The practice of meditation could be listed under the self-help category. It has been used for thousands of years in many different forms. Recently, we sponsored a meditation retreat held at the Neahtawanta Inn, led by Pandavi from the Kripalu Center in Lenox, Massachusettes. The method Pandavi taught, based on Buddhist teachings, consists of sitting still with the spine straight and focusing on the breath. When the mind goes off on a tangent and begins to pursue a thought, the practitioner gently brings the mind back to the breathwithout criticism or judgement. Pandavi used the analogy of training a puppy to sit. We gently and firmly tell the puppy to sit; the puppy runs off. We gently and firmly bring the puppy back to the spot where we told it to sit, and so on. It is the gentle letting go of the thought and directing our mind back to the breath that brings us deeper into the meditation.
This method is not used in order to get spaced out or high. Rather, it teaches us to be fully aware and present in the moment. It takes practice, but eventually being fully present in the moment becomes an effective tool for dealing with the traumas of life. We dont need to escape or numb out. Even if some of the moments that were fully present in arent too pleasant, we find that we have the strength to deal with them.
Im not sure why it works, but I think its because through the practice of non-judgemental meditation a new level of acceptance is achieved. Through deeply connecting with ourselves we begin to generate self-love. And, as we connect with our own spirit deeply, we also feel the interconnectedness with all living beings. A greater degree of tolerance is achieved which brings a sense of inner peace. Its not zoning out, but rather going deeply into each experience of life and discovering its full meaning.