Meditation and Memory...

Surprisingly, meditation and memory are linked. New research shows that regular meditation changes the physical structure of your brain in powerful ways - including ways that improve memory. So what is the connection between meditation and memory?

Studies at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston have shown that regular meditation causes the brain's cerebral cortex to thicken. This happens through an increase in the size of the blood vessels and the amount of blood flow to the region.

The cortex is the area of the brain responsible for the higher mental functions, so this is an amazing discovery.

One recent study found evidence that the daily practice of meditation thickened the parts of the brain's cerebral cortex responsible for decision making, attention and memory. Sara Lazar, a research scientist at Massachusetts General Hospital, presented preliminary results last November that showed that the gray matter of 20 men and women who meditated for just 40 minutes a day was thicker than that of people who did not. What's more, her research suggests that meditation may slow the natural thinning of that section of the cortex that occurs with age.

"Attention is the key to learning, and meditation helps you voluntarily regulate it," says Richard Davidson, director of the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin.       

Meditation directly affect neurotransmitter and structure of the brain, changing it in ways that appear to increase attention span, sharpen focus, and improve memory.

 1. Meditation sharpens your focus and memory

You don't need to be a monk on a mountaintop to experience for yourself the link between meditation and memory improvement. The basic type of meditation practiced in Vedic Time was shown in the research to be very effective in causing the cortex to thicken. This type of meditation is called mindfulness meditation (also known as "awareness" or "insight" -meditation).

But as we learn from studies performed on Buddhist an important component in changing the brain is to tap the power of mind and, in particular, focused attention. This is the classic Buddhist practice of mindfulness, a technique that has become popular and that is immediately available to everyone.       

         

2. Technique of Meditation

Our minds usually jump wildly from thought to thought. We replay the past; we fantasize about the future. In meditation we take an upright posture, place our mind on an object, and keep it there. In meditation, the object is the simple act of breathing. The breath represents being in the immediacy of the moment.

When you sit down, take a balanced, grounded posture to allow the energy in the center of your body to move freely. If you're on a cushion, sit with your legs loosely crossed. If you're in a chair, keep your legs uncrossed and your feet flat on the floor. Imagine that a string attached to the top of your head is pulling you upright. Let your body settle around your erect spine. Place your hands on your thighs, in a place not so far forward that it begins to pull your shoulders down, nor so far back that the shoulders contract and pinch the spine. The fingers are close and relaxed —not spread out in a grip, as if you can't let yourself go. Tuck your chin in and relax your jaw. The tongue is also relaxed, resting against your upper teeth. Your mouth is ever so slightly open. Your gaze is downward, with the eyelids almost half shut. The eyes aren't looking; the eyes just see. it is the same with sound —we aren't listening, but we do hear. In other words, we're not focusing with our senses.

The basic technique is that we begin to notice our breath. The breath is what we're using as the basis of our mindfulness technique; it brings us back to the moment, back to the present situation. The breath is something that is constant —otherwise it's too late.

Using the breathing as the object of meditation is especially good for calming a busy mind. The steady flow of the breath soothes the mind and allows for steadiness and relaxation. This is ordinary breathing; nothing is exaggerated. One simple technique is to count the in-and out-cycles of breathing from one to twenty-one. We breathe in, and then out —one. Inand then out two. Place your mind on the breathing and count each cycle of breath. You can drop the counting when your mind is settled.

When your focus is wavering, check your posture. Bring yourself back to the upright position. Imagine the string pulling your spine up straight and relax your body around it. Slouching impairs your breathing, which directly affects the mind. If you slump, you'll be struggling with your body at the same time that you're trying to train your mind. What you want to be doing is the opposite: synchronizing your body and mind.

As you focus on the breath, you'll notice that various thoughts and emotions arise. When this happens, acknowledge that you are thinking and return your focus to the breath. In focusing you are bringing yourself back to attention. You are centering yourself in your mind and placing that mind on the breath. You are slowly settling. You're gradually slowing the mind. When you first begin to meditate, the movement of thoughts may feel like a rushing waterfall. But as you continue to apply the technique of recognizing thoughts and returning your focus to the breath, the torrent slows down to a river, then to a meandering stream, which eventually flows into a deep, calm ocean.