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[[Image:1979 Festival.jpg|thumb|right|255px|Meditation workshop at 1979 [[Nambassa]] in [[New Zealand]]]]

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'''Meditation''' describes a state of concentrated [[attention]] on some object of [[thought]] or [[awareness]]. It usually involves turning the attention inward to a single point of reference.[http://www.spiritual.com.au/dictionary/dict_m.html Spiritual Dictionary]. Retrieved on:[[August 21]], [[2007]]The benefits of the practice can engender a higher state of consciousness. Meditation is recognized as a component of [[eastern religions]], where it has been practiced for over 5,000 years. The Bhagavad-Gita and Jivana Yoga By Ramnarayan Vyas (Hatha Yoga: Its Context, Theory and Practice By Mikel Burley) (Zen Buddhism: A History (India and China By Heinrich Dumoulin, James W. Heisig, Paul F. Knitter). Different meditative disciplines encompass a wide range of spiritual and/or psychophysical practices which can emphasize development of either a high degree of mental concentration, or the apparent converse, mental [[quiescence]].  

'''Meditation''' describes a state of concentrated [[attention]] on some object of [[thought]] or [[awareness]]. It usually involves turning the attention inward to a single point of reference.[http://www.spiritual.com.au/dictionary/dict_m.html Spiritual Dictionary]. Retrieved on:[[August 21]], [[2007]]The benefits of the practice can engender a higher state of consciousness. Meditation is recognized as a component of [[eastern religions]], where it has been practiced for over 5,000 years. The Bhagavad-Gita and Jivana Yoga By Ramnarayan Vyas (Hatha Yoga: Its Context, Theory and Practice By Mikel Burley) (Zen Buddhism: A History (India and China By Heinrich Dumoulin, James W. Heisig, Paul F. Knitter). Different meditative disciplines encompass a wide range of spiritual and/or psychophysical practices which can emphasize development of either a high degree of mental concentration, or the apparent converse, mental [[quiescence]].  

== Physical postures ==

== Physical postures ==

Different spiritual traditions, and different teachers within those traditions, prescribe or  suggest different physical postures for meditation. Sitting, supine, and standing<ref name=Marshall>{{cite web | last = Marshall | first = Chris | title = Paradoxes of Standing Meditation | url = http://www.martialdevelopment.com/blog/four-paradoxes-of-standing-meditation/ | accessdate = 2007-10-23 }}</ref> postures are used.  Most famous are the several cross-legged sitting postures, including the [[Lotus Position]].  

Different spiritual traditions, and different teachers within those traditions, prescribe or  suggest different physical postures for meditation. Sitting, supine, and standing<ref name=Marshall>{{cite web | last = Marshall | first = Chris | title = Paradoxes of Standing Meditation | url = http://www.martialdevelopment.com/blog/four-paradoxes-of-standing-meditation/ | accessdate = 2007-10-23 }}</ref> postures are used.  Most famous are the several cross-legged sitting postures, including the [[Lotus Position]].