How many meditation techniques are there

This meditation technique, also called "Insight Meditation," involves sitting in silence, focusing on the breath and noting any and all physical or mental sensations that arise. The idea is to find "insight" into the true nature of reality which vipassana teaches is suffering , by examining all aspects of your existence. Multiday vipassana retreats are a popular way to dive deeper into this practice. Sit quietly and concentrate on the breath as it moves through the body.

Let all emotions, sensations, thoughts, and sounds arise without getting attached to them. Label any distraction, for example, "a bird chirping" and return your focus to the breath. Also known as a "loving-kindness" meditation, in this practice you bring your awareness to the people in your life both near and far, known and unknown, liked or disliked and direct positive energy and thoughts toward them. It's a wonderful technique for decreasing anger and increasing understanding, positivity, and compassion.

Find a comfortable position, and with the eyes closed, bring your awareness to the chest, to the heart center. As you breathe in, imagine you are breathing in warmth, compassion, and unconditional love for yourself, and as you breathe out, imagine you are directing that warmth, compassion, and unconditional love to the people around you. Start with close friends or relatives, and move out to directing it to neutral acquaintances and then those you don't particularly like right now.

This meditation is used to keep the body's seven chakras, or energy centers, open, aligned, and fluid. It is based on the idea that blocked or unbalanced chakras can cause negative physical or mental ailments and that by meditating on them we can bring the self back into harmony.

Become familiar with the chakras and their corresponding properties and qualities. Spend time resting your awareness on the chakras that you feel you need to bring into balance.

Concentrate on the bodily location of each chakra and picture energy flowing through that area that is the color of that chakra. Here are some more details on meditations tailored to the themes of each chakra. Just as there are many different types of meditation, there are many styles of yoga. Some types, such as Kundalini, focus on using meditative techniques to strengthen and relax the nervous system. You can bring a meditative awareness to any yoga style or class simply by focusing on the breath and the present.

While taking any yoga posture, keep your awareness on the breath and the physical sensations in the present moment. Each time you find the mind wandering to thoughts, gently draw it back once more. Corpse pose savasana taken at the end of all yoga classes, is one of the best pathways for meditation.

Trataka, or candle gazing, is a type of meditation in which you keep your eyes open and focused on a point or object—frequently, the flame of a lit candle. Objects such as crystals could also be used. This practice helps bring energy to the third-eye chakra and can increase concentration. Sit comfortably with your gaze focused on a single object, such as a candle, tree, or crystal.

With relaxed eyes, try your level best not to blink. Maintain focus until your eyes begin to feel uncomfortable and then close the eyes. Keep the image of the object in your mind's eye, then open your eyes and start again. As a form of mindfulness meditation, breath awareness offers many of the same benefits as mindfulness. Those include reduced anxiety, improved concentration, and greater emotional flexibility. Kundalini yoga is a physically active form of meditation that blends movements with deep breathing and mantras.

People usually learn from a teacher or do a class. However, someone can learn the poses and mantras at home. Similarly to other forms of yoga , kundalini yoga can improve physical strength and reduce pain. It may also improve mental health by reducing anxiety and depression. A study of veterans with chronic low-back pain, for instance, found that yoga reduced pain, increased energy, and improved overall mental health.

Zen meditation, sometimes called Zazen is a form of meditation that can be part of Buddhist practice. Many Zen practitioners study under a teacher because this kind of meditation involves specific steps and postures. Again, this form of meditation is similar to mindfulness meditation but requires more discipline and practice. People may prefer it if they are seeking both relaxation and a new spiritual path.

Transcendental Meditation is a spiritual form of meditation where practitioners remain seated and breathe slowly. During a meditation session, practitioners focus on a mantra or a repeated word or series of words.

A teacher determines the mantra based on a complex set of factors, sometimes including the year the practitioner was born, and the year the teacher was trained. An alternative allows people to choose their mantra. This more contemporary version is not technically Transcendental Meditation, though it may look substantially similar. People who practice Transcendental Meditation report both spiritual experiences and heightened mindfulness.

The various meditative disciplines encourage a focus on heightened awareness, slower breathing, and increased acceptance. Meditation is not a results-focused undertaking. Indeed, fixating too much on the results can provoke anxiety that undermines the benefits of meditation. However, most research shows that meditation can work very quickly.

Studies of meditation typically follow practitioners for weeks or months, not years. Many meditation practitioners report an immediate improvement following a meditation session. During meditation, it is common to feel less stressed, more accepting, and at greater peace. Vipassana meditation. Another ancient tradition, this one invites you to use your concentration to intensely examine certain aspects of your existence with the intention of eventual transformation.

Chakra meditation. Blocked or imbalanced chakras can result in uncomfortable physical and mental symptoms, but chakra meditation can help to bring all of them back into balance. Qigong meditation. Sending this energy inward during meditation is thought to help the body heal and function; sending the energy outward can help to heal another person.

Sound bath meditation. This form uses bowls, gongs, and other instruments to create sound vibrations that help focus the mind and bring it into a more relaxed state. Did one or more of these meditation techniques speak to you?

What does matter, however, is that you choose a style that allows you to integrate the qualities you experience during meditation practice — calm, empathy, mindfulness — into the rest of your day. From there, once you gain more experience and confidence, you can explore the whole library of content, covering everything from sleep , compassion , and sports to anger , stress , focus , and more.

Get started today! Sign up for free today, and start reaping the benefits of guided meditation! Studies have shown meditation may improve relationship satisfaction, relatedness, and closeness to name just a few benefits.

Types of meditation. Start your free trial. Guided vs. How guided meditation works. Calming vs. Types of meditation used in the Headspace app. In our modern, hectic world, meditation has gained traction in recent years as a way to manage stress. Scientific evidence has also emerged that shows meditation can be a helpful tool in fighting chronic illnesses, including depression, heart disease, and chronic pain. Mindfulness meditation is the process of being fully present with your thoughts.

Mindful meditation can be done anywhere. Some people prefer to sit in a quiet place, close their eyes, and focus on their breathing. When practicing mindfulness meditation, you observe your thoughts and emotions but let them pass without judgement. Transcendental meditation is a simple technique in which a personally assigned mantra, such as a word, sound, or small phrase, is repeated in a specific way.

The idea is that this technique will allow you to settle inward to a profound state of relaxation and rest, with the goal of achieving inner peace without concentration or effort. Guided meditation, which is sometimes also called guided imagery or visualization, is a method of meditation in which you form mental pictures or situations that you find relaxing.

Vipassana meditation is an ancient Indian form of meditation that means to see things as they really are. It was taught in India more than 2, years ago. The mindfulness meditation movement in the United States has roots in this tradition.

The goal of vipassana meditation is self-transformation through self-observation. This is accomplished through disciplined attention to physical sensations in the body, to establish a deep connection between the mind and body. The continuous interconnectedness results in a balanced mind full of love and compassion, teachers of the practice claim.