The Power of Meditation
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2010-06-22/power-meditation
![The Yoga Room's "Yoga For New York" program, October 2009 - Flickr user asterik611](http://thedianerehmshow.org/sites/thedianerehmshow.org/files/imagecache/620xH/images/headline/yoga.jpg "The Yoga Room's "Yoga For New York" program, October 2009 - Flickr user asterik611")
Millions of Americans practice some form of meditation to promote relaxation and reduce stress. But claims for greater health benefits are in need of further study. The power of meditation.
Guests
Josephine Briggs
researcher, physician and director of the National Institutes of Health's National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Jonathan Foust
senior teacher, the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, and former president of the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health.
Richard Davidson
director, Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior and the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Comments
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Regarding health benefits: here's an excerpt from a recent Speaking of Faith on stem cell research:
*Doris Taylor says she is passionate about "regenerating heart on a lot of different levels." And as she considers how new knowledge about stem cells might one day change the way we think about health across the life span — facing aging, for example, or cancer — she is studying how spiritual technologies like prayer and meditation might support that. She describes a very simple test she did on the Buddhist spiritual teacher Matthieu Ricard, who will be my guest on this program in two weeks. She measured a vast increase in stem cells in his blood after just 15 minutes of meditation.*
Also my late ex father-in-law participated in an NIH study in the 80s that found that prayer and meditation change the body's chemistry.
Mindfulness meditation has evolved for me based on hearing Jon Kabat-Zinn a few years ago. He expanded my definition of it, and the possibilities of it, to include being present or mindful, in any particular moment and even for an extended period throughout an ordinary day. With the practice of meditation (as in "practice, practice, practice") I developed the ability to be simply stop, be aware of, present to, and accepting of the current moment in the middle of an ordinary or even crazy day. When I pause, step back and notice myself being anxious or "plugged-in", a couple of deep breaths - and especially deep exhales - can lead me to that expanded space of being simply present to the moment without the chatter. I also have to thank Tara Brach for this - a wonderful meditation teacher, and the wife of Jonathan Foust. www.tarabrach.com.
I've been practicing Sahaj meditation for over 15 years now and even a few minutes a day keeps me less stressed, calmer, more joyful and I truly believe, a physically healthier person.
I had tried other meditation techniques before but found they kept me thinking when I really wanted to go beyond my thoughts.
I know how hard it is to shut your brain down but the more you do it the easier it becomes.
www.sahajmeditation.com - its free because its inside you..you cant buy something you own!
NCCAM has an amazing information service that can be reached at 1-888-644-6226. I am so pleased that I can received credible information on CAM therapies. Give them a call and get a publication list so you can order information for yourself. I have called my congressperson and senator to express my support for NCCAM's research and hope others do the same.
Hello All,
I was introduced to Sahaja Meditation during my 1st year in college... It's an absolutely free meditation practice. It helped me with my focus, kept me grounded and strengthened my morals. Overall, I felt very peaceful inside and the joy reflected outside. I thoroughly enjoyed the company of the practitioners, as they were simple and warm people. It has various benefits, here is a useful site http://www.freemeditation.com/benefits-of-meditation/
I have been doing it for 8 years now and I have never paid a penny for it. I hope you all enjoy it too...
I have always believed in the power of meditation. It's significant contribution to health includes giving you a peace of mind. I'm a very busy businesswoman and I'm trying hard to learn different meditation techniques as a way to manage my stressful life.