The best blues originated in African-American communities in the deep South of the US. With a hot mix of Chicago, Delta, Texas and a variety of other Blues forms, you will feel it in the bottom of your heart. Sublime and calm yet capricious and amusing, this elegant music sets a mood that is both sophisticated and lighthearted, allowing the listener to transcend the worries of the day.
You can meditate for as long, or as short, as you’d like. Any amount of time spent meditating is good, no matter how brief. A starting point for beginners is 30 minutes but meditate for long enough that your mind and body calm.
We depend more and more on external things to take our mind away, losing our innate ability to focus and to experience contentment with what is. Our avoiding habit deepens, and the backlog of mental junk -- the stuff we've been consuming in order to avoid what's there -- piles up. These external situations can indeed take away the thinking mind, but it is only temporary.
That’s why the guided meditations from Meditation Minis Podcast are so popular. In 10 minutes or less, host Cher Hamilton will help you find new ways to calm your anxiety, overcome negative thinking, reduce stress, and feel calmer. Not only that, the Ten Percent Happier app has teachers that will walk you through the basics, one breath at a time. Promising to help you enjoy your life more, this guided meditation podcast aims to increase your capacity for joy, gratitude, and love—no magical thinking required. You can practice mindfulness meditation on your own anytime and anywhere. But listening to basic guided meditations can also be helpful, especially when getting started.
Fall asleep each night listening to whispered readings that include soothing meditations, interesting stories, and tranquil poems designed to help you relax, find calm, and enjoy a peaceful night of sleep. Finding peace and calm in the chaos of life can be a real challenge. So-called meditation music is meant to be relaxing, and of course meditation does help you to relax too. But meditation goes beyond relaxation and helps us to be more alert and focused. It also helps us to do things like cultivate kindly or to deeply question the nature of our experience.
Some feelings might be neutral — tingling or itching. In the midst of classic rock’s golden days in the early ’70s, Henry Wolff and Nancy Hennings decided to hole up in the Island Records studio and make a record with just Tibetan bells and singing bowls. Using little more than struck metal from the Far East and capturing those subtle vibrations on tape, the duo found themselves at the fore of New Age music. Sometimes you may find that what you’re hearing is distressing, or you’ll disagree, or you’ll really want to speak your piece. There will always be opportunities for you to share your thoughts—later.
Instead, the practice involves paying close attention to the present moment — especially our own thoughts, emotions and sensations — whatever it is that’s happening. Setting aside time for formal meditation is an important way to establish a routine and get comfortable with the practice. Even just a few minutes a day can make a big difference.
Since 2001, On Being has been asking the big questions and talking about them with really, really smart people. The podcast/radio show doesn’t necessarily answer those questions — but it doesn’t really need to. The questions are often so big that there really isn’t one, single answer to any of them. Recent topics include “tending joy and practicing delight,” grace, and whether we can — or even really should — bring “our whole selves” to work. Each episode’s music is brand new , so you’ll never hear the same thing twice.
With wisdom and guidance to help improve your physical wellbeing as well as your emotional health, you’ll feel inspired to expand your meditation journey. If you find yourself ‘thinking too much’, don’t beat yourself up over it; this is natural for those beginning meditation practice. Instead, congratulate yourself on noticing the internal dialogue, and redirecting your attention to the present moment. While 20 minutes is a good minimum time for music medication, even one song can help reduce stress and restore energy. Music has many wonderful benefits for stress management and overall health. It can help you calm your physiology without making a mind relaxing conscious effort, and that can alleviate stress from your mind.