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Rooted in Buddhist tradition, samatha means peaceful abiding. The practice involves sitting with yourself in stillness and training your awareness to rest on a single point of focus, like the breath This simple yet profound meditation helps you loosen the grip of restless thoughts, steady your mind, and discover a sense of clarity and calm that carries into daily life.
What Is Samatha Meditation?
This Buddhist form of meditation, according to the Lion’s Roar website, also called mindful meditation, can help balance your state of mind through focused awareness on a specific object, such as the breath or a body scan. The practice allows you to observe the thoughts and feelings happening in your mind. Instead of your thoughts pulling you in a million different directions, you take the reins. With time, you learn to experience all that mental activity as a peaceful observer, content in each moment.
Samatha meditation is practiced in a seven-point posture, according to a blog on YogaAnytime. First, you sit or lay down in a comfortable position. Then, straighten your back naturally, without straining yourself. Next, place your hands in a comfortable position, whether relaxed on your thighs, palms up by your side, or however you feel your best. Remember to loosen up your shoulders with an open heart, and release the tension in your jaw. Finally, choose to keep your eyes closed or open.
Once you’ve found yourself comfortable in the seven-point posture, it’s time to move onto the meditation. Samatha involves focused attention on a particular anchor, such as your breath, a visual object like a candle flame, a mantra, sounds, emotions, or abstract concepts like loving-kindness. If using your breath, notice as it moves in and out. You can apply this concentration to other objects as well, as a way to build concentration and present awareness.
Nothing to it, right? It sounds simple, but it’s not easy. It won’t take long for your thoughts to chatter and pull your mind in all sorts of directions. That’s okay! If you find your thoughts wandering, simply return to your focus.
Keep in mind that samatha isn’t a shortcut. It’s a gradual path that requires consistent practice. At first, you might find it difficult to sit still for even a minute. The Buddho foundation website recommends starting slowly with short sessions, maybe 10 or 20 minutes each day. With time, you’ll get better at focusing.
Benefits of Samatha Meditation
By gently guiding your attention back, again and again, you strengthen concentration the way you would a muscle. The result? A clearer mind, sharper memory, and a more peaceful state of being, according to Luxurious Magazine. Regular samatha practice supports focus and brain health while easing stress, so you can move through life with clarity and calm. Here are three ways it can help you.
Improved Focus and Concentration: Focus is a skill. And, like any skill, you get better with practice. Setting aside a little time each day for samatha will improve your concentration. Not only will you find it easier to pay attention during your meditation, you’ll also experience better focus in your everyday life. You’ll feel more alert and engaged at work or in conversations. You may even notice a heightened sense of presence and appreciation with each passing moment.
Better Brain Health: Sustained concentration required during samatha meditation can do wonders for your cognitive health. It trains your brain to focus, which boosts working memory and executive functioning. Over time, you may notice yourself thinking more clearly and feeling sharper. The practice may also improve neuroplasticity and increase grey matter density — the tissue that makes up your brain.
Lower Stress Levels: Want a natural way to feel calm? Samatha can help soothe your nerves naturally. The meditation practice has been shown to reduce stress and boost emotional well-being by lowering the stress hormone, cortisol. It also helps with emotional regulation, so you feel more at ease and less overwhelmed by overthinking.
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