Meditation: Encyclopedia II - Meditation - Types of meditation

Meditation - Types of meditation

According to Bogart (1991) and Perez-De-Albeniz & Holmes (2000) the different techniques of meditation can be classified according to their focus. That is, whether they focus on the field or background perception and experience, also called mindfulness, or whether they focus on a preselected specific object, also called "'concentrative' meditation." There are also techniques that shift between the field and the object.

Categorizing the varieties of meditation is difficult. One common way is according to religion or lineage. Of course, some meditative traditions such as yoga or tantra are common to several religions. Also, meditation increasingly occurs outside of religious contexts, or crosses religious boundaries. Therefore, to avoid controversies, this article will not attempt to classify all meditations into a religious class or lineage.

Meditation - Buddhism

Meditation has always enjoyed a central place within Buddhism. The Buddha himself was said to have achieved enlightenment while meditating under a Bodhi tree. Most forms of Buddhism distinguish between samatha and vipassana meditation, both of which are necessary for enlightenment. The former consists of learning to focus the attention single-pointedly; the latter involves seeing the true nature of reality.

Theravada Buddhism emphasizes vipassana meditation directed towards anapana, mettā bhāvanā, or 38 other traditional topics (see: Kammatthana).

In Japanese Mahayana schools, Tendai (Tien-tai), concentration is cultivated through highly structured ritual. Chinese Chan Buddhism (Sanskrit Dhyana, Japanese Zen) emphasizes ts'o ch'an and kung an meditation practices. The esoteric Shingon sect shares many features with Tibetan Buddhism.

Tibetan Buddhism emphasizes tantra for its senior practitioners; hence its alternate name of Vajrayana Buddhism. However, visitors to Tibetan monasteries are often surprised to discover that many monks go through their day without "meditating" in a recognizable form, but are more likely to chant or participate in group liturgy.

Meditation - Christianity

Christian traditions have various practices which might be identified as forms of "meditation." Many of these are monastic practices. Some types of Christian prayer, such as the rosary in Catholicism or the hesychasm in Eastern Orthodoxy, may be compared to the form of Eastern meditation that focuses on an individual object, but these comparisons often overlook the importance of prayer in these rituals.

Meditation - Judaism

The explicit concept of meditation, or in-depth contemplation (Hebrew hitbonenut) can be found in Kabbalah and Hassidic Judaism.

Meditation - Hinduism

There are several types of meditation in Hinduism.

• Vedanta is a form of Jnana Yoga.
• Raja Yoga, as outlined by Patanjali, describes eight "limbs" of spiritual practices, half of which might be classified as meditation. Underlying them is the assumption that a yogi should still the fluctuations of his or her mind: Yoga cittavrrti nirodha.
• Sant Mat teaches "sound and light meditation" (surat shabd yoga)
• Osho taught a wide variety of meditative techniques, including a "laughing meditation".

Meditation - Sufism

Within Islam, "meditation" refers to the Sufi practice of muraqaba. Similar forms of meditative ritual in Sufism include dhikr (recitation of the divine names), sema, whirling, and devotional music such as Qawwali.

Meditation - Sikhism

In Sikhism, the practices of simran and Nām Japō encourage quiet meditation.

Meditation - Taoism

Taoism includes a number of meditative and contemplative traditions. Originally said to have their principles described in the I Ching, Tao Te Ching, Chuang Tzu and Tao Tsang among other texts; the multitude of schools relating to Qigong, Neigong, Daoyin and Zhan zhuang are a large, diverse array of breath training practises in aid of meditation with much influence from later Chinese Buddhism and with much influence on traditional Chinese medicine and the Chinese as well as some Japanese martial arts. The Chinese martial art T'ai Chi Ch'uan is named after the well-known focus for Taoist and Neo-Confucian meditation, the T'ai Chi T'u, and is often referred to as “meditation in motion”.

Meditation - Transcendental Meditation

Transcendental Meditation is a modern form of meditation invented by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, an Indian spiritual teacher. It is grounded in Vedantic Hinduism, but also has its own innovations. Transcendental Meditation is based on a mantra, which is given to the practitioner by the teacher.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Types of meditation", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki