Meditation Techniques For The Modern World

We live in a hectic world that is hyper-connected 24/7 365 days of the year. It’s probably no surprise that a lot of people, myself included, are looking for ways to reduce the stress level through proper diet, exercise and meditation. Yes, you heard right. Meditation. That hippy stuff brought to the attention of North Americans during the counter-culture revolution in the 1960’s. But it goes back much farther than that; hundreds if not thousand of years of tradition surround many of these well-known techniques. There is a great deal of ceremony surrounding these rituals.

Zen

I was surprised to learn on the matcha tea blog that Zen Buddhist monks have a 900-year-old tradition where they regularly sit for their meditation, only after consuming their tea. Apparently matcha tea has just a little amount of caffeine so that the monks can remain calm. That's quite a contrast to the American cup of morning coffee! However, the whole meditation thing isn’t just for the Zen monks. According to this post on Wired, it’s also a big thing at Google, where they have bimonthly “mindful lunches” and even a labyrinth for walking meditations. Zen at work? Why not! If it’s good enough for the Dalai Lama and Richard Gere, it’s good enough for me.

Vipassana

Now if you really want to go old-school, there’s always Vipassana meditation. Dhamma.org says it’s “one of India's most ancient techniques of meditation” and was recently rediscovered about 2500 years ago by Gotama Buddha. I don’t know about you, but where I’m from 2500 years ago still qualifies as ancient. My elevator pitch for Vipassana; Vipassana basically achieves self-transformation through self-observation.

Primordial Sound Meditation

For something more modern try Primordial Sound Meditation (PSM), developed by Dr. Deepak Chopra and Dr. David Simon. In a bizarre kind of twist, PSM is actually a silent practice. In a nutshell, you repeat a personal mantra silently that brings you deeper levels of spiritual awareness. Apparently the mantra very specific to the individual and is calculated following Vedic mathematic formulas. Hey! What do I know? I failed calculus. But I hear that Lady Gaga has gone all, dare I say, all gaga for this technique. Although she’s not the only one into meditation.

Transcendental Meditation

The Beatles helped popularize Transcendental Meditation back in the 1960’s. Now Katy Perry and Russell Brand are bringing it to a whole new generation. According to WebMD, transcendental meditation is a “technique for avoiding distracting thoughts and promoting a state of relaxed awareness.” You sit in a comfortable position, close your eyes and silently repeat a mantra. Yeah, sounds a lot like Primordial Sound Meditation to me. Maybe that’s where Dr. Deepak Chopra and Dr. David Simon got their idea. You think?

Kundalini

With all this talk about famous people and meditation. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention this personal favorite of both Sting and Jennifer Aniston. Lululemon describes Kundalini as the “yoga of awareness”, building strength and releasing energy at the base of your spine. Apparently it’s one of the oldest forms of yoga, in existence since 500 B.C. but was never taught publicly until Yogi Bhajan revealed Kundalini to the Western world in 1969. The focus on breath, movement and the physical and mental aspects are hallmarks of this form of yoga. Meditation has been around a very long time in many shapes and forms. Our modern culture has openly embraced its many benefits. Pick a famous person and chances are they’re exploring it too.