Cracking the Code of Meditation: Analyzing the Top 5 Meditation Quotes
Introduction
Meditation is old! It has been around for thousands of years, but it’s only in recent years that we’ve started to understand the neuroscience behind its benefits. Regular meditation practice has been shown to change the structure and function of the brain, particularly in areas related to attention, emotion regulation, and self-awareness. Pretty breath-taking! In this post, we’ll explore five inspiring quotes on meditation and delve into the neuroscience behind them.
The Top Five Meditation Quotes
Quote 1 – Deepak Chopra
“Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet. It is a way of entering into the quiet that is already there – buried under the 50,000 thoughts the average person thinks every day.”
Commentary:
Research has shown that regular meditation practice can actually change the structure and function of the brain, particularly in areas related to attention and emotional regulation. When in meditation, we access the underlying stillness of the mind, and can strengthen neural connections associated with inner calm. This way, we can reduce the impact of neural networks associated with stress and anxiety. Let’s put this quote into practice; try to approach meditation with the intention of accessing the stillness that is already present within you, rather than trying to force your mind to be quiet.
Quote 2 – Arianna Huffington
“Meditation is the art of focusing 100% of your attention in one area. The practice comes with all sorts of incredible benefits, but it’s notoriously hard to get started. This is where technology can help.”
Commentary:
Neuroscience has shown that focused attention can actually change the structure and function of the brain, particularly in areas related to attention and executive function. This is very exciting because by using technology to aid in meditation practice, we can make it easier for us to develop the neural networks. We are especially interested in those networks associated with focused attention. We can even improve our ability to sustain attention over time.
Practice
Let’s put this quote into practice; consider using a meditation app or guided meditation to help you get started with your practice.
Quote 3 – Jiddu Krishnamurti
“Meditation is not a means to an end. It is both the means and the end.”
Commentary:
By approaching meditation as a complete practice in and of itself, rather than simply a means to an end, we can develop the neural networks associated with these benefits and strengthen them over time.
Practice
To put this quote into practice, try to approach your meditation practice with a sense of curiosity and openness, rather than with a specific goal in mind.
Quote 4 – Sharon Salzberg
“Meditation is not a way of avoiding reality, but a way of understanding and embracing it.”
Commentary:
By cultivating mindfulness and awareness through meditation, we can develop neural networks associated with emotion regulation and perspective-taking. Now, this is going to come in handy when you have to face the real world. You don’t want to be reactive and closed minded do you?
Practice
Let’s put this quote into practice, try to approach your meditation practice as a way of developing a greater understanding and acceptance of your own thoughts and emotions, rather than trying to push them away.
Quote 5 – Geshe Kelsang Gyatso
“The purpose of meditation is to make our mind calm and peaceful. If our mind is peaceful, we will be free from worries and mental discomfort, and so we will experience true happiness.”
Commentary:
As you continue to meditate regularly, you may start to notice that your mind becomes more peaceful and calm, and that you are better able to handle stress and challenges. Over time, this can lead to a greater sense of happiness and well-being in your daily life. Peace, after all, is always a good thing. If you find peace, worry cannot touch you, and happiness can be found.
Practice
Putting this one into practice, we should remember that we can learn to have control over our inner peace. Avoid consuming TV, movies, books or anything that separates you from a sense of inner peace.
Conclusion
So, you have read all about meditation, but nothing happens until you start doing it. Most people these days use an app, so make sure you get yourself a good one. I like MindFit. Carve out at least fifteen minutes of your day, and get meditating
