This blog post explores different ideas of prayer and meditation, the benefits they have for your mental health and overall well-being.
Meditation and prayer are two different rituals, and it’s not unusual that people often confuse the two. In fact, in most religions, prayer is a form of meditation because prayer involves directing your attention to Saints, Entities and the Creator or some higher power while praying for them.
Meditation is a way of bringing your awareness to the present moment and focusing on a specific object of attention, such as your breath. On the other hand, prayer is a form of ritual that involves honouring a divine figure, asking for forgiveness, being respectful and grateful for the work that once helped a lot of people overcome suffering.
For example, let’s say you’re having trouble sleeping because you keep thinking about the argument you had with your partner earlier that day. Instead of sitting in bed thinking about the conversation over and over in your head like some kind of weirdo, try meditating by focusing on something else entirely: the triangle meditation from the Secret Yoga Manual would be ideal for that or focus on your breath, candle flame or the nature around your space.
You could also set out a prayer by chanting 108 times the “OM Mani Padme Hum” mantra. It means “The Jewel is in the lotus”, which is at the heart of Buddhist traditions in India, Tibet and all around the world. Every Buddha’s teaching resides within this powerful mantra. It helps you to purify your body, mind and speech, transforming yourself silently into compassion and loving kind being.
Meditation and prayer are different practices, but they complement each other and both practices can be used for stress reduction, improve awareness and concentration in life and at work.
MJ @ Secret Yoga Sutra
He is the founder of Secret Yoga Sutra. He was born in Brazil where he initiated his passion for meditation. He moved to London, UK to read a degree in Economics and Business.To finance his studies, he become a personal trainer, helping people to achieve their fitness goals. During his studies, Mauro started to practice yoga on a regular basis and immediately after his final exam, he went to Rishikesh, India where he developed the Secret Yoga Manual Level I. He fell in love with yoga and decided not to work with finance, but to become a yoga teacher. He’s interested in consciousness as he has been practicing meditation for over 15 years and yoga for 8 years. He is the king of adjustment as he loves to help students to gain better alignment. MJ is an international yoga teacher who offers yoga, meditation and fitness training online and globally.