Types of Meditation to Incorporate into Your Personal Practice

If you are fairly new to your personal yoga practice, you’ve most likely realized that yoga provides benefits that extend far beyond a good stretch. In addition to its physical advantages, yoga is well-known for helping reduce stress, and helping create a sense of mental clarity and well-being. You can expand those benefits even further by adding meditation to your personal yoga practice. Scientific research has shown that nearly every kind of meditation can boost one’s mood, improve concentration, and significantly reduce stress levels.

If you are thinking about adding meditation to your yoga sessions, explore three different types of meditation to consider.

Transcendental meditation

When people think about meditation, transcendental meditation is the variation that most commonly comes to mind. This is likely due to its increasing popularity and media attention. Transcendental meditation arrived in the United States in the 1960s, and is centered around promoting relaxation. According to WebMD, this is achieved by “avoiding distracting thoughts” and “sit[ing] in a comfortable position with eyes closed and silently repeat[ing] a mantra.” Although yoga only involves sitting for a brief period of time, the core practice of transcendental meditation can still be used throughout your session.

Psychic meditation

The practice of psychic meditation is highly valuable during a yoga session. As its main goal, psychic meditation focuses on helping individuals “discover or access [their] inner [psychic] gifts.” The recommended conditions for practicing psychic meditation are highly similar to the recommended conditions for practicing any kind of yoga. One must find a quiet, calm space to achieve the maximum benefits from their meditation. Additionally, focusing on your breath and having overall awareness of what you are feeling are key components of both psychic meditation and yoga.

Kundalini meditations

Finally, Kundalini meditations are another exceptional use of meditation in your yoga practice. These meditations are frequently used by yoga instructors as part of their guided yoga classes. Kundalini meditations are ideal for those looking to reduce their stress and anxiety levels, since they help guide the breath and focus.

Benefits of using meditation in your yoga practice

Adding meditation to your yoga practice can help you make the most of your sessions. Whether you choose to use transcendental meditation, psychic meditation, or Kundalini meditations, you can expect to feel enhanced focus, concentration, and an overall sense of well-being.

Jenny Holt