5.7 Meditation

Do Now  What do you think of when you hear the word meditate?  Have you ever meditated?  Did you try the one I gave you in B to B class?  Did you feel meditative when we were doing yoga back in October?

Is this how you picture it?this

What is Meditation?  Meditation is practice in relaxation, concentration and awareness.  Depending on the type of meditation it can be described a variety of ways.  Essentially, it involves relaxation, awareness of breathing, quieting of the thoughts, concentration and focus on one idea or object, and ultimately a state called contemplation.

Why Meditate?  Recently, studies have shown that meditation has a positive impact on overall health and greatly reduces stress.  Specifically, meditation can help with: muscle tension-immune system blood pressure-PMS oxygen use-exercise tolerance

How can I meditate?  You might think that you are too busy to meditate or that your house is too loud.  Anyone can meditate anywhere at any time.  You can meditate on the bus, at your desk, on the living room floor, even while walking or washing dishes.  All you have to do is try to quiet your thoughts, be aware of your breathing, and focus on one word or thing.

More Explanation  One author explains how meditation can work for high school students on her website.website

Let’s Try One  Counting breaths, picturing horses galloping through a sunny meadow, using a mantra (aaaaahlriiighteeeee thennnnnnnn), or using the guided meditation from Thich Nhat Han that we looked at in B-B are all examples of meditations you can use.  We are going to try one now.  Which would you like to use?

How do you feel now?  Do you feel more awake? Maybe more calm?  Do your muscles feel different?  Was it hard to block out your thoughts?

Homework  The visualization we read on-line might not be your idea of the most peaceful place.  For me, a meadow can conjure up images of bug bites and itchy grass allergies, but watching the sun set over the beach while listening to the waves is just right.  You are going to write your own visualization based on the one from Susan Kramer.

Ticket Out  On your ticket out, write the following: 1. a question about meditation; 2. a new thing you learned; 3. an idea for the setting of your visualization.