Among the many benefits of Hatha Yoga practice is enjoying a state of relaxation. If you have been practicing Yoga for a while, you might think this is a “no brainer.” Yet, you cannot expect someone who has never practiced Yoga before, to automatically know the benefits.

Relaxation, reduced stress, and being able to manage body weight are attractive reasons to begin and maintain a consistent Yoga practice. However, let’s take a closer look at the benefits of relaxation.

When you think about relaxation, what picture do you see in your mind? Most people would envision a vacation, when thinking about a state of relaxation. When should you take a vacation? Most people have created a vacation deficit and devote their lives to their career.

I have attended enough funerals and wakes to hear more than one widow state, “We were planning a dream vacation next year.” This is a sad state of affairs, when married couples do not spend quality time on vacation, but will work “their fingers to the bone” at multiple jobs.

Why do people want to go on vacation? The reason people want a vacation is to relax the mind and see new sites. Yoga teachers cannot promise you will see new sites in their studios, but you can be guaranteed to feel better than when you initially entered your class.

Yoga classes help students to lower their stress levels, and they are much more affordable than a vacation. Therefore, Yoga increases the quality of life, until you are in a better position to take time off from work, and enjoy a dream vacation.

Here are a few easy meditation techniques that you can quickly and simply integrate into your day to day life. These techniques have been taught to people all over the world in practical courses and were instrumental in assisting me to shift into a far more focused state. I am an actor, writer and, after much trepidation and hesitating, a healer and teacher.

When I was introduced to this work on a course about ten years ago I went, hey this is what I have been looking for all along, but no one knew how to tell me. So I hope these little techniques will assist you, as they have me, in finding the joy, adventure and wonder that is life.

Seven easy Meditation Techniques

1. The first is to ensure nobody and no thing can disturb you. Make sure all possible forms of distraction are miles away. There is nothing worse than reaching a deeply calm state only to have your cellular phone go off and startle you back into tension and anxiety. Or even worse, being half-way through a guided meditation when a cat jumps through the window and promptly jumps on your face. Not cool at all.

2. Next is the question of sitting or lying. In terms of your basic requirements for meditation it is best to either sit in a chair with a good back support, or to sit in the lotus position on a comfortable cushion. Most people are not flexible enough to sit in the lotus position so rather just find a comfortable chair with good back support. If you are sitting, avoid sitting in a normal cross legged position as this affects the natural energy flow of the body. Alternatively you can just lie down. However I would recommend that you create a particular place where you lie down, do not use the bed you sleep in. The reason being you have programmed your mind to fall into a very particular state when lying in bed and falling asleep. If you use your bed it is highly likely that you will just fall asleep and this will defeat the objective of meditation.

3. The next technique is around the question of posture. Ensure that if you are sitting that you hold what is called the magnetic posture. This means that the spine is lengthened, relaxed and straight. The best way to find this is to imagine stretching the top of your head towards the roof, whilst keeping your bum firmly on your chair. Then also ensure that your feet are not touching, and your hands are also not touching each other. Place your feet in such a way that the souls of your feet are in full contact with the ground, and as best you can ensure that your legs create a 90 degree angle, creating a square between your legs, the floor and the chair. If you are lying down, again do the best to feel your back and spine lengthening and relaxing along the floor or sofa. Again make sure that you legs are no touching each other and that your hands are just gently lying by your side.

4. Now for your eyes and your breath. Most beginners to meditation have a tendency to snap their eyes shut. This is counter productive. Before shutting your eyes, first gently gaze at an area in front of you on the wall or ceiling. Of all the easy meditation techniques that can be learnt this is the most important. Do not stare at a fixed point, as this takes you into a hypnotic state. But rather gently gaze at an area in front of you. Now, whilst keeping your eyes open bring your attention to your breath. Do the best you can to engage what is know as the three part breath. This means breathing in first with your diaphragm. To practice this is easy; just breathe focusing on your tummy. When the diaphragm is drawing in breath your tummy pushes outwards. Then breathe into the lower part of your chest and finally up to the top of your chest. This becomes easier with practice. Then you breathe out with your diaphragm first, allowing your tummy to deflate, then the mid-chest and finally the upper chest. Do this as slowly, deeply and easily as you can. When you have found the rhythm of breath turn your attention to your eyes. Over three to four deep breathes allow your eyes to gently close. Do it slowly and smoothly, as if your eyelids were blinds slowly dropping down over your eyes. When you first practice this your eyes may flutter a bit, but with practice the fluttering will stop.

5. Now with your eyes closed you are going to begin a very particular sequence of relaxation. And added to this is another very important and easy meditation technique: pretend that you are a child. Do not focus on being childish. I know a lot of adults who are childish and petulant. This makes it very difficult for them to access that wonderful state of childlikeness. As the saying goes: many grow old without growing up. One of the objectives of a metaphysician is to grow up as quickly as possible. When this is achieved, growing old physically is an option, one that most metaphysicians rarely take. So enter that special state of curiosity and wonderment. The childlike state. And from this space reach for the big toe on your right foot. And as you reach remember how as a child you used to talk to your body. Say hello to that big toe and then casually ask it to relax. Now go through each toe on you right foot and then start with the big toe on you left foot. And then allow the relaxation to move all the way up your feet, shins, knees and up to your thighs.

6. The next of these seven easy meditation techniques is to make a special effort to relax the long bones of the body. What this does is takes you into a deep alpha state, verging on the theta state. From this space your body is deeply relaxed and your mind becomes incredibly clear. This was discovered in relaxation research at U.C.L.A. If a person makes a special effort to relax the marrow of the thighs it is far easier to reach deep states of physical relaxation accompanied by profound mental clarity. So as you move up to your thighs make a special effort to relax the very marrow of the bones.

7. From here move up into your hip joints, the pelvic girdle, your anus and your genitals. When you pass over the anus and genitals again make a special effort to relax these organs as there is a lot of emotional tension and blockages placed in these areas due to social programming. From there move up the lower back, then the abdomen, then the upper back followed by the ribcage and chest. Then start with the hands, arms, elbows, upper arms into the shoulder joints. Move up your throat into the jaw, the facial muscles, the eyes and eyelids, over the scalp and right round to the nap of your neck.

And that is that. Once you have relaxed the whole body you can then take a few minutes to be present in that deeply relaxed state. You can, if you wish, ponder on the solution for things that you are addressing in your daily affairs. From this space it is far easier to see solutions as you are removed from the situation and you are not being interrupted. Most geniuses have done their greatest work or been most inspired during alpha and theta states. At first this exercise will take you roughly 30 minutes as a full process. But as you practice you can do this in 15 minutes or less.

When you are ready to come back from that space once again do not just snap your eyes open. Rather imagine yourself gently, casually settling back into your body and become aware of your surroundings before opening your eyes. Once you feel yourself back and present in your room and body, then casually and easily open your eyes.

Happy meditating and relaxing

Our lives have become a constant chore, an endless list of “things to do,” both at work and at home.

With all the technology available today, we can take our work anywhere, even during our holidays we are supposed to “get away from it all” and recharge our batteries.

We are constantly bombarded by stress.

Apart from the constant stress to make a living, many of our relationships we are stressing in one form or another.

Add to that the stress of constantly responding to the ever-growing needs of our children and our aging parents, and the countless other demands if routine life today.

It is easy to understand why we have so little time to relax.

Yet without a daily dose of relaxation, success will continue to get away from anyone who intends to reach. To succeed, you must first take time to relax and not an idea as crazy as it sounds.

The relaxation is part of what is necessary for a productive and successful life. Do not ever commit the mistake of confusing relaxation and idleness. People who find the time to relax are anything but lazy.
The key is to find time in your busy schedule to slow down and recharge yourself. Too often, people mistakenly think they have no time to relax, so they do not.

That may be what you think, too. If so, then it is time to change your way of thinking.

Here is a simple way to start, dust help you restore your energy when the batteries weaken our bodies.

Do you ever come to go out and instinctively turn your face towards the sun? I do this all the time, and maybe you too. You may understand why, but the sensation of sunlight on your skin warms you, refreshes you, invigorates you. The reason may be related to the fact that the sun produces solar energy source including plants, animals and even humans need to thrive and survive on land.

Although other energy sources exist, such as electricity, are all derived from the sun. Without the sun, these other sources of energy could not exist and neither should you!

So why not harness energy from the sun the next time you need a little help? You may be doing already without even thinking, and think how many benefits you will reap.

What’s even better is that you can reap the benefits, even without the sun. Maybe you’re stuck inside, or at night, or there are clouds outside when you need an energy boost. When this happens, you just need to press your visualization capabilities.

Here’s how:

Close your eyes and visualize yourself in the process of radiating energy from within, as the sun does. In your mind, create an image of the energy that fills every part of your body from the soles of your feet to the top of your skull, which warms and heals everything it touches. Sit calmly and continue with this visualization as long as you need. When you open your eyes, you should feel energized. Go ahead: try it now.
Or you can see a star ends its life in a giant supernova explosion. Close your eyes, relax and enjoy the material that falls on the basis of what remains of the exploding star, which forms a thick layer composed mainly of helium. Then visualize your body that captures the huge mass of energy that is released when the helium layer merges with other particles.

Finally, let this energy flow captured in every part of your body and feel that instantly energized.

These 2 examples are intended to illustrate how easy it is to use the power of visualization to imagine a source of energy fill your body every time your body needs rest and relaxation.

If you like walking, you might have found yourself many times on paths that lead you to places with some gorgeous water fountains with the calming sound of falling water and the fresh air around it all, even if you were never conscious of that decision. It is because subconsciously you’ve decided that you need that rest and relaxation that such a calming and refreshing place offers you.

We all experience lots of stress every day, be it at work, or due to or financial and economic situations, or even problems at home. The only way to unwind is for many to relax and meditate. Having an escape place such as a waterfall lets us recharge our batteries and allow us to prepare our mind and soul for the next day ahead.

Even if you don’t have a garden around your house or you live in a tiny flat, you can still enjoy the calming effects of a water fountain. There are many types available nowadays ranging from indoors to outdoor types, and with just a bit of upfront investment you can have your own little piece of the heaven on earth to retreat to any time you feel stress and need to relax.

If you have a garden or patio, you can easily install an outdoor fountain. There are many types available including the modern and eco-friendly solar ones, or the lion faced pieces that push the water out through the mouth of a beautiful and strong looking lion. For indoors you can have a gorgeous wall fountain or even a tabletop model that can be placed anywhere even if you are truly constrained by space.

No matter which type you go for, you can be safe in knowing that it will not only give you that peace of mind and relaxation that you need everyday but it will also greatly enhance the beauty of any room or garden it is placed in.

Breathing is the only vital function system dependent autonomic man can control. Participant regulating the nervous system, blood circulation, respiratory function is of course the capital of a point physiologically. From a psychological standpoint, the relationship between respiration and emotional state is more to prove. But in the context of emotional management, it is important to note that bilateral relationship is:
The psychic life affects breathing, respiration affects on the psyche.

Proper breathing has the extraordinary ability to bring us energy and well-being, while a poor respiration generates many disorders. It can result from poor posture, a physical stiffness, anxiety, stress, but most often a misunderstanding of the process yet so natural breathing.
The regular practice of conscious breathing transforms everything being, the body as well as the spirit: posture improves.
Aches and pains become less severe and can even disappear. Self-confidence grows, many things become more easy to do … The brain, the organ most consumer of oxygen, is stimulated promoting memory and concentration.

Breathing classical effectively reduces capacity vital, ie the largest volume of air that is able to enter and exit the lungs. Furthermore it requesting excessively thoracic respiratory muscles which divert part of their blood and would not benefit the same time the rest of the body. The effect would feel about the performance bottleneck with a precocious acid highly detrimental to performance.

We breathe between 20,000 and 30,000 times per day depending on the level of physical exertion. So take the time to breathe!