Prayer, zen, mindfulness, concentrative, yoga, chakras.

The list can go on and on with the different types of meditation.

They’re all a little different and use varying techniques, but they all

do the same thing, according to Kaci Torres, a senior in economics.

“Meditation is about keeping your mind and body connected,” Virginia

Newton, a predoctoral intern at the Student Affairs Counseling Center,

said.

She said it is important to know the body is interconnected and

different parts influence each other. Mindful meditation, the form of

meditation Newton focuses on, is often used as a therapeutic technique,

according to her.

“A lot of psychological problems can be helped through mindful

meditation,” Newton said.

Torres said she practices zen meditation, which is similar to mindful

meditation, to better her social interactions. She also said she

meditates a little before playing a sport to improve her performance.

Meditation can be practiced through a religious exercise, like prayer,

as well. Betsy Diller, a sophomore in physics and English said she

considers prayer both spiritual and meditative.

“I got into both sides of it,” she said.

According to Diller, she meditates at least an hour a day — half an

hour in the morning and half an hour at night — even when she is busy.

She said she usually recites the rosary. When she is busy, she said she

makes an extra effort to meditate then because that is the time when it

is most important.

Aaron Mangal, a senior in business management, on the other hand, said

he probably hasn’t meditated in a month because he has been busy. He

said exam time is an important time to meditate but he doesn’t because

he hasn’t made it a habit.

Meditating about once or twice a week for an hour is a nice medium for

Torres, she said.

“[I meditate] when I feel like I need it or when I have the time,”

Torres said. “It helps me let things go.”

It improves a person’s quality of life, both mentally and physically,

according to Mangal. He said if only 10 percent of people did it, there

would be better productivity because stress is physiologically

detrimental.

“Meditation reduces stress, improves focus and makes you feel better,”

Mangal said. “It’s a good way to help you take a break from reality.”

Meditation helps people slow down and look at things a little

differently, Torres said.

Meditation improves a person’s ability to focus at the task

at hand and the present moment, according to Newton. She said this can be helpful for students when they’re studying because they can tune out distractions,

like people talking, music and TV.

Diller said she doesn’t have trouble finding a place to meditate,

regardless of where she is.

“I often do it on benches by the Brickyard,” she said.

She also said she meditates in a corner in the library or at home.

Torres said she meditates in her room. She said she doesn’t usually

meditate during the day because people laugh at her. However, she does

enjoy meditating outside sometimes.

“Nature in general is good,” Torres said.

Mangal agreed with Torres on the importance of nature. He said his next

step in meditation is doing it outside. But, for the time being, he

said he mostly meditates in a chair in his room, even though he does meditate in

class occasionally.

“Sometimes I do it in the middle of class if I need to concentrate for

whatever reason,” Mangal said. “You can do it and nobody even know.”

Even though it is possible to meditate without others knowing, Torres,

Diller and Mangal all said they would appreciate a group provided for

students to meditate. Plus, a group could encourage others to take up

meditation.

“It would be helpful to a lot of students to sit back and clear their

minds,” Diller said.