Despite all the positive results that are known to happen with meditation, many people still avoid taking advantage of the health benefits and sense of well-being that come with a regular meditation practice.

It's not that they don't believe the literature and claims. Well, in most cases it's not that. It may seem a little far-fetched to the average person to believe that sitting still and breathing quietly a couple of times a day can lower blood pressure, calm nerves jangled by modern society, aid in the solution of problems, increase creativity...the list goes on.

Then they realize that it's not JUST sitting still and breathing quietly. These meditating people must be DOING something to get all those results...if they really do! And if they're doing something, and getting such great results...well, then, they must be doing something difficult! It's difficult to imagine just sitting still and being alone with yourself for several minutes in our modern society, much less doing it properly AND getting great benefits!

Nope! It's too tough for me. I wish I could learn mediation techniques, but I don't think I could do it properly, or else I wouldn't like crawling around in my head. No telling what's up there!

It's really the fear of the unknown, the fear of having to learn some complicated technique, and the fear of failure that keeps many from trying the pleasureable experience of meditation.

WELL, I'VE GOT SOME GOOD NEWS FOR YA, BUNKY!

You don't have to travel to India, study under masters, or even light a candle and sit in the corner by yourself to get many of the benefits of meditation.

SOME NON-MEDITATION TECHNIQUES

1. Prayer. I'm not much into prayer these days, but I remember another time in my life when I was. During the moments that I was praying, I felt somewhat safe and separated from the rude world. Actually, prayer is a form of meditation. Meditators achieve many of the beneficial results by, in a way, praying. They may not be praying to a god, but they are repeating old familiar sounds, and are flowing with those utterances. Say OM enough times, or say the "Hail Mary" enough times, and you can achieve a lot of meditation. In fact, a study I read about many years ago seemed to indicate that many Catholics could achieve a meditative state by saying the Rosary.

2. Exercise. Now, I'm not talking about trying to lift a cow up over your head. Anyway, that's been done by Milo of Kroton, and see where it got him. Devoured by wild animal, you betcha! What I am talking about is a nice long walk, bicycle ride, or swim...or something like that! Just an aside here, most people who start out walking, riding, swimming or whatever tend to overdo it at first. If you haven't been walking regularly, just walk to the mailbox an extra time or two at first. Then walk down to the corner for a few days. Then walk around the block...get the idea? Get to the point where you are taking a 15 or 20 minute walk, and, in addition to the execise benefits, you will experience many of the reactions experienced by someone meditating.

3. Breathing. Did you know there are good ways to breathe and not so good. Not breathing at all is the worst. Breathing properly can produce excellent relaxation results, and is much too broad a topic to be covered here. You might want to visit your library or do a google search on "breathing exercises" in order to find a website or book which will provide instruction in this area.

4. Yoga. This is actually a combination of meditation, exercise and breathing. If you think you can't practice yoga because of your weight, age, or physical condition, think again! DO get a doctor's clearance before beginning any exercise program.

5. Go out in the woods. Stroll by yourself in the woods, or sit by a stream (if you can find one), and just watch the water. A few minutes of that can come pretty close to matching the effects of a few minutes meditation.

6. Read a book. Something a lot of us don't do much any more. When you find a book you really like and get absorbed in it, you're pretty close to meditation. In fact, did you ever have a time when you had been reading for what you thought was a few minutes, and it turned out to be an hour or more? Gotcha! You were meditating.

7. Go out on the porch. Don't take anything with you. Just hunker down in a comfortable chair and let your mind wander. You might be surprised what pops up! Here's the secret....let it. You might start thinking about that time 40 some odd years ago when you kissed your first girl..or guy. Geez! I haven't thought of that in years. There you go!

Well, you get the idea.

To get the maximum effects of meditation, the bottom line is that you have to ACTUALLY MEDITATE! sorry, didn't mean to shout. What a concept. Got some more good news for you. It's not really that hard to do. Oh, you will have a little difficulty concentrating (or, really, not concentrating) at first, but even the most effective meditators get distracted from time to time. If you give it a try, you will find that with time and non-effort, you will be meditating like a pro. It is so easy to learn, that I learned how to do it at the age of 15 (1960, since you asked), after reading a book in my high school library. By the way, if you want to get a non-meditating mind set, I really recommend "How to Stop Worrying and Start Living", by Dale Carnegie. That should kick start you if you've been procrastinating.

What's that?

No, I'm sorry, we don't GIVE prizes to the best meditators, but they do GET some awfully big prizes in the form of the effects they experience. Those are the sort of prizes that you carry around with you all day long every day. And you know what? Nobody ever sees that bowling trophy on the mantle at home, but boy, will they notice the positive changes in you. You'll be pleasantly surprised and so will they.

Now get out there and meditate!