123. Benefits of Meditation

Health

Meditation results in holistic health. It gives good health on the physical, mental and emotional levels. Specific health benefits reported by some who meditate are:

• 1. The stabilization of high or low blood pressure, blood sugar, body heat and heartbeat.
• 2. The balancing of mind/body rhythms.
• 3. Reduction of muscle tension, stronger bones, immunity from disease.
• 4. Cleansing quicker elimination of toxins and body waste.
• 5. Overcoming insomnia and improved quality of sleep.
• 6. Enhanced energy, increased work capacity.
• 7. Longer life span improved body metabolism and body cells with a longer life span.
• 8. Secretion of healthy body chemicals increased secretion of natural antidepressants, enhanced secretion of endorphins, the body's 'happy chemicals'.
• 9. Relationships Meditation inherently puts you in tune with yourself and others. The direct result of this is deeper, more meaningful interpersonal relationships with family, friends and with everyone you encounter in your daily life.
• 10. Intelligence To work efficiently, one needs intelligence. Meditation ignites your innate intelligence making you more aware and sharp. The natural result of this is improved, efficient and effortless performance in whatever you do.
• 11. Creativity Each of us holds within us an undiscovered treasure of talent and potential. Meditation reveals and helps you realize your inner talents and latent creativity.
• 12. Authenticity Meditation allows you to touch base with the real you, and makes you realize your uniqueness. Self-confidence then becomes a natural byproduct.
• 13. Balance Most of us live life as a roller-coaster ride, held in the sway of emotions like worry, jealousy, discontentment, fear, anger, guilt, etc. over which we have no control. Meditation enables you to be centered in yourself, have a solid inner balance and thus be the master of your own self.
• 14. Relaxation, peace, bliss A natural byproduct of meditation is something we spend almost a lifetime trying to attain: inner relaxation and peace. With meditation, you automatically drop out of the vicious cycle of fear, greed and stress, and enter the virtuous cycle of bliss.
• 15. Holistic spiritual growth To measure intellect, we have IQ or Intelligence Quotient, which is measured by many standardized tests. Of late, another measure is gaining importance, especially in the corporate world, namely EQ or Emotional Quotient. However, the most important factor of our lives - inner satisfaction and fulfillment - is what matters at the end of the day. Meditation enhances this very important factor of life, SQ or Spiritual Quotient, besides also increasing IQ and EQ.
• 16. Life As of now, our mental setup is rigid and reflects our personality. Because of this self-image we carry in our minds, we face a lot of troubles in life and are not able to enjoy life completely. Meditation simply reprograms the software of the mind so that we can live life completely.
• 17. Ultimate potential You are like an airplane with the potential to fly, but you think you are an ox-cart because you have not actualized your potential. Meditation simply makes you realize and experience who you really are and the enormous capabilities you have been born with.

When you are aware, you will work optimally and use your energy efficiently.

Actually if you see the truth of the situation, it is not a question of less time or

more work. It is your attitude about these things that makes the difference.

Just try this: whatever you do, act with awareness. If you are eating, eat with awareness. No extra time is needed to do this. In fact, it will take less time to eat because when you eat with awareness, you will eat just the amount your body needs rather than stuffing food down your throat thoughtlessly.

Awareness has tremendous knowledge. Awareness can do better miracles than all your planning. Awareness doesn't contradict, it complements the plans. It will add to the potentiality.

When you are aware, you are absent. When awareness is present, your ego can't exist. When your ego exists, awareness can't be present. 'Your absence' will make you live enlightenment.

When you are aware, you will work optimally and use your energy efficiently. So at the end of the day you are just as fresh as in the morning. You see, it is not the work that exhausts you. It is your mind, your attitude.

Take a simple example. Compare when you have to walk two miles to office versus taking a leisure walk for the same two miles along the beach. The walk to your office is like work and you feel tired. But the walk on the beach is refreshing because you feel it is a leisurely experience. The whole thing depends upon your state of mind when you do things.

The whole game of meditation is to get out of the work-oriented mind and look at every moment of life as a beautiful Divine play.