What is meditation

It involves the mental activity of the mind, its aims when meditating, is to find a different state of Consciousness through relaxed concentration. It is not praying as when we say prayers we are requesting help, guidance, and forgiveness. Meditation is contemplation on the subject. It is an art which takes time, and practice and effort when taken regularly with control, leads to be able to put your own thoughts at one side. We must achieve the complete relaxation of the physical body to use mind control; a stilling of the mind. It’s from the lack of thought of self and also the worries of the day, which you will strive to, achieve a state of inner serenity and peace. To a Spiritualist, the aims of meditation, is to gain knowledge, understanding, and mental awareness of the Spirit world to assist in developing medium-ship.

Meditation tips and exercise

There are many books, tapes and CDs that will help you to meditate. Here is a meditation I learned at a Spiritualist church:

To visualise is the key, to let your mind go blank. It is advisable to set a day or part of the day when you will be alone with no interruptions.

Prepare yourself and find a comfortable spot which is neither too cold nor hot. Wear clothes that are not too tight. If you can, use a chair with a back to lean against. If you have some soothing music it does help. First we need to clear the mind, which is quite hard at the beginning. It’s a good idea to join a group to enable you to learn the correct way to meditate. If you are on your own start with a simple prayer, also put a timer on say for about ten minutes before you start your meditation. Have a drink of water nearby. When you are sitting comfortably say a prayer for protection etc., then ask Spirit to join you on your journey. At first you may not get anything at all or even for a while, but rest assured Spirit will be there with you every step of the way. Starting from top to bottom of your body, tighten then loosen your muscles. Also control your breathing, say on a count of three. Breathe in, breathe out and do the counting until you feel relaxed. Then use these words to visualise, to take a walk to meet your helper or loved one.

Spirit Walk meditation

It is a bright sunny day and you can picture this in your mind, with your third eye. You are aware that every step you take you are walking with both God’s and Spirit’s knowledge. Imagine that you are walking and can hear the ripples of the water from the stream at your right side. In the distance you can see a white gate that Spirit has opened for you in this short time. Enter the gate, closing it behind you. You are now walking across a field of flowers and can smell their scent.

You can see the hill where a big oak tree stands. Go and sit by this tree. Asking Spirit to join you, feel the bark of the tree and warmth of the sun.

Your journey will finish when the timer goes off. Please use the next ten minutes to retrace your steps down the path until you get to the gate which you closed after you had walked through it the first time. (Spirit will lock this gate until you want to walk down it again.) Always finish with a prayer of thanks.

Remember how you felt, did it relax you?

Experiment with different kinds of mediation to find one or two that suit you.

At any time you feel unsure, retrace your steps to the white gate giving thanks to the Spirit world, those seen and unseen and don’t forget to give a thank you to God too.

Please do not get up too quickly as if you do meditate correctly you will be in an altered state and you may feel a little disorientated for a while. Take a drink of water and carry out an everyday chore in order to ground yourself.

With modern technology, we can use the computer and there are so many brilliant sites to join that offer development. However, it is still advisable to seek out a centre or a church that will also provide this development. If you wish to start your own circle, there are experienced bodies that can help you with this such as development. www.ism.org.uk.