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I am always looking for new ways to manage my stress. I live in a low income family of five, so I'm usually stressed out about something. Relaxing, herbal teas, pampering yourself and meditation can help relieve stress. For today's dictionary term I will explore meditation. What exactly is it? Where did it come from? What forms of meditation are there? How can meditation help relieve stress? I will try to answer these questions in this post.

Meditation is the art of relaxation. The first step in meditation is learning how to breathe properly. Put yourself in a quiet dark room. Soft music or nature sounds also can help you to relax. Count to ten while taking in deep breaths. Deep breathing will help your muscles to relax.



According to Wikipedia, "The word meditation originally comes from the Indo-European root med-, meaning 'to measure.' From the root med- are also derived the English words mete, medicine, modest, and moderate. It entered English as meditation through the Latin meditatio, which originally indicated every type of physical or intellectual exercise, then later evolved into the more specific meaning 'contemplation.'"

There are also religious forms of meditation. Yoga is a form of meditation derived from Hinduism. The object of yoga is to reach a calm state of mind. Meditation is also an important aspect of Buddhism. The purpose of Buddhist meditation is to awaken the sky-like nature of mind, and to introduce practitioners to that which they really are: unchanging pure awareness, which underlies the whole of life and death. Prayer in Christianity is also considered a form of meditation. I meditate whenever I pray the rosary. Prayer is calm, relaxing and a great stress reliever.

Through relaxation and focusing your mind away from pressures in your life meditation is a great stress reliever. For more information on reducing stress through meditation visit the links below.

Wikipeda
Learning to Relax




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