People become caught up in the pressures of job, study, and family in modern life, and they forget about their inner world. Apart from emphasizing the importance of physical health, mental health must now be prioritized and enhanced through a variety of treatment methods. Vipassana meditation is one of them.

What is Vipassana Meditation?

Vipassana meditation is an ancient Indian meditation method. In Pali, in the old Buddhist language, Vipassana means seeing things as they are. Vipassana meditation is also known as the practice of mindfulness, which means observing thoughts and emotions as they are, without judgment. The journey of observing the world in a quiet, aware and mindful state will help us see the true nature of existence, helping to purify the soul.

In life, we are inevitably exposed to negative emotions, provoked by discord, or disappointment. When we suffer or face things that are not going our way, we tend to burst out and pass on that negative energy to others.

Enlightened people do not simply understand themselves on a conscious level but also on an emotional level, real experience of ourselves helps us understand the process of our own growth or regression. Vipassana brings us back to a state of peace and harmony by purifying the mind, freeing ourselves from suffering and its underlying causes.

Vipassana is the path of self-change by self-observation. This meditation method focuses on the intimate relationship between mind and body. This relationship can be experienced directly by paying careful attention to actual bodily sensations, which are always interwoven and create patterns for the mind. This journey of observation and self-discovery goes to the common root of mind and body, thereby removing mental impurities, and resulting in a balanced mind filled with love and compassion.

The whole journey of Vipassana meditation is an art of living. It does not belong to any sect or religion.

Why should you meditate Vipassana?

• Reduce stress: Vipassana, like other meditation techniques, can improve stress and anxiety.
• Besides that, the participants of Vipassana also experience an increase in caring, kindness, and happiness.
• Improved mental health: From the benefits of releasing stress, Vipassana meditation also helps improve mental health such as: accepting and loving yourself, and improving positive healthy relationships. increase your self-confidence and maximize your potential.
• Improves Memory and Concentration: Practicing Vipassana requires concentration on the breath and inward observation. After a long period of meditation, you will be surprised at the improvement in your concentration and memory.
• Aids in reducing symptoms of menopause: Some studies show that menopausal health conditions such as headaches and insomnia can be improved if you practice Vipassana meditation correctly.

Vipassana Meditation Guide

About the sitting space

You can choose quiet places, open space, and air circulation to sit, it will be very good. Choose a quiet space, avoid outside noise, should choose a comfortable position that can be on a chair, on the floor, or on the lawn,…

About the sitting position

Posture when you meditate, you will sit cross-legged, it can be cross-legged, or half-lotus or full-length position.

Cross-legged in a sitting position cross-legged as you normally would when sitting on the mat. This pose is usually for those who are just starting to meditate or have problems with their legs, so they can’t sit in the half-price or half-full lotus position.

Semi-old is a way of sitting with one leg on the calf of the other. Specifically, put the left foot on the right calf, and the right foot under the left calf. Or put the right foot on the left calf, the left foot under the right calf. Depending on your body, you will feel a little different when switching between legs in this position.

The full lotus is the most correct posture, and most suitable for sitting meditation.

To sit in full lotus, at first you sit cross-legged naturally, use both hands to grasp the right foot, slowly bend the leg and place the foot on the left thigh, heel pressed close to the abdomen, soles of the feet facing the sky.

The mind turns to the breath

In the most basic of sitting meditation instructions, you will meditate on the breath – which means using a concentration on the breath to meditate.

The reason the breath is used as the object of meditation is that it is transient and ever-changing. Every time your mind wanders, bring it back to the breath.

You can try focusing your attention on the out-breath and the space at the end of the out-breath before you inhale again.

Focus on breathing and feeling. Practice mindful breathing by focusing on your in-breath and out-breath. At the same time, you begin to observe your own inner thoughts and feelings.

In the event that too many thoughts and worries arise, you can return it by counting your breaths.

How long do you practice meditation?

How long to meditate depends on how successful you want to be. It could be 15′, 20′ or it could be an hour. However, in the beginning, I recommend everyone meditate for about 15 minutes. Because we are new to meditation, we can hardly sit for a long time. Then you can gradually increase the time to 20′, 30′ as you get more proficient in practice.

The important thing in meditation is that you try to be persistent throughout the day to feel the changes and benefits of meditation with the body, enlightenment, and new things. Building a habit of Vipassana meditation every day will help you not only improve your mental health, and live more optimistically and joyfully, but it is also an art of living, helping you discover the journey of knowing yourself, and loving yourself.