Meditation is one of the most beneficial tools you can use for success and happiness. The practice of meditation has extreme spiritual benefits, as proven, but what about the material health benefits? Taking care of your spiritual vehicle is also a requirement to thrive in spirituality. Fortunately, meditation packs a powerful one-two punch that helps your sadhana progress and improves your health.
Benefits of Meditation
Reduce Stress
The biggest health benefit of meditation is that it reduces stress. In the Western world, meditating is primarily used in stress-reducing therapy. Opposed to taking anti-stress medication or other supplements for maintaining a calm manner, you can meditate using any of the guided meditations you prefer, such as the JKYog YouTube channel, which has many different meditations. Over 3,500 adults benefitted in a study, which later helped them develop a better grasp over their anxiety. By being less stressed, they lost considerable amounts of anxiety, helping them lead better lives. 4,600 people benefitted from less anxiety, based on a study that divided the two groups into meditators and non-meditators.
Restore Memory
A scientific study also shows that a certain type of method of meditation, a repetitive mantra with moving of the fingers, is very effective in restoring memory as you age. It has been proven to help patients with dementia and increases mental speed. Meditation also helps battle addiction, as a bonus for those who do not practice meditation for this advantage.
Increase Sleep Efficiency
Increasing sleep efficiency is a major quality of meditation that practitioners find extremely useful. According to the website Healthline, “nearly half of the population suffers from insomnia.” Studies prove that meditators sleep longer and quicker than those who do not. Meditation releases tension and helps you relax, so if you are looking for a quick and easy way to get more rest, you should meditate.
Increase Focus
When it comes to the matter of focus, many people struggle with this concept. Fortunately, in the same way, that training your mind is like working out on the spiritual side, meditating over time builds intense focus. This is very helpful for children in school, college students, or corporate workers. If you need help developing focus, try to meditate for 15 minutes a day, and see the difference right before your eyes.
Decrease Depression Levels
For those going through a tough time in their lives, or for those suffering from depression, meditation is a very valuable tool that doesn’t cure, but it does ease the person. Around 4,600 people have seen decreased depression levels. A study also proved that you gain 64% more dopamine than you do than when you are simply lying down and relaxing quietly. The effects of this prove that meditation provides a dopamine boost to those that are not receiving enough of it, and that can help battle depression. In another Healthline.com article, meditation is revealed to be one of the top 10 best ways to get higher dopamine naturally.
Positive Feelings
Meditation calms the body down, and it also helps you to think with a peaceful mind. It assists in experiencing positive feelings. The positive feelings generated by meditation can assist with many different things. Among them, anger management and relationship conflict are the two most prominent. Meditation relieves the negative emotions fueled by everyday activities.
Maintain Blood Pressure
Most beneficial for the masses is the decrease in blood pressure. The average American male 55 years or older has a blood pressure of 140/90, while the suggested blood pressure for over 60 years of age is 135/88. Most middle-aged men have blood pressure around 125/80, whereas the “healthy” blood pressure for 30-40-year-old men is around 120/80. More than 360,000 people died to high blood pressure-related problems. My dad recently went to the doctor to get a checkup, and his blood pressure was 121/80. To get his blood pressure down, the doctor offered to come back in five minutes. My dad meditated for a minute and his blood pressure returned to within range, a 110/70.
Subtle Body Relaxation Technique
In the Yog Vasishth, a scripture depicting a conversation between Lord Ram and his guru, Sage Vasishth, there was an incident as to where Lord Ram learned about the suffering that took place outside of his kingdom. Upon learning of this, he inquired about the reasons for pain and sickness in the world. Sage Vasishth explained that pain and sickness were the results of negative thoughts, which then affected the body. Subtle body relaxation, another technique of meditation and yoga, can assist with fighting off ailments. There is a five-step process to subtle body relaxation. First, start off by lying down in the Shavasan posture, which you can find out more about from the JKYog Yoga and Meditation website. Second, relax your body and do not move any of it. Next, develop sensations with your body, connecting with your senses. Proceed to make a firm resolve to meet God, and finally, finish by sending your subtle body to the spiritual realm.
Now that you know the main physical health benefits of meditation, you should also know the spiritual benefits. Via the MyDailySadhana course, you can do the aforementioned guided meditation at the end of each video lecture. The guided meditation helps you focus on God, all while providing these benefits. Doing these activities daily also helps for the long-term benefits, such as building focus and reducing stress and blood pressure. The array of things meditation helps with is truly amazing. Meditation does magical things all at once, keeping your mind and body well, and elevating your sadhana to high levels. So, knowing this, why shouldn’t you meditate? Even meditating for 5 or 10 minutes a day can get you all these benefits. So, whether you’re at work, school, or at home, fill up your downtime with magical meditation.
Roop Dhyan
Among JKYog’s countless contributions to the world, one of the most unique is arguably Roopdhyan meditation. There is truly nothing else like it, and it is different than 99% of the meditation techniques taught online. We should recall that the point of meditation is to calm the mind. One way to do this – and the most common way taught in most meditation circles – is to focus the mind on nothing, on the breathing, nothingness, or some relaxing nature sounds. Given enough practice, the mind can be trained in this way. However, in our experience, most people that try this have thoughts flowing into and out of their minds. What’s for dinner? What is traffic going to be like tomorrow? Did I pay the electric bill this month? Did I respond to that important email? Shri Krishna compares controlling the mind to the impossible task of controlling the wind.
chañchalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛiṣhṇa pramāthi balavad dṛiḍham
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye vāyor iva su-duṣhkaram
The mind is very restless, turbulent, strong and obstinate, O Krishna. It appears to me that it is more difficult to control than the wind.
A better option, then, is to not control the mind’s thoughts, but rather, redirect them towards God. In Roop Dhyan meditation, we think of the names, forms, activities (leelas), qualities, and abodes of God. This helps our mind continue its wanderings but focuses them on the purest of all objects – God. Focusing on the purest object helps purify our minds. One of our favorite Roop Dhyan meditations involves traveling back in time to visit a childhood Krishna in Vrindavan and playing games with him. Rather than focusing on nothingness, the mind is given the freedom to paint a transcendental picture, increasing our devotion, dedication, focus, and purity.
Tools for Meditation and Mental wellness
A large selection of Roop-Dhyan meditations is available on the JKYog YouTube channel and on the JK Yog website, including special mediations for children.
To learn more and receive updates for free registrations in the opportunities JKYog offers for youth meditation, adult meditation, and the other activities offered, join the WhatsApp group link –
Click here to join the WhatsApp group
Or you may also follow any of the links below.
For the Meditation Podcast by JKYog, click here - https://www.jkyog.org/store/products?f[0]=product-category:49
Free Registration for Adult Meditation Online Classes - https://www.jkyog.org/online-sessions-adults
Free Registration for Children Meditation Online Classes - https://www.jkyog.org/online-sessions-children
Free Children Meditation video - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkd0UYM460u7xhyM11rANNA
