When it comes to finding a sense of inner peace and self-understanding, one of the best things that you can do is to take some time to meditate. There are so many studies that have found the unique benefits of regular meditation and how much they can transform both your physical and mental well-being. However, one of the most fascinating things about meditation is that there are actually so many different types of meditation and ways of practicing this ancient artform.
One of the most unique forms of mediation, is known as Tonglen meditation. It is a different approach to the standard meditative practices that most people are away of, but comes with some very powerful benefits. This form of meditation, also known as the giving and receiving meditation, can be traced back to 11th century Tibet.
For the practitioner, the goal of this form of meditation is to visualize themselves taking in the suffering of themselves and of others with their inhale and exhaling while giving out relief or whatever would cure the suffering. This form of meditation is all about compassion and not only bringing peace and betterment to yourself but to the world around you as well.
At its core, Tonglen meditation is still similar to many forms of mediation and can be practiced with simple, deep cleansing breaths and a focus on clearing the mind. However, the benefits of Tonglen meditation are completely unique to other forms of mediation, which is why so many people are adding this practice on top of their current mindful practices. With this in mind, here are some of the unique benefits of Tonglen mediation that you should consider before giving this practice a try.
1. It Helps Heal Suffering
The primary goal of Tonglen meditation is to help heal suffering, both your own suffering and the suffering of others and it really works. By taking in the negative energy from the world around you and filling your surroundings with only positivity, you can really make a difference in the suffering in the world.
2. It Can Help You Deal With Stressful People and Situations
When you have difficult people in your life that breed stressful situations—Tonglen meditation can be your key to finding peace. You can not only practice taking in your stress and breathing it out but you can practice taking in the negativity of those that are difficult around you so that everyone can find the peace they are looking for.
3. It Reminds Us of What We Should Be Grateful For
Tonglen meditation is all about compassion and working to help rid the world of suffering. As you practice this meditation, you may focus on the suffering of people that you know or even people that you don’t—such as victims of a hurricane. Either way, it can remind us all of how lucky we are in the big scheme of things and of all of the things that we have to be grateful for.
4. It Reminds Us of the Power of Karma
Karma is a powerful thing. In fact, we’ve all be in those situations where we see first hand how putting good into the world comes back to you. By taking in the suffering of others and trying to breath happiness into their lives you are constantly practicing a form of karma and continuing the cycle of bringing more positivity to the world.
5. It Can Help You Be More Kind
This form of meditation is all about cultivating loving kindness. It is something that our world desperately needs right now in its current state of unrest. Others may not know of these acts of kindness, but the more you do to cultivate this type of positivity, lovingness and happiness, the more kindness is getting spread around. It may also inspire you to be more outwardly kind to others as well in new ways you may not have thought of before.
6. It Can Change Your Relationship
When you focus on taking in the suffering of others, especially of those that are near and dear to you, it can really change the way that you interact with the people in your life. Without knowing it, it can transform your relationships with others. It can help you understand them more, care for them more and keep them in your thoughts more—even if they don’t know what you are doing.
7. It Promotes Generosity
At its core, Tonglen meditation is all about generosity. It may not be the outward form of generosity that most people are accustomed to, such as giving money to those who need it. But it is a completely selfless and pure form of being generous to others, mostly because the average person doesn’t know that you are putting so much of your mind, soul and spirit into working to take the pain away from those who need it most. If that isn’t generosity, then nothing is.
8. It Can Help You Grow Spiritually
The final, and perhaps most important benefit of Tonglen meditation is about what this practice can do for you. If you practice Tonglen regularly you will find that you can grow spiritually in ways you never thought were possible before.
8 Benefits of Tonglen Meditation
When it comes to finding a sense of inner peace and self-understanding, one of the best things that you can do is to take some time to meditate. There are so many studies that have found the unique benefits of regular meditation and how much they can transform both your physical and mental well-being. However, one of the most fascinating things about meditation is that there are actually so many different types of meditation and ways of practicing this ancient artform.
One of the most unique forms of mediation, is known as Tonglen meditation. It is a different approach to the standard meditative practices that most people are away of, but comes with some very powerful benefits. This form of meditation, also known as the giving and receiving meditation, can be traced back to 11th century Tibet.
For the practitioner, the goal of this form of meditation is to visualize themselves taking in the suffering of themselves and of others with their inhale and exhaling while giving out relief or whatever would cure the suffering. This form of meditation is all about compassion and not only bringing peace and betterment to yourself but to the world around you as well.
At its core, Tonglen meditation is still similar to many forms of mediation and can be practiced with simple, deep cleansing breaths and a focus on clearing the mind. However, the benefits of Tonglen meditation are completely unique to other forms of mediation, which is why so many people are adding this practice on top of their current mindful practices. With this in mind, here are some of the unique benefits of Tonglen mediation that you should consider before giving this practice a try.
1. It Helps Heal Suffering
The primary goal of Tonglen meditation is to help heal suffering, both your own suffering and the suffering of others and it really works. By taking in the negative energy from the world around you and filling your surroundings with only positivity, you can really make a difference in the suffering in the world.
2. It Can Help You Deal With Stressful People and Situations
When you have difficult people in your life that breed stressful situations—Tonglen meditation can be your key to finding peace. You can not only practice taking in your stress and breathing it out but you can practice taking in the negativity of those that are difficult around you so that everyone can find the peace they are looking for.
3. It Reminds Us of What We Should Be Grateful For
Tonglen meditation is all about compassion and working to help rid the world of suffering. As you practice this meditation, you may focus on the suffering of people that you know or even people that you don’t—such as victims of a hurricane. Either way, it can remind us all of how lucky we are in the big scheme of things and of all of the things that we have to be grateful for.
4. It Reminds Us of the Power of Karma
Karma is a powerful thing. In fact, we’ve all be in those situations where we see first hand how putting good into the world comes back to you. By taking in the suffering of others and trying to breath happiness into their lives you are constantly practicing a form of karma and continuing the cycle of bringing more positivity to the world.
5. It Can Help You Be More Kind
This form of meditation is all about cultivating loving kindness. It is something that our world desperately needs right now in its current state of unrest. Others may not know of these acts of kindness, but the more you do to cultivate this type of positivity, lovingness and happiness, the more kindness is getting spread around. It may also inspire you to be more outwardly kind to others as well in new ways you may not have thought of before.
6. It Can Change Your Relationship
When you focus on taking in the suffering of others, especially of those that are near and dear to you, it can really change the way that you interact with the people in your life. Without knowing it, it can transform your relationships with others. It can help you understand them more, care for them more and keep them in your thoughts more—even if they don’t know what you are doing.
7. It Promotes Generosity
At its core, Tonglen meditation is all about generosity. It may not be the outward form of generosity that most people are accustomed to, such as giving money to those who need it. But it is a completely selfless and pure form of being generous to others, mostly because the average person doesn’t know that you are putting so much of your mind, soul and spirit into working to take the pain away from those who need it most. If that isn’t generosity, then nothing is.
8. It Can Help You Grow Spiritually
The final, and perhaps most important benefit of Tonglen meditation is about what this practice can do for you. If you practice Tonglen regularly you will find that you can grow spiritually in ways you never thought were possible before.
Dhaval Patel
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