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You can think of it or not, but we leave in the crazy world where everything is not like it was a just a couple of centuries ago. Our previous generations inhaled fresh air, enjoyed clean water and produced natural food. What do we have today? Having the same physiology as it was 4 or 5 generations ago modern humans lead crazy lives! We consume bad water and extremely harmful soft drinks, stuff our stomachs with harmful food, breathe in filthy air and hear constant urban noise around us. As for the emotional and nervous tension, it is absolutely unbearable. Our speed of life makes us be in a hurry 24/7, we are overworked and stressed in our family lives, we don’t have enough rest and sleep to do extra work and make our carriers. We never give a thought to the fact that our body needs some time to relax and restore, what is more, our head needs some rest, too. Unfortunately, the majority of persons realize this simple truth when they fall seriously ill. Don’t become one of them! Think ahead and turn to entirely safe and highly effective practice known for centuries - meditation.

“Did it come to your mind that men and women who meditate every day are happier, healthier and enjoy longer life expectancy than those who don’t?” This utterance is rather usual now, but is it true or not?

What it meditation? It is a unique focusing practice where the vital task is to suspend the normal whirl of thoughts filling the mind. There are all kinds and sorts of meditation. Maybe you will be stunned to hear that a prayer is also a pure meditation as it is. In addition to this kind of focusing familiar for all believers there are Transcendental Meditation, mindfulness meditation, Zen meditation, Buddhist meditation and Taoist meditation.

Meditation is the realm of complementary medicine that unlike official medicine it never forgets that individuals have more than a mere aching body. Meditation views people as unique creatures having an inseparable unity of intellect, body and soul. Meditation teachers know for sure that you cannot be healthy and happy with your life if your brain is full of hate, anger and disappointment. The amazing fact is that more and more conventional doctors recommend their patients meditation as a way of managing many health issues. With meditation you can:

- lower your blood pressure;
- improve the general state of individuals with angina including their exercise performance;
- let men and women with asthma breathe easier;
- forget about insomnia;
- restore after everyday stressful day of life.

Meditation is a native activity for every human being, that is why it is up to you to make up your mind where you will practice meditation. Some humans choose to master meditation at home. It is very simple with all the instructional books and audio CDs available. Others choose to find a good teacher.

With all its simplicity meditation can offer you many options. There are several approaches to meditation. Here are some tips for you how to meditate.

1. Concentrate on your breath - keep your attention on the feeling of the stream of air going in and out of your nostrils. This is so called “mindfulness meditation” - the meditator should learn to be “mindful”, i.e. aware of the present moment of time, but his or her consciousness should be free of any judgments and reactions.

2. Focus on your body - keep your attention on the feelings in your organism: pain, warmth, discomfort, tension etc.

3. Focus on any word or phrase you like - keeping your attention on a word or phrase is called a “mantra”. Its general task is to keep your head free of any harmful thoughts.

It is wrong to believe that you should always sit during meditation. It is normal to lie down, to stand or even to walk. If for some reason sitting still is difficult for you, feel free to combine meditation with other practices such as yoga or tai chi - you will get double pleasure and positive effect!

The use of meditation for healing human body and soul is ancient. All contemporary meditative techniques are the result of years and years of work and mental experiments of people around the world. The healing power of mediation has been known and practiced for thousands of years. Its cornerstone is tradition and religion; its effect is health and inner harmony! To tell you the truth, all religious groups turn to meditation in one form or another.

It is doubtless that of all the religions Buddhism is a “father of meditation” - it is the best known and the most practiced sort of meditation in the world. Buddhists use the practice of meditation for reaching real wisdom and compassion and for seing reality as it is. Buddha followers believe that our usual consciousness is very narrow - it is both limited and limiting. Meditation broadens human horizons and makes it possible to reveal our conscious and unconscious possibilities profoundly.

The stunning truth is that in spite of its unique history and rich traditions, meditation has been unfairly ignored by the representatives of official medicine and only during the past thirty years the medical science focused on the studies of clinical effects of meditation on health. The 1960s started with amazing medical reports of yogis and meditation masters from the mysterious East who could show extraordinary bodily control and could consciously stay in altered states of their minds - and this is where studies of self-regulation and voluntary control over the autonomic nervous system started! The squeamish scientific world was deeply shocked when refined scientific instrumentation proved that unbelievable things can happen! Now health care professionals specializing in stress-related disorders had a unique way of treatment without awful side effects typical for drug treatments - it was the art of meditation! It turned out to be a valuable tool for stress reduction, and what is more, humans and physicians enjoyed both the process of healing meditation and the health benefits available with regular trainings!

But the greatest surprise was still to come! After some time of scientific research of meditation this activity turned out to be perfect not solely for changing the brain’s function in the short term. The medical facts demonstrated that regular practice of meditation produces a miraculous long-term positive effect! So, Transcendental Meditation in particular guarantees you a blissful state of relaxation including low heart and perspiration rates, decreased pulse rate, low concentration of cortisol in your blood (it is a major stress hormone) and high activity of the part of your brain responsible for rest and relaxation! Famous MD R. Keith Wallace studying Transcendental Meditation found out that during meditation the body gains the most profound rest imaginable. Paradoxically, your brain and mind become clear and more alert - your reactions are faster, your creativity and efficiency is greater and your comprehension of the world is broader!

As distinct from Transcendental Meditation, Taoists believe that our emotions are ruled by the Fire energy of the heart. When you cannot control your emotions, this fire energy flares upwards and devours your life energy and clouds your mind. But you can cope with that! Your willpower, on the contrary, is controlled by the Water energy located in your kidneys. If you do not control this energy, it flows down through your sexual organs, weakening your spirit and dissipating your life. So, Taoists believe that when you sit motionless doing nothing and thinking of nothing, i.e. when you are meditating your Fire and Water are well balanced. Water energy from the kidneys goes up to your head via the Central and Governing channels. At the same time Fire energy from the heart goes down into the Lower Elixir Field in the abdomen. Through this right circulation of two energies and by means of this mental alchemy in the body your mind becomes calmer, cooler and more controllable, while your sexual energy becomes really enjoyable!

Meditation is obviously one of the safest activities possible. It is great for persons of all ages and states of health. However, you should know that in personalities with bad psychiatric cases, there have been a few reports in which regular meditation has worsened the state of their mental health. If you have a psychiatric problem, please, ask your mental health professional before starting the practice of meditation.

One more necessary point - if you take meds on a regular basis never stop taking them before you have completed the course. The truth is meditation cannot give you stable relief immediately - in needs some time to work! If you cannot stand standing in line in the waiting room of your MD to get your prescription, find a reliable internet drugstore online where you can purchase meds no rx needed legally. Take definite steps to make your life better right now! And let healing mediation be your reliable guide.