While music isn’t required for meditation it can help those who are just beginning to focus their minds and it can enhance the experience of those who have been meditating for years. There is ambient music such as the sound of the ocean, whale song or the sound of a thunderstorm; all these can be used as focus points for the actual meditation itself.

These poses however take some practicing and the beginner to meditation should be careful when trying them, only do what feels comfortable to you, meditation is foremost about relaxation of the muscles so don’t go straining them into an uncomfortable position. If you don’t feel comfortable then sit in a position that’s right for you and practice sitting in one of the positions described below when you are not meditating until you feel comfortable with them.

* Meditation is a great way to help relieve stress and anxiety; it calms the senses thereby enabling the mind to become still and the body to become passive. Most meditations involve focusing on an object which can range from watching a candle flame, concentrating on your own breath or focusing on a sound.

It is thought that within our bodies there are focal points of energy, this energy affects our whole life and allows us to experience life and everything that happens around us. These focal points of energy are called chakras and there are seven of them located throughout the body. These chakras can come out of alignment and when this happens they have an affect on the organs where the chakras are located; this then leads to illness and disease.

Buddhist scriptures give us a great deal of insight into meditation, the techniques are clearly explained and include the Buddhist’s own meditation practices. Although some understanding of the practice of meditation is a help, the experimental factor in meditation is a distinctive feature of Buddhist meditation. There are two quite distinct forms of Buddhist meditation, samatha and vipassana these are explained below:

While there are many different forms of meditation there are only two different types, active and passive meditation:

Active meditation – this type of meditation relates to our everyday life and everything we do in it such as walking, eating, running, working and relaxing. The aim of it is to be at a totally relaxed state while we go about our day to day living; it is not a type that is recommended for the beginner.

Passive meditation – this is the common form where the person will take time out from their daily routine to practice meditation; it involves the person being seated in one of the common postures and focus on one of the meditation techniques.

This is one of the easiest forms of meditation which you can learn, it is one that can be done anywhere, at anytime without anyone even realising you are meditating. It is an excellent meditation for those times when you are feeling particularly stressed such as before a job interview, when problems arise at work, when your children are playing up or simply if you just need a few minutes to yourself during the day.

Meditation guide

A simple meditation technique for relaxation

* Start by lying comfortably on the floor with the palm of your hands by your side with palms facing down, your feet should be a few inches apart, eyes closed, adjust yourself into a comfortable position.

There are many different forms and styles of meditation with all of them relating to the same point, awareness of oneself. The art of meditating seems easy at first to the beginner, after all it is simply a matter of sitting or lying quietly and focusing on one thing to the point of inducing a deep relaxed state. However there is more to it than that and focusing and remaining focused on one thing is harder than it sounds.