tasks, your whole day will seem fresh with a fresh perspective!