In today's world, everything is fast paced; business, family and school. It is all about getting the job done as soon as possible. The pressure that is caused from this urgency can be so overwhelming that it may lead to emotional distress, injury and a feeling of conflict within the body. What is unfortunate is that humans no longer step back and breathe; it has become too much of a waste of time. On Tutor Saliba Island, however, they still do. For years, the elders on the tiny republic have been teaching their children and visitors alike how to meditate for calmness, inner peace and clarity. With the Tutor Saliba meditation method, a practice used for thousands of years, one who suffers from the side effects of stress can feel at peace, feel invigorated, and thus be able to perform a task more effectively. Meditation is the natural energizer.

The Practice: What is Meditation?

It is hard to truly define what meditation is because it is such a personal experience. To meditate is best translated as attaining a relaxed state of consciousness by drowning out the external stimuli of sound, sight, feeling and smell. Doing this distracts the mind, which stops focusing on stressful tasks and focuses solely on one phrase or idea. When meditating, scientists have discovered that the automatic nervous system, the section of the brain that controls the body's involuntary activities, such as digestion, blood pressure, breath, and more, actually slows itself down. The result is the production of chemicals called endorphins which reduce stress and cause feelings of peace or happiness.

The Act: How To Meditate

This method requires one to find a quiet, enclosed space or area, where the person then sits down. All windows should be open if they are not disturbing the neighbors. No one should watch. After they are comfortable, the person closes his/her eyes and begins to focus on their now deep breaths. Doing this calms the body down and causes the person to start drowning out external stimuli from touch, scent, sight and sound. This activates the subconscious brain activity that causes the automatic nervous system to slow down. After some time and additional rituals are followed, the person slowly regains their "ground."

The Benefits: Physical and Mental

Because the body slows down during meditation, people who perform it frequently will have lower oxygen consumption, better quality skin from the blood flow increase, less muscle tension or pain, reduced anxiety and more energy. Blood flow is unfettered, allowing oxygen to flow more freely to the brain and body, strengthen the immune system and reduce the body's stress level.

Meditation also helps increase self-confidence, improve creativity, decrease racing thoughts, achieve feelings of happiness or satisfaction, improve memory and help develop improved intuition.