Achieving Relaxation through Transcendental Meditation

Transcendental meditation does not have a series of different techniques to use while you are enjoying the practice; it is merely one of many techniques that people use as a source of de-stressing or relaxation. Transcendental meditation techniques are often confused as being a religion unto themselves by newly inquiring people. This simply is not true.

The name Transcendental was attached to an already common relaxation and meditation practice by the famous Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. This new name for one form of a relaxation exercise traveled into American homes with The Beatles singing group during the 1960's and is still very popular today in many circles.

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi was of Hindu religious roots, and he attached his personal religious goals of world peace onto this older form of meditation practice, calling his hopes that the world could find peace through relaxation practices, his Transcendental meditation technique. Which wasn't a bad idea; it just hasn't been very successful yet.

There's no big mystery behind what people are doing when they are using the relaxing Transcendental meditation techniques. You simply find a comfortable chair, bench, or rock to relax on for 15 minutes twice-a-day with your eyes closed. Some call this prayer, some call this meditation, and some call this relaxing; despite your presonal name for these Transcendental meditation techniques, we are all doing the same thing.

We are taught that our body gets out of bed in the morning, and that it keeps moving through various chores until we allow it to rest again at night. When we slide in a planned 15 minute "me" time under the name Transcendental meditation techniques, we give ourselves permission to step-back from our responsiblities for a brief almost mini-nap.

How this 15-minute relaxation technique works is that we have 5 senses: hearing, touch, sight, smell, and taste. In theory, we also have a sixth sense that allows us to become tuned-into an area where the outside world is meeting the spiritual or "cosmic" world. This area is found inbetween the point of being awake, and the point of being asleep.

Please, don't think that this inbetween place is a hard point to get to. Have you ever been startled when somebody has tapped you on the shoulder while you are daydreaming with your eyes wide open? That's it. This place of total relaxation is the same place that our minds retreat to without our permission to dream in while we are taking long drives, lounging in bubble baths, or while trying to live through a particularily boring lecture.

What Maharishi Mahesh Yogi calls his Transcendental meditation techniques is simply teaching your mind how to go into your sixth-sense area on purpose during a 15 minute period of time twice-a-day, instead of by chance at awkward moments. You already meditate naturally when given the chance to do it; you are just adding some control over when and where your mind practices this function.

During your normal daily routine your 5 senses are constantly being used in outside activities. To be able to drop into a state of meditation quickly for your 15 minute break, you must address perfecting your Transcendental meditation techniques towards controlling your hearing, touch, sight, smell, and taste functions so that they are not doing anything that will draw your 15 minute break time towards them.

Hearing needs to be controlled with a calm and quiet environmet while you are working on Transcendental meditation techniques. Your mind is not free to go exploring that relaxing place between wakefulness and sleep if you are forced to worry about the neighbors dog barking, people talking in the next room, or where to find a washer for your dripping faucet.

Even when you are outside with Mother Nature, your sense of hearing will continue to drag your mind towards the sounds that you are trying to recognize and place into context with your surroundings. To provide your hearing with something that keeps this sense under control, you will need pre-approved soothing sounds that you do not need to concentrate on.

Transendental meditation techniques music is available in both free and pay-for options ready to download from the internet. At the end of this article I have left you links on where to sample and find meditation music if you would like to go do that. Meditation music can be Native American drums and flutes to listen to, Monks chanting prayers, India whimsical flute music, or a nature tape of waves along the beach.

It doesn't matter what calming music you use, as long as your mind is not going to think about hearing it. When you find yourself humming along to the tune, or your hands banging on your legs along with the drums, it is time to get a different piece of music for your 15 minute relaxation breaks. You want to entertain your hearing, and not have your hearing entertain you.

Touch needs to be recognized as you are settling into your favorite chair for your 15 minute Transcendental mediation techniqes rituals. Take an inventory from toes on up until you are sure that each body part is completely comfortable in your sitting position. Your goal is to make sure that every part of your body is comfortable, so that nothing needs your attention while you are in your 15 minute restful state. Your hands should always rest palms up; a position preventing them from using the sense of touch.

Sight can be handled in one of two ways while you are practicing your Transcendental meditation techinques: eyes-open or eyes-closed. Obviously, by closing your eyes, you are instantly blocking your sense of sight from working, but for some leaving their eyes open is more desirable. To block-out your sense of sight with your eyes open, you will want to let your eyes rest upon only one item; a cross, a family photograph, items important to your ancestors, or your keyboard; this can all be done at your work desk.

Smell is a sense that it is not easy to keep occupied while you are practicing your 15 minute Transcendental meditation routine. Our poor noses keep insisting on bringing every new smell up into the brain for consideration no matter what we do to try to trick them. Some people find that burning incense is a way of making the nose acknowledge only this one powerful smell, while others like me find insense distracting because the smell is so overwhelming.

You will have to experiment for yourself with different souces of a constant smell that will allow your nose to relax with the rest of your body. Using nothing to direct where your sense of smell is going isn't normally the answer, as your other senses go into their rest state, your nose will work in double-time to find every tiny smell to compensate for the other relaxing senses. Try things like a dab of perfume, air fresheners, insence, or bundles of aromatic herbs set beside you, until you find the best smell for your nose to relax with.

Taste is a sense that is hooked into smell, along with having a mind-of-its-own (so to speak) that you must get under control whille you are using your Transcendental mediation techniques for your 15 minute break. We don't always think about our taste buds working after our meal is done, but they are still on the job registering the lingering garlic, the mouthwash taste mingled with the lingering garlic, and then the toothpaste taste mingled with the mouthwash and garlic remains.

For your Transcendental meditation techniques to work, taste needs either a complete nothing to work with, or something strong flavored to keep it busy while you relax. Some people enjoy drinking herb tea, or another light taste cleansing drink before starting to meditate. Others, from the school of sweets like myself, find that a lifesaver does the trick of keeping our tastes busy while our body is taking a break. Experiment a little, and you will find the best taste occupier to fit your individual meditation practices.

How to meditate with your Transcendental meditation techniques is an individualized process. The only thing that everybody actually agrees on is that you must sit somewhere comfortable for 15 minutes twice a day, while tricking your 5 senses into relaxing, so that you can relax with them. When you have achieved your goal of finding the place between your hectic awake realities and almost sleep, you will know it. All of a sudden, that report due tomorrow, and those thoughts of nagging gas prices will no longer be in your mind, leaving the mind free to explore "cosmic" and nicer thoughts without your 5 senses in the body keeping your mind tuned upon them. Meditation will have a nice daydream feel.

While taking your nice almost mini-nap twice a day, some involved with Transcendental meditation techniques let their minds communicate with God, higher beings, spirits, or ancestors, but this isn't necessary to experience the health benefits and enjoyment that Transcendental meditation techniques give.

Resources:

'Maharishi Mahesh Yogi' is a Wikipedia article explaining a bit about this leader of Trancendental meditation techniques. Click here to view this article about Transcendental meditation techniques and history.

'Health Benefits of Transcendental Meditation' is a nice article explaining some of the health benefits that you can achieve from using Transcendental meditation techniques. Click here to view this article about Transcendental meditation techniques.

'Free Meditation Music Finder' is an article that has links in it on where to find and sample free downloads of music that will work with Transcendental meditation techniques. Click here to view this article.