Meditation has been a ritual practice around the world for thousands of years. Those who meditate did it to have a deep, spiritual connection with a supreme being or with the Earth around them. Through the thousands of years that meditation has existed, it has been introduced to many cultures and religions worldwide.
Many religions and cultures use meditation including, the five major religions and cultures not affiliated with na religion. Over the years, the purpose of meditation has evolved outside of religious and cultural needs. Meditation has expanded and shown different benefits besides a deep, spiritual connection.
Millions of people worldwide meditate every day to strengthen a bond, hope for something good to happen, or receive health benefits. Regardless of why someone chooses to meditate, they are practicing a very old tradition that has been kept alive for millennia.
Table of Contents
Meditation in the World Today
Meditation has been around for thousands of years and has survived many religious and cultural changes. Through the time meditation has existed, the uses and forms have evolved from spiritual and religious practices.
Today, many religions and cultures use meditation for different reasons. Traditionally, many religions and cultures had their reasons to meditate. Through the spread of ideas throughout centuries, different cultures were exposed to meditation, and different communities have been able to study meditation’s effects. Some of the reasons that meditation is used today are:
- A deeper connection with god
- To reach a pure connection with oneself.
- Health benefits, such as reduced blood pressure, anxiety, and depression
- To live a more peaceful life
Meditation has evolved in many different ways since the concept and practice were shared along the Silk Road, an ancient trade route where not only goods were exchanged by travelers, but religion, languages, and culture were too.
In Which Religions are Meditation a Major Spiritual Practice?
Meditation started as a major spiritual practice in India, known as the practice, dhyana. Dhyana is to reach the ultimate goal of meditation, calming your mind, and being aware of everything at once. Meditation has been seen in the world’s five major religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.
Meditation spiritual practices started in Hinduism and used yoga as a way to maintain the body and mind’s alertness during the practice. After Hinduism, meditation started to be used by Buddhists and Muslims. With further expansion, it started to be used by Christians and Jewish people.
Hinduism
Hinduism is an ancient religion where the oldest records of meditation have been found. Meditation was first found in the Upanishads, ancient Sanskrit texts that discuss meditation, consciousness, and philosophy.
The Yoga Sutras, written by Patanjali, show the flow and goal of meditation and yoga within the Hindu religion, incorporating mantras and breath practice (pranayama). Hatha yoga is a form of yoga that focuses on deep meditation.
Hindus meditate for varying reasons, including controlling one’s mind and reaching a deeper connection with the creating force.
Buddhism
Buddhism is another ancient Asian religion. It is the second major religion that meditation is used in as a major spiritual practice. After meditation expanded from India, it reached the Buddhist religion around 500 BCE. Thanks to the Silk Road, when Buddhism was introduced to more Western cultures, meditation was also introduced.
Buddhists meditate for similar reasons to Hindus. Their goal is to reach nirvana and become enlightened. Many non-Buddhists also take part in Buddhist meditation to reach a sense of calm.
Christianity
Christianity is another one of the world’s five major religions that meditation is used as a major spiritual practice. Meditation was adopted as a prayer technique within the Christian religion to speak with God. It was made popular throughout the religion by Christian monks, who were able to reach the deepest connections with God.
Meditation in Christianity has the focus and intent on God, Jesus, and the Virgin Mary. It is said to be a developmental process in the religion, starting with studying and practicing to reach the deepest connection.
What Cultures Use Meditation?
Religion is a strong driving force around a culture. It tends to dictate the rules of how people interact with each other, spend their time, and the beliefs that people have. Many cultures that are associated with religion use meditation within their daily lives. There are also other cultures that aren’t affiliated with any religion that use meditation.
Medical Culture
Since meditation had vastly expanded into the Western world, many different doctors and medical practices aimed to study what meditation does to the mind and body. Today, meditation is being practiced and prescribed in different areas of the medical field to help people treat illnesses such as:
- Cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure
- Psychological illnesses such as insomnia, anxiety, depression, and addiction
- Pain management
Meditation in the medical culture focuses on using mindfulness and positive psychology to help people who meditate these ways to reach their goals. They focus on a positive affirmation to be able to reap the physical benefits of meditation.
Workplace Culture
Another place that meditation is commonly seen nowadays is within the workplace. The goal of using meditation in the workplace is to reduce workers’ stress levels. Many companies have started to offer time during the workday to meditate as well as courses for employees to learn how to meditate.
Some companies, including Google, even offer a space for employees to distance themselves and meditate, regardless of whether they are meditating to reduce stress levels or religious reasons.
Yoga Culture
Yoga came along with meditation when it started to grow and spread into Western culture. Even though many people practice religion with yoga in Eastern cultures, it’s not seen as this way in the West.
Millions of people today practice yoga and meditate during their yoga practices. Yoga instructors throughout Europe and the Americas incorporate meditation within their practice without being tied to any religious beliefs or connections to god.
Meditation within the yoga culture in the West focuses on positive thoughts and reflection on how one felt during their yoga practice. It also works on setting an intention and a goal for practice.
Final Thoughts
Meditation has existed for thousands of years. It has evolved and expanded through many religions and cultures. Meditation was originally to reach enlightenment with religion. However, it is now used for many physical and health benefits. It isn’t seen the same way and is practiced differently from religion or culture.
