Transcendental meditation is another form of meditation that many people attempt to utilize. This particular form of meditation may be the closest to what you may think of as a stereotypical meditation session, where the goal seems to be to clear the mind and hone yourself into a total body awareness of the world around you.
Transcendental meditation has been around for a long time and can be beneficial for anyone who is looking for a way to detach from every day life and focus on the bigger picture in a way that is rejuvenating. The reason it is called transcendental meditation is because the purpose is to transcend the types of thinking patterns you already have so that you can experience the world and your own mind in a totally different way.
This particular form of meditation is performed in a quiet place. You should be in a comfortable position, and should you choose to use a yoga pose like the lotus pose, also known in Sanskrit as Padmasana, then you are free to do so. The most important thing is to be somewhere quiet and in a position that you can hold for a decent period of time while remaining comfortable and attuned with yourself.
Next, it is often helpful to choose a mantra to focus on. A mantra is a word or a phrase that is meaningful to you or something you are aspiring toward. For example, if you are hoping to transcend your awareness and become more highly aware of things that are beautiful, you may want to choose the mantra, “beauty,” as you begin your transcendental meditation. However, you may want to make sure that your mantra is no more than two syllables. Otherwise, it can make it difficult to slip into the trance-like state that transcendental meditation is designed to offer.
Many transcendental meditations may be guided for this purpose. The person guiding the meditation will help you to focus your mind on the mantra and stay on the path to your ultimate goal. Sometimes it can be easy to get distracted during a transcendental meditation, especially when you are new at it. So without guidance you may find that your mind wanders rather than staying focused on the mantra. That may be why, rather than holding the word in your mind and meditating on it yourself, you may opt instead to purchase a guided transcendental meditation. However you choose to do this, you can expect to spend up to twenty minutes daily practicing your meditation. Throughout that time, you should be repeating your mantra to yourself.
This may ultimately bring you to a state of consciousness that is slightly altered from your typical awareness, as you will be transported to a state of calm as you steadily repeat the mantra in your mind. Some people may find it helpful to use a set of Buddhist meditation meads, called a mala, for purposes of transcendental meditation. The Buddhist strategy is to repeat a phrase exactly 108 times, fingering a bead on the mala as they repeat the phrase. With every new word or prayer, they move their fingers to a new bead until the phrase has been repeated 108 times total. Then they complete the meditation.
This form of meditation has been proven to work for everybody, as it does not require an extreme amount of concentration. All you have to do is sit in a comfortable position and repeat your mantra. Whether you have ADHD or you simply have a hard time sitting still, prompting yourself to focus this way is something that may be easier to do than you would think. That is why it is successful.
At the end of the day, the phrases you choose to meditate on will become a part of your conscious. That means that you will “manifest” more evidence of those things in your life, or more scientifically speaking, you will train your mind to pay more attention to the things that you value rather than looking over them or dismissing them the way you might if you were not putting an active effort in to manifesting those particular energies or experiences.
Whether you are interested in the mystical or the scientific aspects of this practice, either way your body and mind benefit from the chance to put your mind at ease and do whatever it is that needs done to begin paying attention to the things that are most important to you and find at least twenty minutes of calm that can last throughout the rest of your day. It is a practice that works, so try it out for yourself!