An Introduction

What do you think of when you hear the term Inner Peace? For me, it is the intelligence and the pure awareness that is at the very core of our being. The force that is responsible to hold you intact and responsible in your life.

Now, Inner peace is something that many people aspire to achieve and with great reason. Who wouldn’t want to have that balance and clarity in how you view and experience life right?

Simply put, Inner peace is a state of mind. However, Inner peace is not something that you need to chase after. Inner peace is the true state of your existence. You may think that this isn’t the case as you barely get to feel any of it. But, what most of us fail to realize is that the reason for our suffering is because out true nature has been clouded by the beliefs, social expectations and things we have gathered through our five senses.

People try all sorts of different things such as excessive eating, intoxicants and excessive indulgence in pleasure to create some kind of peacefulness within them. And for a moment you think you have got there, but the next moment it seems like you’re far from it.

How to achieve Inner Peace?

To learn how to achive Inner Peace, you may require you to go through some form of sadhana or spiritual practice. However, it is not all these practices that causes this realization within you. The realization happens because it is the true nature. Hence your spiritual practices are just tools that will help you to understand this. Once you understand this simple truth, you will never be the same again.

I am not saying that you will never have to go through pain or challenges in life, but it’s just that you will be responding to it with grace and intelligence. Everything will start to feel a little lighter and you will start to feel closer and closer to your true nature.

The Bliss and Calm you seek is already within you. You just have to realize that you are not your thoughts or even the things happening in your life. Throughout your life you have identified yourself as these things and whenever something unfavorable happens, you immediately react to it and think that this is who you are.

Through regular practice of yoga and meditation as well as simple mind hacks, you can train your mind to always come back to the present moment, the pure awareness that you are.

The human mind is the most sophisticated device on this planet. It is a fantastic possibility if used properly. However, somewhere down the line we have lost touch with the very fundamental nature of human life.

Meditation for Beginners – Benefits and how to start your meditation practice

If you’ve been searching for meditation for beginners to land on this post, chances are you already know a little about meditation and would like to get started on implementing a regular meditation practice into your life, or you have no idea about meditation but is still interested to learn about it and the benefits it could bring into your life. Either way, keep reading to find out about meditation and how you can get started on this beautiful journey of self-transformation.

What is Meditation? 

You might have read and listened to many different views on what meditation is. While all these may have sounded different in their own ways, fundamentally the core of meditation is the same. Simply put, meditation is an inner process of transforming the way you view and experience life. It is a process of decluttering your mind from all the mental drama that has been created and learned through the five senses.

Benefits of Meditation

A habit that will help you establish other habits: 

Meditation is one of the most important habits you can establish. The subtle inner clarity and focus that you develop over time through meditation can be very supportive for your personal growth and the successful implementation of other habits that you want to incorporate into your life.

Understand your mental patterns:

The root cause of majority of the suffering in humanity is their own mental drama or self-created vivid imagination of destructive thoughts. Regular practice of mindfulness meditation can help you to disidentify from that subconscious chatter that criticizes and make you feel miserable. This happens to all of us and there is scientific evidence today to show that majority of us spend a great amount of our time fighting to rid our minds from these thoughts.

Learn to observe your thoughts without reacting to it: 

Now, this is my personal favorite thing about my meditation practice. Even after years of practicing meditation I still (and probably will always) have moments of negative thoughts that would mostly flip me out and react in anger. However, what I have noticed is that through daily practice of meditation, I am able to keep them at bay and even if they arise mostly I just observe the thought for what it is and let it pass. This is something that will definitely give yourself the mental solitude that you deserve.

Be present wherever you are: 

Life only happens in the present moment. Meditation helps you to cultivate mindfulness. The consistent returning to the breath during meditation helps you to come back to the present moment whenever you’re distracted (which is majority of the time). Until you feel a glimpse of this experience it can be hard to truly understand the value of the inner wellness this brings into your life.

Reduce stress and anxiety:

When you meditate regularly, you are literally rewiring your brain and its habitual patterns that have been formed over time. How you react to different situations in life is deeply influenced by the things you have gathered through your five senses. Through the regular practice of meditation, you change the way you react to things in a more conscious and responsible manner. Rather than simply reacting out of a painful place, you learn to take more conscious actions, and only if an action is required. Having this sense of wellness and clarity within you can drastically reduce your stress and anxiety levels.

These are only some of the benefits that I have personally experienced. There are so many more benefits of meditation that you will discover as you keep growing and learning from your personal experience.

How to start your meditation practice – A few tips to get you started

Set an intention to commit to meditating at least once a day: 

My advice would be not to set a goal of how many days or years as this may result in you having an expectation by the end of that. The best way is to simply commit to making it happen once a day. This way, even if you miss you can just do it the next day and keep going.

Set a time of the day: 

An ideal time would be the first thing when you wake up as this will help you start your working day with a clear and peaceful mind. I usually do my main meditation practice as soon as I wake up. Some people have found it beneficial to do their practice after their workday and before going to bed. Either way is fine as long as you keep up a regular practice.

Set a dedicated space: 

This is very important as this space can eventually give you a feeling of wellness and help you keep up with your practice whenever you feel discouraged. This does not need to be a big space. It can be a small corner in your living room or bedroom with a yoga mat or a cushion. Keeping some items that remind you to be mindful in this space can also be extremely rewarding.

Continue to learn about meditation: 

This is a journey that will shape your spiritual path. As you progress you will want to try different types of meditation and mindfulness practices. Fully embrace this learning curve with curiosity as this seeking will eventually lead you to find a practice or different practices that you will integrate into your life.

Sit down every day and set a time: 

Finally, the most important tip, which is sitting down to actually practice meditation every day. Just sit down with the intention of practice (can be cross-legged or even in a chair). The important thing is to be comfortable enough that your body will not be a distraction to your practice (Will only happen through regular practice).

With all this being said, It is very important to understand that meditation is not always easy or even peaceful. You should start your practice every day with no expectations and just learn to be present in whatever feeling that arises whether you see it as good or bad. But it truly has some amazing benefits that you will understand as you start and keep up with your practice.

Yoga is often a word that takes many colors and meanings in today’s popular culture. For some it means a physical sequence of flexibility movements while for others it’s a form of fitness exercise. However, in its simplest form, Yoga means union. Yoga is the ultimate dance of existence. The word yoga is a complete path by itself. Yoga can bring you to your ultimate reality.

A brief history of Yoga

During a time that predates all modern-day religions, Adiyogi or the first yogi transmitted the science of yoga to his seven disciples. The fundamental message from Adiyogi’s teachings were very simple and straight forward. “In is the only way out” as quoted by Sadhguru. These tools of individual transformation cleared path for many more great yogis to walk this planet spreading this wonderful gift to humanity.

However, yoga as we know now was founded by Patanajli who is also known as the father of modern day yoga. He assimilated the Ashtanga yoga or the 8 limbs of yoga. Everything falls under these 8 limbs that you can read about below. Having a fundamental understanding of these yoga sutras can help you grow and progress in your practice of yoga and feel more grounded.

Yamas:

Simply means the parameters or boundaries (such as right and wrong, pure and impure etc.) you set on yourself which decides your actions. This is very important because it can help us stay focused on our path towards realization. Below are the 5 Yamas to follow.

• Ahimsa – Non-Violence
• Satya – Truthfulness
• Asteya – No Stealing
• Brahmacharya – Moderation
• Aparygraha – Non Attachment

Niyamas:

Acceptance of self as it is or being the observer of life while it happens to you. Letting go of the need to control what happens to you and understanding that you can only optimize your awareness without any expectations of how life unfolds. The 5 disciplines you can practice to implement Niyamas are below.

• Saucha – Cleanliness
• Santosha – Contentment
• Tapas – Self-Discipline
• Svadhyaya – Self-Study
• Ishvara Pranidara – Surrender

Asanas:

The physical forms that yoga can take. All the different postures and movements from one posture to another. This is the vessel that will carry your body towards your ultimate reality.

Pranayama:

Controlled breathing or the essence of flowing the body with life force energy or Prana. Also known as Chi, Reiki etc. Learning of the human respiratory system and how the quality of your breath can directly influence the quality of your life.

Prathyahara:

To learn to cultivate the blissful awareness and gratitude from within ourselves and not from other external physical or sensory gratifications. Doesn’t mean to live free from any external desires but to keep yourself in check from depending on these for happiness.

Dharana:

A state of single pointed focus or no focus. Freedom from being controlled by your ego. Clearing up self from all identity or false reflections about self. A state of pure awareness as the true nature of your existence.

Dhyana:

Meditation. When all false identities have been cleared from the mind as self. When you can truly just be. Just sit and breathe in the emptiness or thoughtlessness. A state of no ego. Simply put, just observing life. It cannot be explained or taught but only experienced through the daily practice of the 6 above limbs.

Samadhi:

When we can hold and practice Dhyana, we can awaken Samadhi. The merging with reality. The awakening and experience of life beyond all dualities. Pure Awareness of the oneness realized experientially. Enlightenment.

The first two limbs are simply guidelines on how to treat our selves as well as others and the environment around us. Only through the regular practice of asanas, can we prepare our selves for pranayama. As you progress to Prathyahara you will be able to cultivate that inner joy and bliss through all senses. Dharana is deep state of meditativeness where you can experience a state of absolute awareness.

However, it is important to understand that this is a slow process that will transform you from within. Hence, like all good things, this will require you to put in the effort to implement each of the above overtime. From the first to the sixth limb is where you need to focus on as the seventh and eighth takes its own time to unfold.

Yoga means to move from a state of sleep to a state of wakefulness. To understand that your true reality is not all the things you have identified with such as your career, family, wealth or social status. Yoga means to be blissfully aware of your purest form of existence. Answering a very fundamental yet simple question can be a powerful way to come to this realization. “Who am I”?