Of all the types of meditation, the meditation that originated from Hinduism is the main type. In Hinduism, the meditation is known as yoga. “ The word yoga is derived from the Sanskrit root yuj which means “to join” or “to yoke:” the related meaning is “to focus attention on” or “ to use”.
The main aim of yoga is to restore the mind to simplicity and peace, and free it from confusion and distress. “Yoga is the human quest for remembering our true nature, our deepest selves”. There are number of branches of yoga: Bhakti yoga, Mantra yoga, Karma yoga, Hatha yoga, and Tantra yoga.
Bhakti yoga is the yoga of devotion. Bhakti yoga is the most natural path for those who are dominantly seeking emotional fulfillment and well being. The person practicing bhakti yoga is called “bhakta”. The “bhakta” usually practices meditation by visualizing, thinking and feeling that the Lord is sitting or standing before him. The “bhakta” pours out his heart’s love and shares his deepest thoughts and concerns with the Lord until a continual flow of awareness moves between devotee and the beloved Lord.
Mantra yoga is the yoga of sound. Mantra yoga makes use of sound to harmonize the body and focus the mind. It works with mantras, which can be a syllable, word, or phrase. “Yogi use mantras to achieve deep states of meditation and to invoke specific states of consciousness, and they believe that a mantra expressing a particular aspect of the divine will help to awaken that aspect of their own consciousness”.
Karma Yoga is the yoga of selfless action. Karma means action. Karma yoga practitioners believe that all actions whether bodily, vocal, or mental have far reaching consequences for which we must assume full responsibility. Karma yoga is meditating on living life so purely that people perform no hurtful or sinful actions.
Hatha yoga is the yoga of physical discipline. Hatha yoga is the practice of harmonizing the body’s inner currents until they are in perfect balance. The word hatha is a Sanskrit combination of the word ha (sun) and tha (moon), which is itself a union of opposites. Hatha yoga incorporates breathing exercises (pranayamas), stretching and strengthening exercises (asanas), and meditation.
Tantra yoga is the yoga of continuity. Tantra yoga is the mastery of kundalini, a powerful spiritual energy that resides within everyone. Tantra yoga focus on awakening and applying kundalini, the tremendous physical, chemical, and electrical energies of the body, that concentrated in certain nerve plexuses located in specific parts of the body called chakras (wheel of light), and transmitting signals up and down in spinal column. According to tantra yoga belief, there are seven chakras running up the spinal column. Meditating on each chakra will activate its power that gives certain abilities and benefits. “Your energy body is part of you, but not part of your physical body. It is the layer of you consisting of the energy that flows in and around your body, through your nadis, and concentrates in your chakras”
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