December 10th, 2008 | by Jack Reichert

Growing up with ADD, I have constantly struggled with focus. My mind will jump from place to place and it is difficult to stay on one topic at a time. This can be great for creative thinking: if your mind jumps everywhere, you will start to see associations everywhere. But when it comes to finishing a task, that can be a nightmare!

So as my life has gone forward I have developed many techniques to get the things done that I need to do. The most powerful technique of all time is breathing. Aside from there being so many health benefits to breathing right, another important benefit you can reap is for your mind.

When hearing the word “meditation,” often you might think of sitting in the lotus position with your hands resting on your thighs with your thumbs pressed against your index fingers, palms up. But actually there are many forms of meditation:

“In its most general sense, meditation consists of thinking in a controlled manner. It is deciding exactly how one wishes to direct the mind for a period of time, and then doing it.”

These lines are from Jewish Meditation: A Practical Guide by Aryeh Kaplan. While this book was written to provide an introduction to Jewish Meditation in particular, it is one of the most understandable and powerful practical guides to meditation. An added bonus is that it gives a concise overview of Kabbalah from a non-Hollywood perspective.

But looking back at the quoted passage essentially, meditation is thinking in a controlled manner. If you sit down to work out an action plan and you think it through, focused, you are essentially meditating. But then, why the images of the yogi when envisioning meditation?

For millennia people have been developing meditation techniques. Knowing that meditation is essentially focusing your thoughts, wouldn’t you want to know about these thousands of years of development as well?

What has been discovered and developed is that our breathing has a very powerful effect on our mind and body. When we are stressed our breathing becomes shallow, and when we sleep it becomes deep. The reverse is true as well: if you take small quick breaths it will be difficult for you to think and if you take deep breaths you will naturally relax.

The meditation masters cultivate this. As they focus their minds, they practice different types of breathing. Some say that it can take a decade to develop one breathing technique to a master’s approval. There are positions and movements that can be incorporated, but the essence is the same. Meditation is developing focus.

Knowing how simple the concept is, you can do this as well. By breathing deeply for a few minutes a day, you can cultivate your ability to focus. It will take time, but I guarantee that you will see the benefits. The best part is that you can do this anytime or anywhere.

If you are washing dishes or jogging try focusing your breathing while your body does the monotonous task that it is involved in, and focus your thoughts. Start with a few minutes and add more in time. You will see your progress and amaze yourself at how you are able to stay focused on tasks that you would not have been able to focus on previously.

I like to do this during my daily prayers. Prayer and meditation fit together better than peanutbutter and jelly. But even if you do not pray regularly, you can take five minutes (to start with) and just sit quietly and breathe.
Image Credit: Dey

Tags: creative thinking, deep breath, meditation techniques, mind and body, practical guides, stress

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 10th, 2008 at 5:19 pm and is filed under Live in Balance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.