The Calm Exercises

'Life is so short, the craft so long to learn.'
Hippocrates

There will be times when it is almost impossible to sit down and relax in preparation for the Calm Technique. These are the instances when the mind and/or emotions are working overtime on some issue or another. Whether it's a time of great stress and anxiety, or a time of great excitement, or even a simple business problem that requires an immediate answer, you'll find it extremely difficult to attend to the Calm Technique with the attention it deserves. On occasions like this, you should perform the Calm Exercises before you begin. You may find that they never become necessary. However, they should still be learned and considered as an effective and enjoyable introduction to a Calm Technique session. Whether you have need for them or not, you will find the Calm Exercises to be a relaxing interlude in their own right.

The Calm Exercises which follow are derived from Tai Chi. You will almost certainly have seen exhibitions of this graceful, balletic and very relaxing exercise. Although it is well promoted as a physical exercise, Tai Chi is an excellent way of meditation. The complex moves demand total attention, and this, as you know, contains the makings of meditation.

The Calm Exercises are not exercises in the traditional callisthenic mould. They are not designed to quicken your heartbeat, trim your waistline or build your stamina. The Calm Exercises have but one purpose: to relax you physically and mentally, so you can effectively use the Calm Technique.

They are incredibly simple to use. In fact, the only thing about the Calm Exercises that you could possibly find difficult is curbing your impatience. They must be done extremely slowly. Unlike any physical exercise you have ever participated in before, Calm Exercises gain in effectiveness the slower they can be performed.

Each exercise is accompanied by a slow breath in, followed by a slow breath out. Each movement relates to either the inhalation or the exhalation of the breath. The slowness of the movement is governed by the slowness of your breathing. The object is to slow your movements and your breathing as much as you comfortably can without strain.

As these Calm Exercises depend upon good, natural breathing, it is best to do them near an open window, in the garden or on the balcony. (Don't worry about being noticed; these are very subtle exercises.) They should take five to fifteen minutes to complete.

However, before you begin the Calm Exercises, there are three things you should attend to: your countenance, your stance and your breathing.

TO RELAX YOUR COUNTENANCE
1) Lightly push your tongue against the roof of your mouth just behind your front teeth (this relaxes and unclamps your jaw).

2) Lift your eyebrows very slightly as if you're wide awake (this is to relax the muscles in your eyes and forehead).

3) Have a hint of a smile on your face (this relaxes all the facial muscles).

In Tai Chi and many of the Asian martial arts, your basic stance is ons which 'glues' you firmly to the floor so you cannot be thrown off balance. The same stance applies to the Calm Exercises.

TO RELAX YOUR STANCE
1) Both feet should point straight ahead, a comfortable shoulder-width distance apart.

2) All joints should be 'unlocked': knees bent ever so slightly, a slight kink in your elbows, arms not quite touching your body (a little space under your armpits), fingers separated and hands hanging loosely (they'll feel limp and heavy), neck relaxed, head up and looking straight ahead, back straight.

3) Slowly concentrate all your weight down through your feet into the floor. Feel your feet becoming heavier and heavier. Feel your weight sinking through your feet, down into the floor.

Breathing is one of the most important elements of the Calm Technique and the Calm Exercises. Your breath should be as even as possible. Draw in and breathe out in one flowing stream (in other words, don't hold on to your breath before exhaling).

BREATHING

1) Place your fingers gently on your stomach about four centimetres below your navel.

2) Inhale deeply through your nose, slowly and evenly until you can feel your abdomen swell under your fingers (the Chinese call this your tan tien). Don't strain. Don't allow your chest to rise. You want a natural, effortless flow of breath into your tan tien.

3) Exhale slowly and evenly until you feel your abdomen fall.

4) Repeat the slow inhalation, followed by the slow exhalation, with no pauses between.

5) Breathe in and out, in and out, five times.

CALM EXERCISE ONE

This is extremely simple. It is intended as a warm-up exercise for Calm Exercises Two, Three and Four, and as such does not require slow movements. It relaxes the entire top half of your body, and with slight modification, the lower half as well.

1) Countenance and stance as specified.
2) Let your arms hang loose until they feel heavy and relaxed.
3) Keepibg feet, legs and waist very steady, swing the top half of your body to the left so your shoulders and head are also facing the left. Your arms will wrap loosely around your body as you do so. Then repeat the action to the right. Develop this swinging motion one way, then the other. Your arms will follow the upper of your body as you pivot from the waist; they will wrap around one way, then swing back the other - always swinging loosely, fingers relaxed.
4) Swing one way, then the next, until the weight of your arms is sufficient to turn your body.
5) Optional: As one arm passes in front of (the other will be behind) your body, you can bend your knees a few centimetres to create a pumping action as well as a swinging motion. This improves circulation to the lower part of your body.
6) Continue for two minutes.
7) Gradually slow down the movement until your arms hang loosely by your side again.
8) Relax.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

UNWANTED THOUGHTS

Nevertheless, you will be distracted along the way. You will encounter more uninvited (and probably irrelevant) thoughts than you would think possible. You will also be discomforted by every little itch, twitch and urge under the sun. You will hear things, smell things and feel things that you would normally never notice. These are the distractions of the Calm Technique. They are completely natural and happen to everyone. They exist because the mind does not want to be quietened. It enjoys being master, and will use every possible diversion to retain its superiority and to distract you from your task. The mind does not take kindly to this Calm Technique stuff. But your response to this should be simply to acknowledge that this condition is entirely normal and predictable. Just be passively aware of these thoughts and itches as they come and go, and let them exist quietly in some little corner of your brain. Don't entertain them. Don't be seduced by them. Ignore them. And if they do make their presence felt, calmly turn your attention back to your Calm Expression. Let it dominate all distractions that come your way.

There may be times when your thoughts will be more serious. Perhaps you have work or home problems, financial worries, a speech to deliver in an hour, a wedding. On occasions like this it's probably better for you to give in. If you are really anxious and concerned, your mind will continually turn to your problem rather than the Calm Expression. Although the Calm Technique will eventually be an effective and calming relief from such tensions, in the early stages your resolve will probably not overcome the distraction. Better to postpone your meditation till evening or the following morning.

On occasions when you are greatly distracted by physical discomfort such as an itch or cramp or pins-and-needles, I believe it's usually better to give in, have your scratch, and get on with the job. It is possible to continue until the discomfort passes, but great sacrifices aren't required for the Calm Technique.

Always bear in mind the object is to teach yourself how to centre your attention, not to force yourself to. The most effective results are gained when you can guide your wandering mind away from distraction by applying your Calm Expression, not by sublimating your thoughts.

IMPATIENCE
One of the most damaging characteristics of stress is impatience. The condition many people set out to overcome through the Calm Technique can often be the very source of their failure.

Recognize that stress produces a number of nervous conditions such as the apparent inability to cope, lack of concentration, listlessness, fatigue or hyperactivity, irritability and impatience. Like stress itself, these conditions cannot be willed away, or even concealed for any length of time; they are most persistent when they are least needed. As a relaxed, peaceful and non-urgent activity, the Calm Technique is a natural target for impatience. If you are severely stress-affected, impatience will probably be present in your early meditations. In the first week or so, before your stress levels have reduced significantly, you may find impatience getting the better of you. You will complain that things aren't happening fast enough. You will search for short cuts. You may even seek out other means of achieving your ends. But you will be succumbing to one of the maladies you had hoped the Calm Technique would cure.

The truth is that the Calm Technique will triumph over impatience. The issue is how long it will take. It varies, obviously; but the longer you are with the Calm Technique, the less you will be affected by stress symptoms. For some, the improvement is both immediate and very noticeable. For others, it is more progressive and requires much more perseverance, particularly in the early stages. What is important is that you recognize stress exists, accept that it can be eliminated, and be constantly on guard against its negative effects. As time passes, so does impatience.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

USING THE CALM TECHNIQUE

If you have been able to restrict your thoughts to your Calm Expression, you will be amazed at how quickly twenty minutes can pass. Then, at the end of this period, slowly bring your attention back to the everyday.

Sit a while. Think over how you feel, how you felt. If nothing else, you will be aware of a deep sense of calm and peace. For however brief a moment during the Calm Technique, you would have tasted real peace. Even when those moments of peace are just fleeting glimpses of a higher form of consciousness, they are moments that can have the most extraordinary calming influence over your whole day. And in time, over your whole life.

If at any stage you find it absolutely impossible to keep your Calm Expression in mind, don't let it bother you. Most people will only succeed for a few seconds in the early stages. Just listen to your breathing and enjoy the peace of doing absolutely nothing for a while until you can resume 'hearing' your Calm Expression. This is still meditation. On the other hand, if you find yourself deeply troubled about something, perhaps work pressures or family problems, postpone your meditation until you have a more ordered frame of mind. Then do the Calm Exercises before you begin.

As you can see, the Calm Technique is incredibly simple to perform. The paradox is that its simplicity is also its difficulty. Ironically, the principal problem you will experience is just accepting how very simple it really is. The human mind thrives on distraction and drama, it convinces you that there is no such thing as a 'simple' experience. It urges you to believe that you must make a greater intellectual contribution than you do. How can you experience a higher form of consciousness by employing less of your intellect? How can you improve your capacity for thinking by employing no thoughts? Only experience in the Calm Technique will fully answer these questions for you. Until you can recognize and accept this experience in its own right, you need only understand that your intellect and ego are self-supporting parts of the same. The combined might of these two elements make it very difficult for you to appreciate any higher consciousness, especially a higher consciousness that can only be attained by transcending their influence altogether. Yet, when you are no longer distracted by the prattle of uninvited thoughts, when you can transcend your own ego and intellect, you will know otherwise.

THE CALM TECHNIQUE

1) Create the right environment.

2) Adopt the correct posture.

3) Listen to your breathing. Let it relax you with each breath.

4) 'Hear' your Calm Expression emanate from your Calm Centre. 'Hear' it repetitively in your mind.

5) When thoughts distract, gently turn the attention back to your Calm Expression.

6) Don't worry about whether you're doing it right.

7) Sit in contemplation for a few moments when you're finished.

Let me assure you one more time of the simplicity of the Calm Technique. Approach it with an open mind and it will have a positive influence in your life. Dismiss your preconceptions and, within a few weeks, your own experience will tell you that it has been worth the effort.

THE OBSTACLES

Because the Calm Technique is such an uncomplicated, easy-to-understand exercise, the major problem most people experience is believing it could possibly be so simple. It can. In fact, once you can accept its ease and simplicity, there should be only two other obstacles you will have to contend with: unwanted thoughts and impatience.

UNWANTED THOUGHTS

In the West, where meditation is generally associated with religious thinking and prayer, a vivid imagination and lively thought processes are highly prized. In the East, and in schools where meditation is used to enrich everyday life, the thinking process is viewed with much less reverence. Thoughts are often considered to be mere distractions and a hindrance to effective meditation. With the Calm Technique, for example, the prize is the absence of uninvited thoughts, imagination and sensory perceptions. And it is towards this end that the Calm Technique is devoted. It is not thr Calm Expression, or the posture, or the frame of mind which produces this wonderful calming influence and expansion of awarenes, it is the absence of unrelated thought brought about by centring the attention.

But is that not an escapist ideal? Aren't we overlooking the majesty of the mind? Is not the mind really the person?

Most of us tend to think of ourselves as the product of our minds and our mental attitudes. Yet it is these very mental attitudes which limit our development as human beings. How often have you wished you could think another way, that you could have stronger willpower, that you could convince yourself there was no reason to feel anxious when there was no reason to feel anxious?

You've heard it said many times that all of us only use a tiny part of our mind/brain (meaning consciousness), and that if we could ever realize its full potential, great things could be achieved. The purpose of the Calm Technique is to expand your awareness way beyond the boundaries of yout conventional way of thinking and imagination. But first you have to learn to control your thought processes, to train your mind. To elevate your consciousness. You are probably well aware that there are areas of your consciousness which do not function in the usual 'verbal' or 'visual' way. Words such as 'intuition' spring to mind, where you 'sense' something that is beyond the scope of your normal sensory organs. Or 'inspiration', where no matter how hard you try, you cannot satisfactorily verbalize or visualize this experience.

So, during the Calm Technique, the normal workings of your mind continue, but they do not dominate your consciousness. They cease to be the totality of your awareness. During such an activity not only do you enjoy the Calm State, but you have access to regions of your consciousness which you may never have known existed. The Calm Technique will eventually lead you past the boundaries of conventional thinking and imagination, where you will discovet a whole new world of peace, creativity, insight and wisdom.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

USING THE CALM TECHNIQUE

Without uttering a sound, just keep 'hearing' that word over and over again in your mind, until you are aware of nothing else. Until your entire consciousness is filled with your Calm Expression. Don't try to visualize it as a written word, don't try to think about the meaning of the word, and don't try to attribute any special meanings to it. It is, as we've already said, a meaningless device (which will take  on a special importance as you make it yours) to direct your consciousness, to discipline your mind. Just go with the flow of your consciousness, be completely passive to what is happening and be totally absorbed by the calming repetition of this word or phrase.

All this talk of 'hearing' a sometimes meaningless word or phrase coming from the inner recesses of your mind shouldn't be intimidating. You are not playing tricks on your mind or sublimatinh your awareness. Nor are you seekinh 'nothingness' or a blank mind (althougj occasionally you will experience this pleasant phenomenon). What you are seeking to achieve is an absence of random and unnecessary thought by centring your attention on only one thing at one time. When it is focused, you will be calm. When your attention is all over the place, flitting from one thought to the next, concentrating on two things at once, being distracted by every trivial thing that comes along, it functions at a very reduced level.

There are no prizes for cleverness or originality in the Calm Technique. The only prize comes with being able to charm your consciousness into being totally involved with your Calm Expression. Please remember this is not an exercise in self-discipline. You don't have to force yourself to concentrate, nor do you have to go to great lengths to 'hear' this meaningless phrase. Be passive. Go with the flow. If your mind begins to wander, calmly redirect it to its task. When distractions come, ignore them and go back to 'hearing' your Calm Expression.

Were you to speak your Calm Expression out loud, you would 'hear' it quite easily. This could make focusing on it a much simpler task because you would note the distractions more clearly when your voice stopped. If you believe you can chant away by yourself every day and evening without having everyone think you're some sort of crank, go right ahead. You'll find it makes the Calm Technique even easier. Nevertheless, you'll almost certainly find that you'll co-exist better with neighbours and the rest of the household if you perform the Calm Technique silently. You decide.

By applying all your consciousness to this one task - the repetition of your Calm Expression - you will soon be lulled into a wonderfully relaxed but surprisingly aware state. If you could maintain your Calm Expression at the forefront of your attention, you would be in a blissful state in no time. But you will be distracted by uninvited thoughts and concepts. Your mind will wander. This is completely natural and expected. When it happens, bring your attention back to your Calm Expression and let that one word soothe all your distractions and anxieties. Let it take you to that place within yourself where there is absolute peace. Let it make you more calm and serene every time you 'hear' it.

You will probably begin to wonder if you're doing everything right. If you forget about wondering and concentrate only on your Calm Expression, you will be doing everything right. Then you will probably begin to wonder if you're experiencing what you're supposed to experience. Or you may even begin to think that meditation is not going to work for you, that you're a 'bad subject'. Once again, if you simply stop wondering and concentrate only on the task at hand, you will be experiencing what you're supposed to, and will be meditating correctly. If you become aware that your attention has wandered, redirect it to your Calm Expression. 'Hear' it being repeatef quietly in your mind. Each time you hear it, you will experience an even greater feeling of peace. Of calm. If you begin to think there must be more to meditation than this, return to your meditation. The fact that you're thinking of something other than your Calm Expression means you still have a way to go with your meditation.

By this stage of the Calm Technique, you will be aware of a deep sense of calm and peace. When you've finished meditating, you can look back on this feeling. It will not have been something that takes your breath away, more something that felt so totally natural. Many people describe this as one of the first really natural experiences of their adult life.

You may think you should be experiencing something more. But the fact that you're thinking other things at all (during the Calm Technique) is influencing both the experience and the effectiveness of your meditation. Your attention is meant to be centred on your Calm Expression, not what you're feeling. You're meant to be doing just one thing, and doing it totally; not thinking about what you're doing or how you're progressing. That one thing is 'hearing' your Calm Expression emanating from the Calm Centre within your consciousness. Its constant repetition gradually clears the mind of all thoughts and distractions until finally there comes a moment when your mind is still. (Of course, if at that stage you think, 'Hey, I've done it,' you're back to square one.) When your attention is fully occupied with your Calm Expression, all compulsive, random thinking is overcome and a great sense of calm will arise. This will be your first awareness of true inner peace and contentment.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

LOCATION OF THE HYPOTHALAMUS

figure I

Spinal cord

Reticular formation (arousal)

Cerebellum

Corpus callosum (connects hemispheres)

Thalamus (sensory replay)

Brainstem

Limbic system (emotional, learning) 

Hypothalamus

Pituitary gland

Your Calm Centre is uncomplicated. It doesn't know anxiety, fear, frustration, suspicion, doubt, envy. It is at peace with the world, with existence. It is beyond your everyday emotions, thought processes and mental functions. This is the centre that you come in touch with during the Calm Technique; this is where your Calm Expression emanates from.

I must stress that accurate pinpointing of your Calm Centre is unnecessary. What is important is that your Calm Expression emerges from deep within your consciousness, from a place which is beyond thought. Then, instead of trying to blank out your undisciplined thoughts through submination, you can ignore them and focus your awareness on your Calm Expression. Before you know it, your distractions will be forgotten, your mind will be filled with your Calm Expression and you will be meditating.

Think of your mind as a noisy room full of shouting people. Among all that cacophony is a voice (your Calm Expression) that you recognize. Even though that one voice may be no louder than any other in the room, it can begin to stand out clearly against all others simply because you are interested in that one voice, and becausr you choose to listen to only one voice.

Think how easily one word can leap out and rivet your attention as you flick through the pages of a book. If you had really concentrated on every word on the page and tried to find it in that moment, you almost certainly wouldn't have seen it. Yet a non-concentrated glance at the pages as you flick through makes it stand out every time.

The Calm Expressiob which emanates from your Calm Centre behaved similarly. If it appears of its own accord in its own good time, it will dominate your attention much more successfully than if you force yourself to think about it. It will charm you into the Calm State, rather than force you into it. By not concentrating, you make it stand out all the more. Although a straightforward disciplined concentration will work, it is much more difficult to perform than the relaxed, passive, non-concentration approach. 

If you can generally imagine where your Calm Centre is located, you'll know where your Calm Expression should originate. It will originate of its own accord. It required no effort on your part at all except being aware of its origins and adopting a completely passive state of mind. The Calm Technique continues from there. Once you have begun, it does require some effort to prevent your attention from straying, however.

If you find all thag discussion of the Calm Centre confusing, don't be distressed. It is merely a way of enhancing the beginning of your meditation; it is not an integral part of the Calm Technique itself. The Calm Technique is inherently simple, all you have to do is one thing, and do it totally. This will centre your attention and elevate your consciousness. This is the Calm Technique.

USING THE CALM TECHNIQUE

The Calm Technique is nothing more than a constant repetition of the word you have adopted as your Calm Expression. You might think that the repetition of a single word for twenty minutes or more sounds frightfully boring. However, remember that you will not be thinking about it, even though you  will be conscious of it. After a short while, you will cease to take any notice of the word at all, except that you are saying it in your mind.

We're now ready to put into practice all we've learned. Go through the preparatory steps again.

THE ENVIRONMENT

1) Have your own special Calm place.

2) Lower the lights; perhaps use a warm coloured globe.

3) Use s straight-backed, comfortable chair.

4) Place a clock nearby if necessary.

5) Use incense if you wish.

6) Take the phone off the hook.

YOUR POSTURE

1) Back straight, head up.

2) Wear comfortable clothes, no shoes.

3) Be relaxed or do Calm Exercises.

4) Sit for a few moments, breathe regularly.

5) Eyes closed, unfocused, looking straight ahead.

(We will assume that your Calm Expression is 'calming'. If it is something different, substitute that word or phrase instead of 'calm-ing'.)

When you are perfectly relaxed and not thinking of anything in particular, begin to listen to the sound of your own breathing. Hear the stream of cool air as it id drawn in through your nostrils, deep down into your lungs. Hear it as your body expels its warm breath. Be conscious only of your breathing. Hear only the sound of air passing in through your nostrils, entering your body, being breathed out. With each breath you take, you will become more relaxed. The sound of your own breath will be the most relaxing sound you have ever heard. Don't be alarmed if your breathing sounds slower than you think is normal; that is the process of meditation. Think only of your breathing, the air coming in through your nostrils, deep into your lungs, out through your mouth. Try not to think of what meditation is meant to feel like (you can think about that when you've finished), think only of your breathing. Your breath will be all you hear, all you are conscious of.

Around this time, you will begin to 'hear' your Calm Expression. You should 'hear' it in your own (unspoken) voice, sounding like it's coming from your Calm Centre, deep within your mind. Let it rise to your mind's surface, clearing away other thoughts as it does. Don't try to force other thoughts away by concentration - let your Calm Expression sweep them away - let it dominate your entire consciousness from within. There is no time frame on when your Calm Expression should appear. It will almost certainly happen of its own accord (particularly as you grow more familiar with it) after a minute or two, when you are completely relaxed. As well, you will sense the right kind of rhythm for the repetition of your Calm Expression. Rhythm is also something that happens of its own accord; it is perfectly all right as long as you don't wonder whether it's right or wrong.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

CALM EXPRESSIONS

Nevertheless, should you feel compelled to follow tradition, buy a copy of the Bhagavad-gita next time you pass a Hare Krishna. It has pages of Sanskrit words you could choose from.

The Calm Technique aims to provide  a practical method of relaxation and meditation that will benefit the Western reader. It employs a non-mystical device, similar to the mantra, called a Calm Expression. In application, the literal content of the Calm Expression is just as meaningful, or just as meaningless, as counting one, two, three, four, one, two, etc., as we do in the Breathing Meditation. The repetitive use of the word, or phrase, is all that's important; the meaning is irrelevant.

What is important about your Calm Expression is that you select a word or phrase and persist with it. After you have adopted one - regardless of its origin - there is no reason whatsoever for changing it. You should, unless you have good reason not to, stay with it forever. Furthermore, the word or phrase should remain personal and internal when you begin using it. It should be something between you and the inner recesses of your mind, and therefore, not something to be discussed.

You will find that in time, your Calm Expression will take on a meaning (only to you) far in excess of its literal interpretation. The time will come when even its fleeting occurrence in your mind will be sufficient to trigger a subconscious reaction that will relax you, that will make you feel more calm, that will remind you of how calm it is possible to be when meditating. And when you have used a Calm Expression for some time, it will take on calming properties that you would never have thought possible from a single word; it will be your personal refuge from stress and anxiety that you can have with you all day.

Now it is time for you to select your Calm Expression.

If you belong to some particular faith or religion, you may choose a word or a simple phrase which relates to your beliefs. In most cases, I would suggest using a word which lacks meaning, or one which has a simple comforting meaning. You can use any word or sound in existence as long as you feel comfortable with it. You needn't be concerned with what others will think of it, because you need never discuss your choice with another human being. If you have concerns about making the wrong choice, I suggest you use the worr 'calm-ing'. Even if you ignore the meaning (which you will), it has a beautiful calming sound and effect. Please bear in mind though, that the meaning of the word is not important. All that's important is that you adopt a Calm Expression and stay with it.

Have you chosen one? If you haven't, use 'calm-ing'. Now you're ready to apply it.

THE CALM CENTRE
There is a place within all of us which we recognize as the very core of our being. To most modern thinkers, this would probably be the brain. To the ancient Egyptians (and later the Greeks and Romans), it was the heart or the liver. In other parts of the world it has variously been described as being located at the base of the spine, the pit of the belly, the pituitary gland (in nineteenth-century England) and the hypothalamus (to Indians, the Ajna Chakra). It is this latter area which concerns us.

The hypothalamus (see figure 1) is an extraordinary part of the brain. In some Eastern sects, it is considered to be the seat of the soul. It sits directly behind where many ancient orders claim the 'Third Eye' is located. (The Third Eye is an 'eye' which metaphorically opens during certain kinds of meditation when the real eyes are closed.) Those who consider the soul to be located at the hypothalamus visualize it as a point of light in the middle of the forehead. (Place a finger at the very top of your nose at your forehead between your eyes. Your hypothalamus is about 7-9 cm back from that point.)

The hypothalamus also has great significance in modern studies of stress. It is the hypothalamus which spontaneously releases corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) into your pituitary gland when you are confronted by threat or excitement, which in turn releases hormones into the bloodstream. This sets your adrenal glands pumping, which speeds up your pulse and breathing rate. It also suspends your metabolism and generally prepares you for that 'fight or flight' syndrome we condidered earlier. So the hypothalamus is central to your rising blood pressure and stress levels.

However, while the hypothalamus may be responsible for the creation of your stress symptoms, it is also the centre which reverses the procedure. Not only does it activate physiological responses, it also  inhibts them. It is the hypothalamus that decreases the heart rate, lowers the blood pressure, controls body temperature, and monitors metabolism. It is the hypothalamus that maintains your state of alertness or wakefulness, and controls the psychosomatic influences on your health. It is the hypothalamus that controls all of the physiological functions which decide whether you are troubled or at peace. In conjunction with the cerebrum and limbic system, it controls the emotions, perceptions  and a whole host of other mental functions. In short, the hypothalamus is the junction and most important link between the mind and the body; it is the very centre of your consciousness! It should not be too great a conceptual leap for you to accept the hypothalamus as your Calm Centre. Not only does it control and activate all the mechanisms which produce the Calm State; not only is it the junction of all your emotions, thoughts and decisions; it is also the one place where you can experience true calm and peace. While the existence of such a place is obviously beyond conventional sensory perception, most of us recognize that there is a natural refuge and haven within each and every one of us which cannot be explained in scientific or psychophysical terms. This is your Calm Centre.

--This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

THE TECHNIQUE

You may have heard of some meditation techniques which require 'no discipline at all'. These techniques should be afforded the same seriousness that you would give to a smoking cure which required no willpower, a fitness programme that involved no exercise, a money-making scheme that involved no risk or effort. If there were such magic programmes, then everybody would be healthy, rich, nonsmokers. Let me assure you that every successful form of meditation requires determination, application and a degree of discipline. The Calm Technique is no exception.

The only discipline required for the Calm Technique is that you practise it regularly and that you work at having only one thing on your mind at the one time. At no stage do you have to force yourself to concentrate or to think a certain way.

As a structured meditation, the Calm Technique requires you to follow a specified path of action (mental activity). Later, we will learn of modifications to this technique, but initially, there is an established route for you to follow. It is similar to one of the most well-known and popular routes in the world today: the mantra meditation.

THE HISTORY OF THE MANTRA

If we were to review meditation by technique alone, the Calm Technique would appear to have much in common with a type of meditation that Indian Yogis have been using for over three thousand years (as taught by Shri Shankaracharya). The methods and attitudes it was based on probably evolved even earlier. This same method was used in ancient ancient Judaic meditation, as well as some of the early Christian ones.

The core of this method was a single word or phrase, which in the Indian tradition was called the mantra. It was intuitively conceived by a teacher or guru and passed on to a student or disciple who used it exclusively as the major part of his or her meditation. Although it was permissible for this mantra to be any sound or phrase, it was often a Sankskrit* word or words from the Vedic hymns which form the basis of Hindu scripture. 

The mantra was usually a single word or expression, or a complete prayer which was considered to be of great spiritual significance.

That is the classic application of the mantra. The mantra type of meditation (also known as 'Japa' or 'Japam') has been in constant use throughout the centuries by communities and sects who knew nothing of Sanskrit. Even though some non-Indian countries, such as China and Japan, often used Sanskrit mantras, most chose their mantras from their own languages, a practice that is still followed today.

*Sanskrit is a sacred language that was used in north-west India about 1500 BC.

For a Hindu, a Sanskrit mantra may be important. For a Westerner, where the opportunity of receiving the perfect Sanskrit word or phrase is a rather remote possibility, it has negligible importance. Where there is no cultural affinity with a language, however 'sacred' it may be, no great benefit to be derived from using it.

Ancient tradition also dictated that a mantra should be passed from teacher to student. Some sects today place quite a lot of emphasis on 'personal' mantras. Such a mantra is claimed to have been specially divined for an individual, often for a fee. Even though the results are successful, there is a fair amount of mystical show business and commercialism involved in the process. I very much doubt whether any Western teacher of a few years' experience can pluck a Sanskrit word out of either thin air or the Vedas to give you a mantra with more cosmic properties than one you would have chosen from your own humble English dictionary.

I remember once, as a child, being invited to a Catholic chapel for evening prayer. There were about 200 young men and boys in there reciting 'the Rosary', which incidentally, takes about twenty minutes, the same as the Calm Technique. I consider this my first practical demonstration of meditation, where the constant repetition of some wellworn phrases (mantra) managed to banish everything from the mind and elevate the consciousness in a way that I now associate with the experience of the Calm Technique. While it would never be described as such in theological circles, the Rosary functions as a type of mantra.

Some of the more well-known mantras you may have heard of are 'Om' (or 'Aum' as it's often spelt), 'Hare Krishna', 'Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy upon me a sinner' (the mantra of early Christian monks), 'Kyrie Eleison' (Latin), 'Allah al akbar' (Arabic). There are millions of them being used very effectively every day.

The mantra type of meditation is widely used today. It is recognized in all schools as being one of the more effective methods available, and has certainly been the one which has enjoyed the most success in the Western world.

CALM EXPRESSIONS

Some medical experiments have shown that the physiological responsed of subjects who had used the 'spiritually superior' type og mantras were just as pronounced when the subjectd meditated with nonsensical words provided at random by scientists controlling the experiments. Of course this is no measure of the spiritual qualities of those mantras, nor is it for us to question the spiritual worth of disciplines which have evolved over thousands of years. However, as the Calm Technique is concerned mainly with the temporal (physical, mental and emotional) aspects, the origins of the mantra are less important. As far as the Calm Technique is concerned, the meaning of the mantra has about as much inherent significance to the meditator as the colour of the barbell does to the weightlifter.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

THE BREATHING MEDITATION

This continues for fifteen or twenty minutes.

Every fibre of your being is involved in this one thing, and you are doing it completely.

It may become obvious to you that the content of this meditation - the meaning of the numbers and the counting - is, in itself, quite meaningless. But the fact that you are doing only one thing at the one time is the point of the exercise. The counting is nothing more than a technique for centring your attention. (In Zen training, the count is to ten. It's more difficult, but you can do it that way if you feel up to it.) You may become aware of the fact that your breathing has slowed to less than you would have previously considered normal. This is probably true, but should be dismissed as irrelevant and nothing but a distraction. You may become aware of the fact that you can't remember ever having felt so relaxed and peaceful. This, too, is irrelevant and has nothing to do with your meditation. You may also think that you're doing very well at your breathing meditation - this thought means you are not doing it as well as is possible.

It won't be long before your mind starts to wander and you'll begin thinking of various things. A long while before you notice it, you will have forgotten your counting and will be thinking of something entirely different. When you become aware of this happening, calmly redirect your thinking to your counting. This is not meant to be a contemplation of counting. Don't treat it too seriously; the wandering mind is part of meditation. Just be aware of the fact that you have strayed from your course, and calmly lead yourself back on to the true path - your counting.

Remember, don't force yourself to concentrate. You should approach the breathing meditation in the most relaxed way possible. If you're faced with the choice of being relaxed with distracting thoughts, or anxious through forcing yourself to concentrate, choose the relaxation path. Sooner or later you will be able to direct your awareness back to your counting with a minimum of fuss. If you manage to count only four breaths before your mind wanders, it is all right.

Next time it might be four sets of four. But don't get competitive with yourself; the goal is to be counting, not to be able to count to four 'x' times.

Soon you will find (and if you are meditating well, you will be unaware of this fact) thaf thoughts are no longer distracting you; that your counting is everything and is dominating your consciousness. You will soon become, as they say, 'one with your counting'. When this happens, you will have a clarity of understanding that the wandering mind is incapable of experiencing.

At the end of this meditation, sit quietly for a minute or two until you readjust. Reflect on the past twenty minutes, on what you felt, on how you feel at the moment. You should have experienced a few moments of absolute calm. You should feel completely relaxed. You will also be aware of just how difficult it is to do only one thing at a time. You may be tempted to think you're not very good at this meditation business. However, distraction is very much a part of meditation. Everyone gets distracted. But if you spent the entire twenty minutes being distracted, it probably means that you weren't properly prepared. You have to develop a relaxed frame of mind before you begin, your meditation builds on that. If at any time you feel your meditation has been unsuccessful, it doesn't matter. Each meditation is unique; some live up to your expectation of good, some do not. The fact that you meditated at all makes it 'good'.

THE BREATHING MEDITATION
1) Prepare your environment. Check posture.
2) Close eyes, relax.
3) Focus on your breath entering and leaving your body.
4) Count breaths one to four, repeat.
5) Don't fight a wandering mind, but calmly direct it back to the task.
6) Sit for a minute afterwards.

You can repeat the Breathibg Meditation every morning and evening for at least a few days. Ideally, it should be for a month or so, unless you're impatient to get on with the Calm Technique. But bear in mind, if you decide you feel comfortable with this breathibg meditation, stay with it. Any meditation done consistently will work.

THE TECHNIQUE
The Calm Technique, like the Breathing Meditation, is a 'structured' meditation. This means there is a set procedure for you to follow, and it requires a moderate amount of determination and discipline to be successful. For many, the mere mention of the word 'discipline' brings with it visions of deprivation, hard work and sacrifice. It should be stressed that this is not the case with the Calm Technique. We have already learned that in this type of meditation you avoid concentration and extreme effort, because no amount of human determination by itself can produce such a natural and peaceful state as the Calm State.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

YOUR POSTURE DURING THE CALM TECHNIQUE

1) Back straight, head up.
2) Wear comfortable clothes, no shoes.
3) Be relaxed or do Calm Exercises.
4) Sit for a fee moments, breathe regularly.
5) Eyes closed, unfocused, looking straight ahead.

Before we continue with your meditation, there is one note of caution which all meditation teachers give. Meditation should always be approached from a common-sense point of view. If at any stage you 'know' or sense that something is wrong, or something really doesn't feel right, simply stop. Tomorrow things will almost surely be different. This is not to suggest that the Calm Technique is some sort of hallucinogenic or potentially dangerous activity. However, meditation depends upon you feeling 'right', and serves no purpose if it feels 'wrong'. There will be occasions in meditation when you feel fidgety, anxious, scatterbrained, or simply tired. You have these feelings many times a day whethet you're meditating or not, so they are completely natural and will occur.

During meditation, trivial annoyances may take on a greater significance than they deserve, simply because they can easily be turned into large and welcome distractions. All teachers recommend that you ignore them.

There is no call for heroics in the Calm Technique. If you're really troubled by something, stop what you're doing and take a break. If you've only just begun the session, try performing the Calm Exercises until you are more relaxed. If, on the other hand, your problem is tiredness, the Calm Exercises should wake you a little. If not, try sleeping. Should you really have something serious on your mind that you find impossible to ignore, don't worry, resume your meditation the following morning or evening. There is no advantage in forcing yourself to do anything; that does little more than add to your overall level of anxiety. You should condition yourself to have the right frame of mind, to reject distractions, to keep your attention focused on the task. It is this gradual and persistent conditioning (and your willpower) that perfects the Calm Technique. Acts of great intensity and personal sacrifice can be reserved for more deserving occasions like running marathons and saving civilizations.

THE BREATHING MEDITATION

Having read the preparatory chapters, you're no doubt anxious to get the show on the road and try out the Calm Technique. But there is an even simpler meditation than the Calm Technique which is an ideal introduction for you.

It is a simplified, old Zen breathing meditation. In this book its purpose is to provide a comfortable first step into meditation. In practice, this breathing meditation could be an end in itself. You could perform this every day and night for the rest of your life and in the long run it would probably be as beneficial as any other meditation. But it has been simplified and many people find difficulty in sticking with it for any length of time. (Probably because it seems too simple.)

You should begin with this breathing meditation before you start experimenting with the Calm Technique, at least for the first couple of days. Stay with it for as long as you feel comfortable. If you really found it worthwhile, perhaps you should leave well alone and stay with it indefinitely. Whatever you ultimately decide to do, make sure you spend at least a couple of days on this before you move on; contained within the breathing meditation is some of the Calm Technique.

Prepare your environment (see page 71) and check your posture (see page 73). Now you're ready to begin. The object of the breathing meditation is to be as aware of your breathing as you can. Totally aware. Be aware of nothing else - the fact that you're meditating or whether you're doing it correctly or not - just be aware of your breathing.

Please remember that this is not an exercise in enforced concentration. While you should approach it with determination, you are not meant to force yourself to concentrate. That would not be a relaxing meditation, and you would probably end up feeling more frustrated than when you began.

So, with your eyes closed, mind very still, not thinking about anything at all, slowly begin to bring your mind to rest. Begin to withdraw from and ignore the world about you. Gradually turn your attention inward to your 'self'. Soon you'll hear the sound of your own breathing. Let it become more and more intrusive. Be completely aware of the sound of your breathing. Be aware of the air streaming in through your nostrils, filling your lungs, then being expelled through your lips. Don't try any great feats of lung filling here or you'll hyperventilate. Visualize that stream of cold, fresh air being drawn in through your nostrils. 'See' it being drawn down, deep into your lungs. 'See' that stream of warm air being expelled through your lips. Soon you will be aware only of your breathing. You will become your breathing.

When you have reached the stage where breathing is the foremost thought in your mind, forget about it. You will be aware of it, but you should not be thinking about it. Now you begin your breathing meditation.

Count each breath as it leaves your body. Silently count 'one'. When the next breath comes, count 'two'. Then 'three' and 'four'. After 'four' begin at 'one' again and continue this silent count. Hear yourself saying each count. Imagine your own counting resoundibg in your head. (Do this without murmuring a sound, of course.) Count each breath: one, two, three, four, one two ... until you become aware only of your counting. Don't think of what you're doing, or the relevance of it, or the meaning of the numbers. It has no meaning, no purpose other than counting four breaths and starting the count all over again.

--This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

The Technique

'The true lover of knowledge is always striving after being.'
Plato

PREPARATION

Now we get to the part of the book where you actually learn how to use the Calm Technique. From now on the going gets more practical and much easier to follow. Nevertheless, I do urge you to ensure you understand each section before going on to the next.

Your first experience of the Calm Technique should be absolutely right. That doesn't mean you should approach it with trepidation because there is absolutely nothing harmful that can happen. The biggest risk is merely that you have built your expectations (or more probably, I have built your expectations) too much and you may find it a bit of an anticlimax. So clear your head of all preconceptions and expectations, and expect nothing more than a peaceful, calm twenty minutes. Expect to feel calm and relaxed when you're finished. Anything else will be a bonus.

I'll say it again. Your first experience should be absolutely right. So any preparation that needs to be done should be done faithfully.

BEFORE YOUR FIRST MEDITATION
1) Avoid alcohol and drugs for at least twenty-four hours before your first meditation.
2) Plan it for an occasiob when you know you will not be disturbed.
3) Be rested - don't try it after two hours' sleep.
4) Approach it with an open frame of mind.
5) Your expectations should not be too high.
6) You have nothing to fear - you will not lose consciousness or anything sinister like that.
7) No experiments until the text tells you to!

WHERE TO DO IT
As you know, the Calm Technique is a discipline. It is also habitual. Therefore, it is desirable to practise it in the same place each time. The same room, the same corner, the same chair. While this is not essential, you will find that your special place tends to develop an aura of great calm for you, and even in moments when you're not meditating, this place will be a peaceful retreat for you. (There is nothing magical about this. You associate a certain place with a feeling of peace and calm, and you'll feel peace and calm when you're there. Elementary.) The room should be warm, quiet and private.

The lights should be low. While it isn't necessary to have a blacked out room, you'll find that very low light levels are most helpful in the early stages of learning the Calm Technique. You'll also find that a warm-coloured light globe is very relaxing in itself. If you'd like to try one - especially for your first few meditations - it will help create an atmosphere of calm.

Your chair should be comfortable and reasonably straight backed. As you are not required to adopt any particular physical posture during the Calm Technique, you should seek out a chair that's comfortable. Any kind of chair is suitable, though I prefer the more rigid upright kind, because it prevents drowsiness.

Plant a clock nearby - preferably not a loud-ticking one - where you can refer to it occasionally. To avoid a heart attack, make sure the alarm is turned off. After a couple of times with the Calm Technique, you'll find your body clock has taken over and you'll know exactly when your twenty minutes are up. As long as you don't feel insecure about your own timing ability (in which case you'll be checking with the clock every two minutes), your body will tell you with great accuracy when your time is up.

You could also burn a stick of incense if you wish. It does contribute to the calm atmosphere of your room (and has been known to affect the psycho-neuro centre of the brain).

Finally, take the phone off the hook.

HOW TO PREPARE YOUR ENVIRONMENT
1) Have your own special calm place.
2) Lower the lights; perhaps use a warm coloured globe.
3) Use a straight-backed, comfortable chair.
4) Place a clock nearby if necessary.
5) Use incense if you wish.
6) Take the phone off the hook.

YOUR POSTURE
There is no difficult posture required with the Calm Technique (other than a mental posture, perhaps). As long as your back is reasonably straight and your head up, you'll be fine. Hands and feet can go wherever they feel comfortable.

Make sure you're wearing comfortable clothing. Loose garments, no tight belts, no shoes.

You should be very relaxed before you begin the Calm Technique. If you're suffering nervous feelings, if you're twitchy and fidgety, there are some Calm Exercises (see pages 124-136) which will relax you. This is very important. You must begin the Calm Technique in a relaxed frame of mind otherwise you will be overcome with impatience.

Before you do anything at all, sit for a minute or so until you feel perfectly calm. Your breathing will be slow and regular. You will hear it quite clearly. Forget about everything around you. Forget about the world. Forget about what you have to do in the Calm Technique. Just relax. If you find you have to sit for five minutes before your mind is calm, then do so. It will be worth it.

Initially, you'll practise the Calm Technique with your eyes closed. (In a later version you'll discover an alternative to this. But in most instances, eyes closed.) Your closed eyes should be looking straight ahead, unfocused.

--This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

The Experience

'Without going out of your door,
you can know all things on earth
Without looking out of your window,
you can know the ways of heaven...
See all without looking.'
George Harrison, 'The Inner Light'

reprinted by kind permission of Northern Songs

WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE?

We've looked at the psysiological changes that take place during the Calm Technique. We've looked at the benefits that accumulate through regular practice. But what is it really like? How does it feel?

Obviously, different people react in different ways, and for many, the feeling is very difficult to articulate. To ask someone what took place during meditation is the most intimate and personal question a researcher could put forth. Still, in the interests of science, the question has been asked.

There is universal agreement that the most significant feeling is one of great peace and calm. A feeling which, for many, is more peaceful than anything they had ever experienced before. Yet the majority consider that feeling to be strangely familiar, as if they had experienced it before, but couldn't bring it to mind. One man compared it to how he imagined he felt as an infant: loved, safe, no worries, happy, content. Another desribed it as 'nothingness: empty, floating, detached'. Another as 'radiant'. 'Pure.' 'Not aware that I'm meditating.' 'Sensitive.' 'Aware.' 'Alive.' 'Time stands still.'

There is a place within all of us where, on very rare occasions, we feel completely at peace with existence, completely calm. Let's fantasize for a moment and see if we can recreate just a hint of that feeling. I've listed four scenarios for you to indulge in for your next quiet moment. Select one (or create one of your own), memorize the concept, then close your eyes for a few minutes and try to imagine yourself in that situation.

Do it in some peaceful, dimly lit place.

1) You are an eighteen-month-old infant. You're sitting on your favourite soft blanket in the warm sun. You've found something new to play with and you're totally engrossed in it. So engrossed that you do not bother to look up to see your proud parents standing nearby, beaming. You don't have a worry or a concern in the world; no doubts about the future and no regrets over the past. With you on that blanket is everything you've ever wanted in the world - one scruffy toy.

2) You're a young adult lying on your back in the lush green countryside. Lying beside you is the most important person in your life. You have nothing to do for the rest of the day. No work to worry about for a couple of weeks. Nothing at all on your mind except how much you are enjoying lying there, without speaking, but sharing the experience. You hear birds some distance away. You stare at the clear blue sky as one lonely cloud slowly passes through the heavens.

3) You have been bushwalking. It has been a very hot day. Ten minutes ago you came upon a beautiful mountain rock pool. The air is cool and moist and refreshing. The water is crystal clear, but very dark. There are cool ferns reflected around its perimeter. The still, clear waters of this pond are mirror-flat except where a gentle waterfall flows, a hundred metres away from you. You are amazed at how calm and still the water is.

4) You are lying on an inflatable mattress on a sheltered South Pacific lagoon. You feel absolutely safe. There is nothing you have to do. The sun is a trifle too hot, but a gentle breeze keeps you feeling comfortable. There is no possible risk of sunburn. You can hear the water lapping against your inflatable mattress and the shore. Every now and then the shadow of an overhanging coconut tree shelters you from the sun. You are feeling quite drowsy.

Most people find that one of the above fantasies can produce a brief experience of great peace and calm. If you can imagine yourself in one of these situations for however short a time, you will have an inkling of what the Calm Technique feels like (on a superficial level, obviously).

During the Calm Technique, you should feel as peaceful as that. However, at the same time your mind will be fully alert - not thinking, but extremely aware.

In an ideal meditation you would have no recollections and no onvious feelings (either good or bad). In fact, you would be oblivious to every other thing that's going on in the world, even of the fact that you are only feeling peace and calm at the time. This is not to suggest that you are experiencing 'nothing'. You will be aware of everything, just thinking about nothing.

However, it will be a long time before your meditation is 'ideal'. As I've said before, the experience is subtle. You will experience moments (sometimes only for a few seconds each time) during the Calm Technique when you are aware of nothing at all, yet you are aware. After it happens you're usually so impressed by your 'achievement' that you begin to congratulate yourself. That congratulatory thought is just another distraction, so you'll have to start over again. But you will appreciate even those brief moments so much that you will continue to be attracted to the Calm Technique. And the more time you dedicate to it, the more those moments of absolute peace and calm will grow. This should not in any way suggest to you that your meditation is limited to the pursuit of these fleeting moments. If you spend twenty minutes on the Calm Technique and only ten seconds result in absolute peace and calm, it does not mean you have wasted nineteen minutes and fifty seconds. The fact that you sit in meditation for twenty minutes (ignoring that wonderful ten seconds) is what produces your sense of calm and strengthens your personality.

The entire twenty minutes should be a time of deep, enjoyable relaxation, a new and completely different experience each time you do it. Expect it to be different. Expect it to be close to perfect sometimes, and almost frustrating at others. Learn to accept it as it comes, be a passive observer. If you try too hard to influence the outcome of your own meditation it becomes counterproductive: you introduce an element of stress into an activity which is meant to be the antithesis of stress.

My explanations of what the Calm Technique 'feels like' must leave something to be desired. It is not an 'experience' as such, it is a state of being. And a state of being cannot be described. You try to describe calm. Or happy. Or love. They are states of being which defy description. You could come up with very creative and poetic sets of words, but the concepts would be meaningless to someone who has never experienced these states.

Perhaps it is more understandable now why 'the best definition of meditation is the act of meditation itself'.

--This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

HOW LONG DOES ALL THIS TAKE?

Before you dismiss all this as too hard, let me give you an assurance. After a month or so  of the Calm Technique, you will want to make it a lifetime commitment. Every morning and evening for the rest of your life won't seem like a burden, it will seem like a pleasure. You will actually look forward to those rare moments of peace and harmony (relaxation) that modern life seldom offers. And the more you listen to the subtle things your body tells you, the more you will appreciate how important the Calm Technique really is to your life. Ultimately, as the runner becomes addicted to his running, so the meditator becomes addicted to meditation.

How long does it take? A day? A lifetime?

The ideal time to be spent with the Calm Technique each day is fifteen to thirty minutes, morning and evening. Most people seem to spend twenty minutes each time, but you should decide on a time for yourself. After a week, you will know what is the ideal time for you. Then you should standardize. If it's twenty minutes, it should be twenty minutes every time. Because even though the Calm Technique involves no heavy discipline, it is a discipline in itself. So regularity, diligence and determination will all bring their own rewards. Please note that the time you spend on the Calm Technique should be governed by how you react to it and what you want to get out of it, and not by what your schedule expects.

To begin with, let's set the standard time for the Calm Technique at twenty minutes. (Later you can vary it a little in either direction to suit the way you feel.) The times of day you should devote to the Calm Technique are once in the morning and once at evening, preferably before meals and as early as your schedule will allow. As the Calm Technique will have you feeling more alert and wide-awake at the end than when you began, it's preferable that your evening meditation takes place a couple of hours before bedtime (although experience will tell whether this is the case with you).

Twenty minutes twice a day will probably seem like quite s chunk out of your day. It is. The compensations are that you will feel much better for having done it in the morning, and you'll sleep better for having done it at night. You'll find that trading half an hour's sleep for half an hour with the Calm Technique is well worth it. Besides, a relaxed person sleeps better and gets by on significantly less sleep than a stressed person.

If the Calm Technique had to be performed without fail for twenty minutes twice a day, then it would be a stressbuilder in itself. The ideal is twenty minutes twice a day. But that's all it is, an ideal.

I should emphasize one last time the similarity between the Calm Technique and an exercise programme. You will notice the effect in the first few days. After that, the effects will be gradual anf barely discernible, but in the long run, you'll revel in the accumulated benefits of this tuning, training and exercise, and you'll wonder how you ever lived without it.

Even if you have doubts, I sincerely urge you to persist with the Calm Technique for at least two months. After that, you won't need the urging - the benefits will be so obvious to you, you'll never want to stop.

But above all, learn to enjoy anf appreciate the time you spend on the Calm Technique for its own sake. Then the long-term benefits to your health and psyche will look after themselves.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

HAVING ONLY ONE THING ON YOUR MIND

In spite of how easy it may appear to have only one thing on your mind at one time, it is an extraordinarily difficult task. Great athletes can sometimes do it, I'm told. Perhaps great scientists and thinkers can too. But ordinary folk like you and me have to be trained.

If you think I'm exaggerating, try this simple test:

Think of an egg. Just an egg. Nothing more. Not about hens or egg cups or prices. Close your eyes, visualize an egg, and for two minutes think only of that egg. With no other thought coming into your mind.

Right, close your eyes.

You thought it was going to be easy, didn't you. You thought of how you had to concentrate. You wondered if you were sitting the right way and whether your two minutes were up. You congratulated yourself on how easy it was. And you probably thought a hundred other thoughts. You see, the human mind finds it almost impossible to concentrate on only one thought for any length of time. Unless it's trained.

Athletes understand this. The heavyweight boxer pounds away at a punching ball for hours on end so that he no longer has to think about punching, so that he will no longer be distracted by the pain and exhaustion. The marathon runner treads the same steps, day in day out, so that she never has to consider the act of running or the pain, but can focus her consciousness on her internal timing clock. You practise the Calm Technique every day of your life so you never have to think about thinking, so you can focus your consciousness on 'being'.

No doubt you've heard of the 'runner's high', where the runner experiences a trance-like state, a great feeling of psychological wellbeing, and moments of deep personal insight. It is the same during the Calm Technique. And other similarities continue: the experienced meditator feels deprived if a day's meditation is missed, just as the runner is frustrated when denied the daily run. Both the meditator and the well-tuned athlete develop an increased capacity to cope with and enjoy life, and by becoming more healthy, eliminate stress from their lives. However, the Calm Technique does it more effectively, and is considerably easier on the feet!

HOW LONG DOES ALL THIS TAKE?

The biggest problem the twentieth century Western student has to overcome is impatience. Western culture and attitudes are geared towards the immediate result, thw overnight success. The advertisinf and magazinw mentality of our age, where information is continually telegraphed in short entertaining bursts, and where the spectacular always triumphs over the substantial, has affected our capacity to approach a subject with the depth and determination it often deserves. Our attention spans have been severely reduced. Our ability to persevere with a course of action or thinking, once embarked upon, is similarily affected.

Thissdvertising and magazine mentality has produced a proliferation of self-improvement courses (this one included). Many people have the desire to improve, but lack the willingness to persevere. Consequenly they flit from one superficial solution to the next, hoping for an easier way out, a big result for a small involvement, instant success or nirvana. Consequently, many self-improvement devotees tend to fall into extreme categories like the fanatics or the dilettantes.

The Calm Technique does not lend itself to fanaticism; there is insufficient mystery surrounding it. But I fear it could be an ideal playground for the dilettante: it has definite short-term potential where practical results can be realized, and it can also be resurrected with considerable success after long periods of abstinence. But, as the greatest benefits the Calm Technique has to offer are reserved for those who persevere, part-time involvement will only realise a fraction of its true potential. Dedication, perseverance and regular practice will bring profound long-term results which far outweigh any immediate improvements.

The benefits will be obvious from the first time you use the Calm Technique. They may be subtle but, at the very least, they will be relaxing and enjoyable. After a couple of weeks, you'll have a definite feeling of calm and wellbeing, you'll be more at ease with yourself and the world. If you smoke, overeat or drink to excess, you'll probably begin to feel the urge to wean yourself from these bad habits. (Note: This is not to suggest that the Calm Technique is s smoking/eating/drinking cure. It can help, but it's not a cure in its own right. Still, as you get more in touch with yourself through the Calm Technique, you'll find it more desirable and much easier to rid yourself of these habits.)

After a few weeks, when the improvements and the benefits aren't as obvious as they were in the first few days, you'll probably start to feel a bit impatient. The standard dilettante approach at this stage is to decide things aren't happening fast enough, and stop or seek yet another 'solution'. But the solution lies in your persistence. There is no meditation or self-improvement technique in existence that will produce dramatic results overnight. The Calm Technique can change your life dramatically, but it takes time. As meditation in itself has no goal, it can have no end. At no stage in your life will you ever be able to say, 'I've made it', because the process is ongoing. Like physical exercise, the Calm Technique should be a lifetime commitment.

--This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPROVEMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE CALM TECHNIQUE

You will be more positive.
You will be more alive, healthier, happier.
You will have a greater capacity to cope.
You will have an increase in mental alertness, and will think and act more creatively.
You will eat better, sleep better, love better.
You will be more tolerant.
You will appreciate life more.

HOW CAN A 'SIMPLE EXERCISE' DO ALL THIS?

I'm asking you to believe a lot, aren't I? To believe that one very simple mental technique can bring all these wonderful benefits into your life. But it's true, and as you become more familiar with the practice you will begin to appreciate that everything in this book is easily attainable.

In the past few pages we have discussef the physiological changes that take place during the Calm Technique. During that twenty minutes of passive meditation, your physiological state becomes the opposite to that which exists when you're experiencing feelings of anxiety and tension. Your metabolic rate changes, your blood lactate level drops, even your skin produces an increase in electrical resistance. During the Calm Technique, you actually reverse the stress process! No doubt these phenomena are a direct result of your calm state of mind at the time, rather than any divine intervention or mystical process. This state of mind - the Calm State - is one of deep relaxation combined with extreme mental alertness, one which can only be attained through meditation.

Earlier we looked at other less tangible results of the Calm Technique, the emotional and spiritual advantages. Obviously, results in these areas can never be quantified to any acceptable scientific standard. No panel of scientists, no number of electrodes can ever prove to us exactly what emotional or attitudinal changes or improvements take place in the innermost recesses of a meditator's mind. These changes can only ever be vouched for by those who experience the benefits; that is, those who practise meditation. Unfortunately, you have no choice but to accept or reject their word on the subject. Consider though, that the popularity and credibility of meditation over such a long period of history has been maintained only through the testimony of its practitioners. Scientific evaluations of the physiological changes that take place have only been made in the past few decades.

But how do all these changes happen? What inspires them?

The one thing that almost all meditation techniques and practices have in common is single-mindedness, where the objective is to centre your attention on doing just one thing at one time with all your effort. So while there are many kinds of meditation - structured and unstructured, active and passive - they all share this same objective of doing one thing at a time.

When you have learned how to do one thing (and only one thing) at one time, you will have learned to centre your whole attention, to 'focus'. The Calm Technique will teach you to focus. This unique talent not only produces a wonderfully calm, balanced state of mind, but it also assists you in all aspects of your everyday life. You'll be able to think better, concentrate better, understand better. Your mind will be more creative. You'll function better in every respect.

One can only speculate how 'focusing' can bring about such positive results. It would seem that thr act of doing just one thing frees the mind from unnecessary conflict and distraction to such an extent that mind and body function more perfectly than at any other time. Eastern mystics have claimed for centuries that this is your natural state, this is how you're really meant to feel and function all the time!

Think how your mind works when you're anxious. Your thoughts seem to come faster and faster. They flit from pillar to post every few seconds. They look sadly on the past and worry about the future. The more you try to slow them down, the more frantic they seem to become. Then, as your attention ebbs and flows in a hundred different directions, your anxiety level increases ... one feeds the other until it's crisis time. 'I've really got to finish this work before the end of the day ... where did I leave my pen ... I wonder if I turned the iron off ... I must slow down ... I really have to brighten up my act ... made a terrible impression last time ... damn, forgot the dry-cleaning ... I've got to relax ... I think I might be getting an ulcer ... really should see a doctor ... where's all that writing paper ... why can't you ever find anything when you need it... I've really got to clean out all these drawers ... I'm putting on weight and I don't think I've got enough money to pay the gas bill next week ... I've got to relax ...' You just can't turn your mind off. You can't get to sleep. You ignore your diet. Things seem to get worse.

Imagine how calming it would be if you were unaffected by extraneous rubbish and all those unimportant thoughts. Imagine what it would be like if, at will, you could have only one thing on your mind at the one time. Imagine what it would be like to be able to sit down and do just one thing without distraction, without worrying about what you dif yesterday or what you have to do tomorrow or what's going on in the next room. Imagine being able to concentrate!

Maybe you could even imagine havibg nothing at all on your mind, on some occasions, for however brief a moment. Wouldn't that be something? Can you just imagine what a calming effect that could have on you?

Centring your mind or attention on just one thing is tantamount to having nothing on your mind at all.  You see, it is the very nature of thought to be always on the move. Thought depends on constant movement for its very existence; it is a dynamic process. Thoughts are always coming from one place  to go to another; moving from one concept to the next. If, by some means or other, you halt this restless process and the mind is no longer preoccupied with unsolicited thoughts, it soon becomes completely stilled. Only consciousness remains. And when you can achieve an absence of thought, you will begin to know what your mind really is; or more importantly, what your self really is.

Contrary to popular opinion, the mind is not the custodian of truth and understanding, it is nothing more than the activity of your consciousness. How many times have you thought your 'mind was playing tricks on you', you were 'fooling yourself', or you'd 'convinced yourself' thag something or other was true? If your mind was your real master, and not just an activity of your consciousness, why would you suffer so many ego-related problems? Why would your mind delude you into thinking you were sick when all you really wanted was attention; that you were hungry when in fact you were sad; that you loved when really you lusted; that you disliked wealthy people when in fact you envied them; that you were quite svelte when in fact you were overweight? And if your mind was the supreme authority in your make-up, how could you consciously plan ... let alone achieve ... a change to your way of thinking (e.g. 'I'm going to force myself to think positively')?

When you control your mind you have the capacity for greatness. When your mind controls you, you are a slave to your ego and your senses. By teaching you how to focus, the Calm Technique will teach  you how to quiet your mind and, in doing so, elevate your consciousness.

All this talk of stilling the mind may prompt you to dismiss the Calm Technique as an escapist routine. Nothing could be further from the truth. The meditative process is a discipline which trains you to concentrate your attention and thus improve the efficiency of your thinking. It enhances your understanding and all your intellectual facilities. And, in time, it becomes an extremely reliable way of differentiating between romance and reality.

-- This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

The Benefits

'One who overcomes others has force;
One who overcomes himself is strong.'
Taoist poem

WHAT MEDITATION WILL DO FOR YOU

The benefits of meitation are widely documented and accepted today. Although it may be considered to be the province of ageing hippies and New Age types in some quarters, it is increasingly being used as a creative and therapeutic exercise by people in all walks of life.

The best thing I can say about thr Calm Technique is that you'll feel better after twenty minutes of successful meditation than you will after twelve hours of sleep. It is not intended to replace sleep, but it will leave you feeling more rested, more relaxed, and more alert.

The rewards that the Calm Technique will bring your way are many. As you read through its list of benefits, the claims of this programme may appear almost miraculous. This is not the case. You will not be overwhelmed by great physical and emotional transformation. The process is slow, subtle, cumulative and long term.

Think of it as an exercise programme. You begin in the knowledge that exercise is good for you. You know that twenty minutes one day per month is not enough, and that if you are to experience the full benefits of your efforts you must exercise regularly. So you do it regularly.

After your first couple of days, you will really feel like you have accomplished something. You're relaxed, you eat well, you sleep well. And as you work on it day by day, you become fitter and fitter.

Two months pass. You begin to think you're at your physical best (though common sense tells you there's still a long way to go). Now the day-to-day improvements aren't quite as noticeable. The novelty begins to wane. The importance seems to diminish. This is the period when most determination is needed. This is the turning point, where you either go on to become fit, or go back to  where you started. The temptation to take it easy for a while gnaws at you - you don't need exercise, you're fit, this is all a waste of time. You have a choice: continue or take a 'harmless' break. If you abandon your exercise programme at this stage, you will soon become aware of how much good it was doing you; but by then it's too late and you have to start all over again. If, on the other hand, you had persevered during this slow period, you would be so much closer to your ultimate goal - fitness.

The Calm Technique works just like that. It's an exercise programme for the mind and emotions, if you like. As with the physical exercise programme, there is an immediate result. Then there is the tendency for you to become either impatient or blase. If you persist, knowing that in the long term it will be well worth the effort, you will begin to notice significant improvements. You'll be more relaxed, more able to cope with everyday problems and annoyances, you'll have a greater capacity to enjoy life. Your wits will be keener and you'll be more creative. You'll have more energy, better health and a deeper (and ever- increasing) understanding of yourself, your life and how you relate to the world. In effect, you will flourish as a human being.

THE PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESS

Since the West first began to take a serious interest in Yogic meditation at the turn of this century, there have been several notable studies of the physiological processes that take place during meditation. The most extensive and well reported studies took place primarily during the late 1960s at various US medical schools from Harvard to UCLA. There are enough books available on this subject for you to study it in as much detail as you can stand. For the purposes of this book, we will concern ourselves with a broad overview of these findings.

Meditation produces a state of deep relaxation (the Calm State) where, quite unlike sleep or hypnosis, your mind is wide awake and alert. During this state, some extraordinary things happen in your physiology.

There is a dramatic in the pattern of your brainwaves. There is an increase in slow alpha waves, which are usually only present when you are wide awake and relaxed. Often there is an increase in theta waves, which relate to higher forms of consciousness such as creativity.

At the same time, as these alpha waves are evident, there is a definite presence of delta waves, which occur only in the deepest sleep. Brainwave patterns during meditation indicate a state of mind that is alert, creative, but in deep relaxation. By all conventional physiological standards, this is impossible. To compound the mystery even further, there is virtually no rapid eye movement (REM) - an indication of sleep and dreaming - recorded in the meditative state.

Your metabolism is also affected (that's why you should avoid meditating directly after meals). Your oxygen consumption decreases about 20 per cent and you produce significantly less carbon monoxide. (Even in the deepest sleep, your decrease in oxygen consumption fails to equal those figures.) Your heartbeat and respiration rate decrease almost as dramatically. The lactate level in your bloodstream decreases by up to 50 per cent, nearly four times faster than in a state of deep relaxation! (Lactic acids are producing during the 'fight or flight' syndrome and contribute to feelings of anxiety, tension and fatigue.) Your blood pressure drops, and there is a definite increase in the electrical resistance of your skin (tension and anxiety induce a decrease in electrical resistance).

These remarkable physiological phenomena are unique to the meditative state and contribute to the great sense of peace, harmony and wellbeing you experience during the Calm Technique. Furthermore, these characteristics are the opposite to those you would find in a state of anxiety or anger. The Calm Technique produces an opposite response to that 'fight or flight' condition, and is therefore the most effective counter to stress and tension you can employ.

If you use the following checklist of life improvements after the first couple of weeks of the Calm Technique to test its effectiveness, you're having yourself on. While you will be aware of some benefits from the very beginning, others will develop with time and perseverance.

This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

The Problem of Stress

'For the man who has conquered his mind, it is his greatest friend; but for the man who fails to do so, his mind will be his greatest enemy.'
Sri Krsna

What was the big threat facing us in the papers this morning? Do you think the greenhouse effect is more threatening than the spread of AIDS? Do you think the growing number of homeless people is a greater worry than the growing number of long-term unemployed? Add to all this the personal pressures that influence our lives: pressures from family, relationships and employment; the ambitions and standards we set for ourselves; our health and wealth; all the doubts, fears and insecurities of our everyday lives ... is it any wonder we're feeling tense?

If there was ever a period in history when we could hardly avoid falling victim to the ravages of stress and tension, it's now. Stress today is a big threat and claims just as many casualties (if not more) as the Plague did in the seventeenth century. And just as it took a major lifestyle adjustment to combat the Plague, a similar adjustment is needed today to combat stress.

Stress is popularly accepted as the most common promoter of disease and discomfort in the Western world. It is blamed for the escalating incidence of heart disease and the risinf national blood pressure; it encourages almost every fashionable ailment from migraine to cancer; it reduces resistance to disease; it contributes to the rampant insanity and social disorders that confront us every day of our lives. It leads to hypertension, indigestion, constipation, palpitations, insomnia and impotence. It has been blamed for high blood pressure, the hardening of the arteries, strokes and suicide. Overall, it's encouraged more serious illness and suffering than any other known condition, yet it doesn't sound anywhere as frightening or ugly as cancer or leprosy or even, dare I say it, herpes. Such is the insidious nature of stress.

Unlike most ailments, stress doesn't pass with time. It is self-perpetuating. It builds and builds until it is a major influence on your mind and body, until it dominates almost every action you take, every emotion you feel, and every thought you think. Contrary to popular opinion, the reason for this is biological rather than neurotic. Humans, like all animals, arr biologically equipped for regular episodes of 'fight or flight'. When confronted by a hostile animal or adversary, primitive men had the choice: either stay and fight, or flee for their lives. While deciding, their bodies were preparing for either eventuality. With no conscious effort, the adrenal glands began secreting adrenaline and epinephrine hormones, muscles tensed, pulses quickened, blood pressure rose, digestion ceased, breathing quickened. They were perfectly equipped for either fight or flight.

In today's world, every mishap, confrontation, mistake, and almost every move we make seems to activate this 'fight or flight' mechanism. The early morninh alarm fails to sound. You don't have a clean shirt. The garbage hasn't been collected again. The train runs late. The tickey collector is aggressive. You're late for work. Your best friend is angry because of something you said. You don't know how you're going to finish all your work this week. You discover you're the centre of a spicy piece of office gossip. And it's still only 9.20 a.m.

Each one of those 'unimportant' little aggravations activates the 'fight or flight' response in your body. You experience this physiological preparation for action hundreds of times throughout an average day. However, there are differences between your 'fight or flight' reaction and the primitive men's. They could resolve their stressful situations simply by performing one of the two options at their disposal: fighting or fleeing. Either way, the strain on their muscles ueed up the chemicals in their system, and they immediately began to calm down and their stress levels dissolved. In your case it's not so easy. When your 'fight or flight' mechanism is activated, you have to stay at your desk. Or behind the wheel of your cab. Or behind the sales counter. And all you can do is brood. Your nerves and muscles are all primed for fight or flight, your juices are flowing and there's nothing you can do about it. You're stuck in that passive situation while your stress level builds and builds.

Is it any wonder that your stress ends up at such critical levels?

This book is dedicated to eliminating stress.

I'm sure everyone recognizes the fact that it is possible to live a stress-free life. Yet, if you're like most people I know, you won't be prepared to make the dramatic lifestyle adjustment that's required to achieve this end. Like me, you're probably not prepared to change your occupation or husband, or move to a remote part of the country. Similarly, you're probably not prepared to reduce your diet to a subsistence level, or forget just how good wine tastes, to exercise at least thirty minutes a day, to concentrate only on positive thoughts, to get at least eight hours' sleep every night and to drink five litres of fluoride-free water every day.

There has to be a more practical solution than this!

There is. It is possible to live a prpgressively stress-free existence without making dramatic changes to your lifestyle. It is possible to face every day feeling calm and relaxed, easily coping with the pressures and anxieties that modern life presents. It is possible to enjoy a peaceful, happy, contented and confident existence, living life to the fullest. All with a minimum of guidance, surprisingly little effort, and the Calm Technique.

Primarily, the Calm Technique influences your state of mind. If your mind is calm, your life will be in order. As well, your state of mind has a very definite influence on your general state of health. Consider how a relaxed, happy, easy-going person always seems to have fewer medical complaints than someone who is neurotic, bitter and anxious. You may argue that the medical complaints could be the cause of the state of mind rather than the other way around; but evidence has shown that the mental state (read 'stress') does have a marked negative effect on organic conditions. Not only does it encourage ill-health and disease, but it inhibits the body's immune responses and the entire healing process.

Meditation not only encouraged a powerful health-giving frame of mind, but it is also one of the most  successful antidotes to stress. The Calm Technique will reduce accumulated stress. It will have a positive effect on your general state of mind and health. Use it sincerely and conscientiously, and the day will certainly come when you will no longer be a victim of stress.

WHY IT'S CALLED THE CALM TECHNIQUE

If I could give you just one thing that would greatly influence your life for the better, it would be a sense of Calm. Then, when the newspapers preacb doom and gloom, the cost of living goes through the roof, your livelihood is threatened by computers and industrial robots, when the entire world is overwhelmed by feelings of impotence and despair, you will be confident, contented and living life to the fullest. You will enjoy a zest and enthusiasm for living that 'normal' peopld seldom feel. You will look forward to each day with a long-forgotten feeling of youthful adventure.

Quite a bonus for having a sense of Calm, wouldn't you say?

The Calm Technique is dedicated to developing this sense of Calm. Calm is what you experience while you're practising it (the Calm State), Calm is what you practise, and Calm is what you achieve as a result. This simple state, which is so easy to achieve, can have the most profound effect on your entire life.

The Calm Technique is a simple and straightforward meditation technique which, with persevrrance, can dramatically improve the way you think, the way you feel and the way you live. Simply by following the information contained within these pages, you will soon begin to experience its full potential and enjoy many of the benefits that the traditional avenues of meditation study have promised throughout the ages.

Simplicity is the key to the Calm Technique. Each step of the process is clearly set out in simple, easy-to-follow stages. This does not limit its effectiveness one bit. In fact, students of the Calm Technique who have learned other techniques tend to agree that the simplicity of the Calm Technique not only makes the process easier to appreciate, but actually enhances it.

I've said it before, and will say it many more times by the end of this book: the great advantage of the Calm Technique is that it really works! You will find it easy to understand and apply, you will begin to see positive results from the very first time you use it, and the benefits will become more and more obvious as you continue to practise it.

This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique by Paul Wilson

The Calm Technique

'To see a world in a grain of sand
And a Heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour.'
William Blake

This is a book on meditation. For many people today, the mere mention of the word 'meditation' is enough to have them reaching for the phone book in search of deprogrammers while muttering things about secret cults, sleep deprivation and protein deficiencies. It conjures up all sorts of exotic images of saffron robes, incense, chants, prayer and Eastern gobbledegook. Indeed, much of the research for this book has been conducted within these latter environments (although I have yet to encounter a genuine 'secret cult').

In spite of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the misapprehension persists that meditation is inextricably linked with religious knowledge and understanding. I'm sure this attitude continues as much because of the romantic notions and enlistment techniques of the organizations that teach it, as it does from any intrinsic characteristic of meditation itself. Faith, rituals and philosophies are not essential for effective meditation. The physical and emotional rewards alone, while not necessarily the ultimate expressions of all that is possible within the art, are reasons enough for practising it.

The Calm Technique is mainly concerned with the temporal aspects of meditation: the physical and emotional benefits. Its primary intention is to improve your quality of life, your health and your understanding. This is achieved through a physiological state we call the Calm State, which is one of great peace and calm.

When you achieve this state, stress-related problems will begin to diminish or vanish completely. You will begin to develop a sense of wellbeing and confidence like you haven't felt in a long, long time. You will sleep better, eat better, think better, live better. In short, you'll feel great to be alive.

Obviously, for those who are so inclined, meditation can bring profound spiritual rewards as well. Those of you who are mainly concerned with spiritual enlightenment should consider the Calm Technique as the first step on a long, hard road. For such a search, this book is only a beginning. The Calm Technique can help you free your consciousness to pursue higher goals. When you have mastered it, you can combine the Calm Technique with prayer, readings from the various scriptures, as well as any of the other spiritual directions that are open to you. You should consider this as a major step in the right direction.

WHAT EXACTLY IS 'MEDITATION'?

Ask a thousand meditators to define 'meditation' in terms of their own experience, and you'll get a thousand different answers. This seems hardly surprising when you considee how personal and subjective the experience that takes place entirely within your mind is. What meditation does for one person may have little in common with what it does for another. As expectations ans appreciations vary dramatically from one person to the next, it becomea clear why so many of the traditional schools resort to mysticism and vagueness.

But how can we define 'meditation'?

A really smug definition of meditation one regularly heare is: 'the best definition of meditation is the act of meditation itself'. Obviously, this is not a definition. However it is forgivable because, in many ways, 'meditation' is as much an abstraction as 'love' or 'envy', both of which are extremely difficult to define in experiential terms.

The really cosmic definition of meditation says it is the means of elevating the consciousness from the Lower Mind to the Higher Mind. The analogy which explains this phenomenon usually goes something like this: 'The Lower Mind equates with what you see around you now - daylight, trees, cars, dirty washing, highway hoardings. The Higher Mind equates with the changes in your perceptions if you were to take on a satellite point of view. You would see yourself as more a part of the Universe; your everyday surroundings would seem less important anf less threatening; the higher you went, the more your horizons would be expanded.' While that is accurate to a certain extent, it is too heavenly and grandiose an explanation for someone just beginning meditation.

I believe meditation is best explained (if not defined) in a word: 'being'. When you learn how to live only in the momeny; when nothing distracts you; when you are not tied to the past or anxious about the future; when your mind and your emotions are your servants rather than your master, your consciousness (your awareness) is in the mosy perfect state possible. This state is simply 'being'. Meditation is about 'being'; not about 'doing'.

In meditation, you become peacefully aware of your real self: what you are and what your purpose is in life. The more you use it, the more aware you become. There is no flash of inspiration and enlightenment that allows you to shout: 'So that's what I really am!'; the experience is subtle and cumulative. By becoming aware of your real self (as opposed to the 'self' you like to present to the world, and indeed, the 'self' you may even pretend to yourself) you will no longer be a victim of the pressures and anxieties of modern life. When you learn to live for each moment, to enjoy and appreciate life to the fullest at that moment, you suddenly become impervious to the myriad of doubts and fears that you've lived with all your life. When you can finally appreciate that just 'being' is everything, that you cannot make life perform exactly as you would like it to, that you casnot control the future, and that there is no point in dwelling on what has passed, you will have achieved something something that most people never come close to in a lifetime: you will have peace.

Meditation is subtle and habitual. It is not a one-off adventure or experience that will transport you ino other worlds of cosmic ecstasy (well, not as far as I know). But there will almost surely be moments when you become blissfully unaware of the passage of time and the distractions of your own mind. There may even be times when you will be totally unaware of your very physical presence, yet be remarkably aware of your existence. Those are moments when you are just 'being', and they are moments to be treasured. When the mind is calmed, and external distractions and influences are eliminated, you will come in contact with the very essence of your understanding (being) and truly understand the meaning of peace.

This excerpt was taken from The Calm Technique  by Paul Wilson