Meditation: Your path to more peace and serenity

Meditation: Your path to more peace and serenity

Meditation is a millennia-old practice used by people from diverse cultures to enhance their physical and mental well-being. Just a few decades ago, meditation had a rather obscure image in this country, as it hadn't been practiced here until then.

Many people associated meditation with esotericism and religiosity and were rather skeptical of meditative exercises. Today, it is scientifically proven that meditation is not nonsense, but can have an immensely positive effect on the psyche and mind.

Meditation can help you relax, banish negative thoughts, and improve your concentration. Meditation is therefore particularly suitable for office workers and athletes who have to perform a lot every day and feel stressed.

1. The origin of meditation

Historical research has not clearly established the precise moment and technique that marked the origin of meditation. Some scholars suspect that humans have always experienced states of rapture, trance, and ecstasy.

Depending on the tradition and culture, meditation is intended to achieve different states of consciousness: oneness with God, nature or nirvana, liberation from all thoughts or desires , mental emptiness and spiritual silence.

Meditation, as we understand it today, has existed for about 4,000 years and has been cultivated in world religions. In Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, meditation is intended to help believers find the path to God and divine truth.

Practices such as speaking in tongues (glossolalia), repetitive jumping, singing, praying, and dancing, as well as fasting and silence rituals, have been handed down to us. Even today, you can book a silent seminar in monasteries.

Meditation, Buddhism and Hinduism

Whether Hinduism or Buddhism, we associate meditation particularly with these Far Eastern religions. In Hinduism and Buddhism, meditative chanting, silence, and fasting have been common for thousands of years. Many of today's meditation practices have their origins in the Hindu tradition of Vedantism.

Why Buddhism developed meditation is unclear. What is certain, however, is that the principles of Buddhist belief have a purifying effect. Fears, worries, obsessions—simply, you should be able to free yourself from all burdening things. With Buddhist meditation, you learn the ability to let thoughts and feelings pass without judgment.

A special form of Buddhist meditation is zazen, the meditation technique of Zen Buddhism. Zen is a branch of Buddhism that originated in China. The teachings of Zen are very complex. However, an important principle is to abandon all desire, striving, and volition.

Zen meditation takes place while sitting, in the so-called lotus position, and includes various meditation exercises. Zen students are supposed to practice mindfulness through meditation and thus bring about the oneness of body and mind.

Yoga and meditation: perfect connection of body and soul

Yoga and meditation have experienced a real boom in recent years. Many people find the combination of physical exercise and quiet meditation particularly beneficial. Yoga, a philosophical discipline originating in India, aims to achieve self-knowledge through concentration and asceticism.

Stressed-out city dwellers and high-performers in particular have realized that yoga and meditation are ideal for creating a short break between work, family and leisure time.

Another positive aspect of yoga is its active, athletic aspect: Meditation exercises are combined with physical and breathing exercises, allowing you to experience holistic relaxation . You can incorporate this dynamic meditation into your daily routine as a relaxing workout. In this way, meditation can help you find health and well-being [1].

2. Healthy through meditation? These are the effects

Although meditation seems so unspectacular, if you practice it regularly, the exercises can have a very positive effect on you and your health. Doctors and psychologists believe the reason for meditation's effectiveness lies in the close connection between body and mind.

Those who are at peace with themselves, who do not feel any anxiety and do not struggle with their feelings and thoughts are said to be less susceptible to one or the other aches and pains.

You can therefore become healthy through meditation, at least indirectly: Since meditation can help you promote your mental well-being, it is also said to have a positive effect on your physical health.

Here is a brief overview of what you can achieve with meditation:

• Find relaxation with meditation

Experience pure relaxation with meditation: Many meditation techniques are based on concentration. For example, you learn to regulate your breathing and heart rate or let unpleasant thoughts pass by.

This way, you'll automatically find peace. With a little practice, the path to relaxation will become increasingly faster, even during periods of great stress [2].

• Ignite self-love with meditation

Learn self-love through meditation: Meditative reflection on yourself, your thoughts and feelings can lead to more self-respect, self-confidence and a higher sense of self-worth.

Meditation can also give you confidence in your abilities. With this confidence in your bag, you'll be well-equipped to achieve your personal goals.

• Learn mindfulness through meditation

When you meditate, you penetrate deeper layers of your being and mind through silence and concentration. You learn to welcome thoughts non-judgmentally and to engage with them neutrally and detachedly. Mindfulness can help you cope with everyday life without stress.

Approaching virtually every aspect of life with mindfulness has become a real trend. This trend has given rise to many specific mindfulness exercises , i.e., meditation exercises that focus on practicing mindfulness [3].

• Overcoming fear with meditation

For your body, fear means one thing above all: stress. Stress hormones like adrenaline are released, putting you on alert. You're tense and sometimes unable to think clearly.

Meditation exercises are a good way to reduce the physical effects of anxiety. During meditation, you focus your attention on your body and the here and now. Breathing meditation helps you relax.

In this way, meditation can help you overcome fear or cope with it better [4].

3. Meditation exercises are available for everyone – including you!

Want to quickly learn about the various meditation techniques? We've summarized the most important ones for you. Decide for yourself which type of meditation might help you best.

• Breathing meditation: In breathing meditation, you use your breath to promote your mental and physical health. Many types of meditation include breathing exercises, sometimes referred to as breathwork.

Consciously controlling your breath by controlling your inhalation and exhalation can be a tool to calm you down, reduce anxiety, and support your immune system. Breathing meditation should always be performed with utmost attention, as rapid breathing or long pauses can lead to dizziness!

• Guided meditation: Guided meditation is characterized by a voice guiding you through the meditation practice. It provides guidance and gives you instructions for breathing and concentration exercises, for example.

A guided meditation is ideal for beginners. This meditation technique makes it easier for laypeople to let go and relax. Access is also easy: Guided meditations can be found in apps, on YouTube, CDs, and DVDs. You can also download texts and conduct guided meditations yourself.

On the other hand, some people find the presence of a voice during inner contemplation unpleasant. Completely immersing themselves in silence is also difficult during a guided meditation.

• Mantra meditation: In mantra meditation, you use the energy of your own voice. Like a kind of prayer, you repeat so-called mantras – these can be individual words or sentences. Many mantras are in Sanskrit. During mantra meditation, you assume a typical sitting position.

You can chant or recite mantras meditatively. They usually contain benevolent, uplifting messages intended to bring you joy and inner peace. Singing and reciting them sets your body into vibration, which induces deep relaxation during meditation. Among the most well-known mantras are "Om" and "Om Shanti."

• Body scan: Body scan is one of the mindfulness exercises that has a particularly powerful relaxation effect. During the body scan, you mentally focus on your body and guide your thoughts from one body part to another during meditation. Body scan can be used as a guided meditation.

The goal is to experience the well-being of each body part through mindfulness and simultaneously release tension and stress. The result is a relaxed, calm, and pleasant-feeling body.

Conclusion

Based on the unity of body and mind, you can use meditation to improve your overall well-being. Depending on the meditation technique, you can focus on increasing self-love, mindfulness, concentration, or relaxation. A holistic approach combines meditation and yoga. If you want to go a step further and optimize your well-being, energy levels, and focus, we have meditation tips and other valuable hacks in our Performance Newsletter for you on how to permanently improve your mental and physical performance. Simply sign up here and give it your all every week.

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Studies :

[1] Sharma, H. (20125) An International Quarterly Journal of Research in Ayurveda. Meditation: Process and effects. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4895748/]

[2] Chételat , G Lutz , A Arenaza-Urquijo , E Collette , F Klimecki , O Marchant, N (2018) Alzheimer's Research & Therapy. Why could meditation practice help promote mental health and well-being in aging? [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6015474/]

[3] Norris, CJ Creem, D Hendler, R Kober, H (2018) Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. Brief Mindfulness Meditation Improves Attention in Novices: Evidence From ERPs and Moderation by Neuroticism. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6088366/]

[4] Kwak , S Lee, T. Y Jung , W. H (2019) Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. The Immediate and Sustained Positive Effects of Meditation on Resilience Are Mediated by Changes in the Resting Brain. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6448020/]