Meditation, according to the dictionary, is “the emptying of the mind of thoughts, or the concentration of the mind on one thing, in order to aid mental or spiritual development, contemplation, or relaxation.”  The effects of meditation on the mind and body are so profound that it has become as important to modern health as nutrition and exercise, perhaps more important.

The followers of Mararishi Mahesh Yogi and his Transcendental Meditation movement in the 1970s led the way in meditation research. Since then over five hundred papers have been published in 108 scientific journals, authored by scientists at 211 research institutions and universities, in twenty-three countries worldwide. Studies of meditation have shown that quieting the mind through various forms of meditative practice benefit every system in the body, including weight loss, lower blood pressure, improved immunity, better digestion, reduced need for medications, as well as improved learning, concentration, less depression and anxiety and improved sleep. Other studies have found important benefits for such diverse populations as prison inmates, drug addicts, and Vietnam veterans suffering from posttraumatic stress disorders.

The latest research on meditation shows that it focuses the mind and awareness into the frontal lobes (FL) of the brain.  The frontal lobes are the command center of the brain, where the full resources of the brain are made available for decision making, creativity and the experience of happiness and joy. Whenever we are fully engaged in awareness of the moment, what is occurring now, we are in the frontal lobes. Sports, art, love-making, absorption into the beauty of nature, or, the wonder of any moment, are all frontal lobe experiences.  When we stop focusing our conscious awareness on the moment, the brain relaxes and goes on “automatic” and that is when we experience reactive thought, or self-talk.  Based on our past conditioning from childhood, the reactive mind will “pop” thoughts into our mind, called self-talk.  This endless inner monologue is the source of our stress; we worry about what may go wrong in the future, or, feel guilty about what did go wrong in the past.  These reactive mental patterns of thought and emotion create our worries, frustrations, resentments, anxiety, depression, guilt, anger, and an entire range of personal stress.

At the Center, we like “Frontal Lobe Training” as another term for mediation, which is an important part of stress management and health enhancement and is encouraged through a variety of tools, including classes, seminars, CDs and DVDs.

Mindfulness is another approach to meditation, which involves the ability to focus completely on only one thing at a time. In other words, in mindfulness the mind is full of whatever is happening right now. This can include walking, cooking, sweeping the floor, dancing, watching a bird, hearing the sound of a river, or any other focus you may choose. Whenever thoughts intrude, you simply return your attention back to the focus. This is a traditional Buddhist approach and has been widely popularized by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D., in the Stress Reduction Clinic, University of Massachusetts Medical Center, Worcester.