What Does Meditation Mean. Meditation is an increasingly popular way to both lower stress levels and increase wellbeing. This increasing popularity is in direct contrast with the misconceptions many people have about meditation and what it means. Many people feel that meditation means becoming some sort of mystic and leaving your mind and body open to the void. However, while meditation does involve a certain degree of mysticism, the truth is that meditation is simply getting into a better state of mind.

Meditation allows you to focus your mind and body in on one single objective: to become fully awake and aware. Mindfulness is also a form of meditation where you concentrate on feeling and perceiving all the things around you deeply, without judgment or interpretation. Practicing mindfulness includes guided imagery, breathing techniques, and other exercises to relax the mind and body and help to reduce stress. What Does Meditation Mean. In short, it’s about being present in each moment, paying close attention, letting go of anything that doesn’t serve you, and allowing you to experience a sense of peace.

Yogic scholar Dr. Matshi Monahan states “The trick to meditation is to pay attention to your thoughts… rather than your thoughts themselves. Meditation is not trying to escape reality or reduce it to the status of a lesser form, but learning to face it.” In other words, simply by ignoring any monahanic thoughts (thoughts that result from habitual thinking) and focusing on observing your body sensations (which are directly connected to your physical sensations) will help you bring more insight and even clarity to your life.