Buddhist Teaching of Nirvana

Meditation is believed to have originated from the followers of Buddhism.  Buddhist teaching of Nirvana or the end of suffering may be attained by cultivating within oneself the values of morality, mindfulness and wisdom.  The means to Mindfulness is through Meditation, the ancient Buddhist ritual. Meditation has been with the world for thousands of years.  It has evolved from its spiritual origin and is practiced today for health, therapeutic and wellness reasons as well.  They have several techniques like, Breathing, Transforming, and Transcendental.   The basic components that must be present in meditation are:  a quiet place, a relaxed posture, deep concentration, and open mind.

Apart from the religious relevance of Meditation, it also has its practical importance in our modern and daily existence. Life these days can be so rushed.  Most of the time, our energy is sapped and we are over-fatigued.  We work more, relax less.  Our health can be negatively affected.  If we stop for a few minutes and do Breathing Meditation we will calm our nerves and reduce our stress. Meditation helps change mental attitudes.  When our minds are troubled, we are generally unhappy.  With Transforming Meditation we focus on pleasant thoughts and become individuals with peaceful and happy dispositions.  Transforming Meditation is a common spiritual exercise of the Buddhist religion. Worldly concerns fill our minds with worries.  We need to relieve our minds with this mental garbage and unwanted burden.  Then and only then will we truly be liberated and in the process find peace of mind and gladness of heart.  Even if we have the best things in life, these would not necessarily make us happy.  It would be inner calm and quiet that would make for lasting and real joy, even in the most challenged situations.  Such state could be attained if we are trained in the ways of Meditation.

Controlling the mind is difficult.  The mind is pliant that it goes with the flow of circumstances.  When everything goes the way we want them to go, then we are pleased.  If it is contrary to how we want things to be, we feel bad.  These things, pleasant and unpleasant, affect our disposition in life.  Our being happy or sad depends on the occurrences in our daily existence.  With Meditation we will learn to control our mind and consequently our heart, the seat of our emotions.  Meditation creates an inner balance in us and it enables us to take both the difficult and smooth times with equanimity.

Meditation drives away negative attitudes that cause us misery.  When we resort to meditation as a routine we train our minds to focus on the positive.  This way, we always see the bright side of life. Most wellness clinics promote the practice of Meditation.  Wellness through Meditation relaxes the body, calms the mind and soothes the soul to combat diseases and illness.  Research is also ongoing to find conclusive health benefits of Meditation.  They are optimistic that Mediation may help find cures for certain diseases and medical conditions.  “Meditation for health purposes is a mind-body practice in complimentary and alternative medicine. There are many types of Meditation.  A conscious mental process using certain techniques, such as focusing attention or maintaining a specific posture – to suspend the stream of thoughts and relax the mind…” (NCCAM, 2007).

As an alternative and complement to conventional medicine, Meditation may be used to heal mind and body maladies.  Health and medical practitioners study the relationship of man’s brain, mind, body and his behavior and their reactions to each other.  They are hoping to use the mind to influence the other body functions.  Some health problems are caused or associated with the emotional, mental, social, spiritual and behavioral state of the individual.  Examples of these ailments are:  anxiety, pain, depression, low self-esteem, mood swings, stress, insomnia and the physical and emotional pain of heart diseases, HIV/AIDS and cancer.

Meditation helps patients handle their medical condition better through awareness and acceptance.  While meditating, a person concentrates on his body experience minus the distractions.    The person is allowed to experience the sensation without the deductive reaction.  The body is allowed to calm down, rest and relax.

Managing stress, ability to cope, and therapeutic relaxation complement cure for disorders accompanied by pain like arthritis.  In other cases and disorders, prior to surgery, patients are made to undergo relaxation procedures that may lessen pain and shorten recovery time.  Studies continue to find how mind-body interventions may be applied to the psychological part of treating patients with chronic ailments and as well as that in need of palliative care.

Meditation is many things to many people, a practice that has been handed down through generations.  It promotes the concept of mind power in combating ailments, in de-stressing, in enhancing one’s spirituality, conquering pain, training the mind and heart to things positive, and self-healing.  The benefits of meditation extend from the spiritual, mental, psychological to the physical circumstances of people.  They have calm, happy, positive and healthy outlook in life. Generally, meditators were transformed and have transcended.

References

• Dharma. (2007). Meditation and Mental Culture.  Retrieved September 9, 2007
• Dharma. (2007). The Noble Eight-fold Path.  Retrieved September 9, 2007 from
• http://dharma.nef.ca/introduction/truths/NobleTruth-4html
• How to Meditate.Org. (2002-2003). How to Meditate.  Retrieved September 9, 2007 from http://www.how-to-meditate.org/
• NCCAM. (2007, August 22). Meditation.  Retrieved September 9, 2007 from
• http://nccam.nih.gov/health/meditation/
• NCCAM. (2007, August 3). Meditation for Health Purposes. Retrieved September 9, 2007 from
• http://nccam.nih.gov/health/meditation/overview.htm
• NCCAM. (2007, July 13). Mind-Body Medicine: An Overview. Retrieved September 9, 2007 from http://nccam.nih.gov/health/backgrounds/mindbody.htm