You can define meditation as a type of prayer. According to MMY, meditation is like prayer, except on a very subtle level.
In a recent visit to Sonoma in California it seemed like almost the entire northern half of California meditates using various breath awareness techniques or various yoga techniques. I know that in northern California lots of people practice Zen meditation. Recently I sat with Jokusho Kwong, the roshi of the Sonoma Zen Center, when I visited my daughter in Santa Rosa. I've known the roshi since the days when I sat with Suzuki at the San Francisco Zen Center. [image: Inline image 1] Everyday Zen at Sonoma Zen Center According to the dictionary, meditation means simply 'to think things over'. If so, then everyone meditates. There's probably not a person on the planet who doesn't pause once or twice a day to take stock of their mind contents. And we're all transcending - even without a specific technique. So, the question is: do you enjoy? "As a method of stress reduction, meditation is often used in hospitals in cases of chronic or terminal illness to reduce complications associated with increased stress including a depressed immune system. There is growing agreement in the medical community that mental factors such as stress significantly contribute to a lack of physical health, and there is a growing movement in mainstream science to fund research in this area. Dr. Herbert Benson of the Mind-Body Medical Institute, which is affiliated with Harvard and several Boston hospitals, reports that meditation induces a host of biochemical and physical changes in the body collectively referred to as the 'relaxation response.' The relaxation response includes changes in metabolism, heart rate, respiration, blood pressure and brain chemistry. Benson and his team have also done clinical studies at Buddhist monasteries in the Himalayan Mountains." "Transcendental means to go beyond; meditation means thinking. Hence, 'Transcendental Meditation' means to go beyond thinking." - Charlie Lutes Works cited: Charles F. Lutes http://www.maharishiphotos.com/tmintro.html Sonoma Mountain Zen Center: http://www.smzc.net/ Meditation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation Other References: 'The Mystery of Consciousness' By Steven Pinker Time Magazine, Friday, Jan. 19, 2007 http://tinyurl.com/3ck5qe 'The Science of Meditation' Time Magazine Cover Story, August 4, 2003 http://tinyurl.com/63xac5 'Just say Om' by Joel Stein Time Magazine, Sunday, Jul. 27, 2003 http://tinyurl.com/icu6
