What is meditation and why bother?

Spiritual seekers perceive meditation as a necessary way to connect with their deeper inner selves. The Western world has only recently discovered the great benefits of meditation while in the Eastern world it has been essential to their spiritual practice and discipline. We now have a much better understanding and appreciation for meditation, no longer do we see it as just a pass time but an important way to develop inner peace.

When I was eighteen I became very interested in meditation and begun doing yoga and meditating consistently. I also devoured books like Linda Goodman's Star Signs, it was the genesis of my own personal spiritual journey. Meditation was hard at first but eventually it became a necessary habit and helped me in many ways, spiritually, physically, mentally. We all have a pivotal point in life when we find ourselves looking for a way to quiet our mind, which is filled with constant chatter, fears, anxieties, worries; jumping from one thought to the next. The Buddhist called this the "Monkey Mind" of which we all suffer, meditating helps slow down that "Monkey Mind".

Meditation isn't about closing our eyes, and waiting to experience some kind of trance. Far from ti,rather it is achieving focus, a maximum concentration which helps us reach a state in which our body, mind and spirit are one. It is the first step toward the ultimate inner voyage and self discovery.