The yoga practices generally require very little preparation. Meditation is one of the important aspects of yoga, but since this practice requires a lot of concentration it is essential to have some preparation for the practice of yoga. These preparations are hereby explained for the benefit of the beginners.

• The most important thing is to choose a spot in the room or the house where the practice has to take place everyday. This place should be completely quiet and well ventilated. It can be either outdoors or indoors and it has to be conducive to the practice in every way. It should be also an area that is completely flat in orientation. The body should be essentially stationed in a flat disposition while meditating.

• It is essential that the practice should be done on the same time each day, so the area chosen should be available everyday at the same time. The practice session should approximately last about twenty minutes so the availability of the place for the time duration is to be checked at the time of choosing the place. It is just not advisable to change places everyday so sufficient time should be given to take the decision before beginning the practice.

• It is essential to meditate, like in any other yoga practice, on an empty stomach. It is also advisable to switch to eating light and non-spicy food when starting the sessions of the meditation or any other yogic practice. This is because the system has to be kept light to absorb all the impact of the practices.

• It is advisable to not be using alcohol or drugs or any other suppressant while the practice of any yogic activity is done. All the drugs have some stimulating effect on the system or the other. This may hamper the actual experience of meditation. They may also make the concentration of the thoughts a difficult thing to achieve.

• The clothing that is worn during the meditation practice also has to be taken care of. The clothing should be such that it does not hamper the practice in any way. Tight and synthetic fibre based clothing generally has restrictive approach and so they are not recommended. As a general rule one must wear what one feels comfortable in.

• A seat is required to sit on. No yogic practices are done on the bare floor or ground. This is because there is considerable exchange of energy during the time of yogic practices and so the body should never come in direct contact with the ground. Even the asanas done in standing poses are recommended to be done standing on the seat or folded blanket.

• In the meditation practice since it is required to sit for longer durations, a pillow or a cushion may be needed by a person to support the back while sitting. It is recommended to sit on the pillow to ease out the situation. This is left to the discretion of the person as per his convenience.

• A silent time piece is required to be placed in the room instead of wearing a wrist watch or using a clock that makes some kind of noise.

• Care should be taken to not have a doorbell or telephone or any other gadget with a ringer on so that the practice session does not get interrupted abruptly at any point in time.

• Care should be taken to do a few asanas before attempting meditation, although this is not mandatory. But it is absolutely essential to start the practice with a few breathing exercises and deep inhalations and exhalations. Even doing pranayama before meditation is a very good practice. Essentially the whole session of yogic practice can be done starting with a few stretching and warming up asanas, then doing further asanas, then getting down to pranayama after calming the breath and after that doing meditation for a few minutes.

• It is very essential to not let the body tire out completely at any point in time. It is very necessary to enjoy each exercise of yoga because even though the asanas may seem focused on physical aspects, they have immense physiological and emotional value. So it is very necessary to take interest in every aspect of the practice. It becomes also very essential for the meditation session as the mind has to be calm and cheerful while the practice.

• It is also necessary to not come to the session with a horde of anticipations. It is best not to expect too many miracles to happen, because for all practical purposes they will not happen. It is best to save oneself from any disappointments and continue to practice with an open mind.

• The last but not the least is to understand that meditation session, like any yoga session is not like having a competition with oneself. The sessions have to done with respect towards the body and self. If for any reason one is not up to it on any day, it just does not matter and the person should not end up feeling guilty or end in reprimanding himself in any way.

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