I want to talk to you about a topic which is not really talked about very much (as its scary to those who call themselves spiritual), and applies to people who meditate regularly.

This is a very deep and advanced topic that can only be understood through the experience of doing, not merely by reading this article.

There are two types of spiritual people:

1. People who meditate to escape life, "control" their emotions, thoughts, feelings. Believing there is something inherently wrong with them that needs to be "fixed" with meditation
2. People who meditate for enjoyment, alternate experience
Majority of people fall into category 1 - escapism, even if they think they are part of category 2 - experience

A new study published online July 7 in EXPLORE: The Journal of Science and Healing highlights the importance of ensuring that new meditators select methods with which they are most comfortable, rather than those that are most popular.

If they do, they are likely to stick with it, says Adam Burke, the author of the study. If not, there is a higher chance they may abandon meditation altogether, losing out on its myriad personal and medical benefits. Burke is a professor of Health Education at SF State and the director of SF State’s Institute for Holistic Health Studies.

“Because of the increase in both general and clinical use of meditation, you want to make sure you’re finding the right method for each person,” he said. Although meditation has become significantly more popular in the U.S., Burke said, there have been very few studies comparing multiple methods head to head to examine individual preference or specific clinical benefits.

Thanks to Sat Bir Khalsa for this much-needed review of research on yoga, in a format fit for public consumption. What a relief that he includes research spanning the many dimensions of the yoga path - meditation, poses, breathing practices, chanting, etc. - not just a flattened, overly-simplified view of yoga as physical practice. His comment about William Broad's provocative (sensationalized) book on the science of yoga is quite thoughtful. It's also interesting to read his personal journey into yoga research. Overall, a quick and interesting read for anyone considering yoga in a therapeutic context.

Can yoga help reduce the stress that makes you look and feel older than your years? Does yoga help elevate your mood and make you mentally sharper? Will meditation enhance your spiritual outlook or give you a sense of peace and calm? As a Harvard neuro-scientist and a yoga practitioner for more than 4o years, I'm pleased to tell you the answers are a resounding "yes." As nearly everyone knows, life can be stressful—and it's only getting worse. In the American Psychological Association's "Stress in America" survey, nearly half of the more than 1,000 respondents reported having more stress in their lives than in the past five years.

It turns out meditating is good for more than just quiet time: It can actually help us fight the cripplingly high stress levels we experience during our busy lives, in the office or elsewhere.

Scientists from Harvard University and the University of Sienna recently found that meditation is so powerful it can change the physiology of a person's brain, resulting in positive changes like a decrease in anxiety and depression.

The science: Scientists put 24 participants with no history of meditation through an eight-week course on best practices for, "mindfulness based stress reduction (MBSR)," fancy science talk for meditation. The course consisted of 2.5 hour sessions each week where participants learned "body scanning, sitting meditation, walking meditation and mindful stretching movements." The scientists also requested each participant perform at least 45 minutes of meditation each day. MRIs were performed before and after the meditation boot camp, and each participant answered a series of psychological evaluations to determine their stress and anxiety levels before and after the MBSR course as well.

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