A Focus on Meditation: Box Breathing vs. Mantra Meditation

I've been experimenting with types of meditation this year to figure out what works best for me.  I started with a form of Mantra Meditation and practiced for about three months.  I then moved on to Box Breathing or Heart Rhythm Meditation as it is also known.

Mantra Meditation is the practice of using a phrase to focus yourself during meditation.  You can sit however you like. Some people choose the typical seated position

while others may choose to sit in azchair.  Choose whatever is comfortable for you.  I chose to sit on the floor.  It's important that you are comfortable, your back is straight and you are centered.  Bad posture with slumped shoulders is bad for you and can be painful if you plan on staying in the same position for long periods of time. So sit up straight!

After you have seated yourself, begin your mantra.  You can say your mantra as many times as you want for whatever interval of time that you choose.  There are hundred of mantras that you can choose but whatever you choose should reflect the purpose of your meditation.  If you are seeking calm, choose a word that reflects this.  You might choose a word that reflects happiness, courage, or some other positive feeling.  My mantra was a little different.

I chose a modified form of the Catholic Rosary.  I am a very tactile person so I made a rosary and went through it to help me focus.  There are tons of different ways to say the rosary. Now Catholics may roll their eyes but for the purposes of meditation, you can do whatever you want.

http://www.stjudetheapostleparish.org/rosary/rosary_chart.html

I bought wooden beads at a craft store.  Some were square, some were round.  I chose different shapes based on where in the rosary I happened to be.  I put them together with a leather cord.  These homemade rosary beads made my meditation more personal to me. In turn, this kept me focused on the words, my mantra, rather than counting to make sure I had said each part enough times.

I practiced this every night right before bed and found that I slept like a baby, regardless of what had been going on that day.

Eventually I tried a new method, Box Breathing
Box breathing sounds weird. But all it is is breathing in a pattern.  To practice box breathing you can do one of two things.

• You can feel for your pulse on your neck or wrist and breathe in or out for a few heartbeats
• You can breathe in or out for a few seconds.

I had a lot of trouble trying to focus on my heartbeat and with holding my fingers on my carotid artery (that giant blood vessel in your neck.) So, after three days, I chose to count seconds.

To make it even easier on myself, I use an app that counts off seconds. Sort of like a virtual metronome.  But this app, Prana Breath has options that allow you to know which part of box breathing you should be doing at any given time.  This kind of meditation has quickly become my favorite.  So how does box breathing work?

1. Find a quiet, dark place
2. Sit up straight (Remember you will be holding this position for a while. So good posture is important!)
3. Breathe in for three to five seconds.
4. Hold your breath for the same amount of time
5. Breathe out for the same amount of time
6. Hold your breath for the same amount of time
7. Repeat for 10 minutes or however long you wish to meditate.

And that's it!  It really is that simple.  Some people use this method with a 12 second count.  I am not there yet.  I would not suggest that you do this if it is your first time.  Some people complain that they feel they are suffocating.  If this happens, change your breath count to a lower time.  The name of this blog is Finding Peace, not kill yourself trying to meditate.

And that's all I have.  In a few months, I will try a different form of meditation, at which point I will make another blog entry related to meditation.  Good luck in your travels seekers!  Go find your peace!