Page 47 - Demo

45Focused AttentionThese techniques involve concentrating or focusing on something %u2014 a word, an idea, a goal %u2014 or just making the mind blank. The high-frequency gamma EEG associated with focused attention is believed to bind together spatially close cortical areas needed for sharply focusing attention outward, such as to a novel experience.Open MonitoringOpen Monitoring, such as mindfulness, asks the person to notice what is happening without getting involved. Theta EEG is believed to refl ect inhibition of outer sensory information that might disturb the person%u2019s inner thought processes, such as when they are monitoring their subjective experiences.Spontaneous Self-TranscendingThe Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique allows the mind to actually settle down, to pause in its more active ways of working and just be awake and aware. It is an effortless process that is associated with Alpha1 EEG, a state of restful alertness. During this profound state of restful alertness, the whole brain works together, which science calls coherence. This deep rest and total brain functioning are two %u201cactive ingredients%u201d in TM that account for the much greater changes that TM produces in the mind and body on important things like anxiety, blood pressure, and overall health.DIFFERENT MEDITATIONS WORK DIFFERENTLYIs TM the only way to transcend?No. TM is a technique for activating the natural tendency of the mind to transcend mental activity and settle down to experience pure consciousness %u2014 clear, silent, inner awareness.With TM you learn how to launch the transcending process. This allows you to gain the many huge benefi ts of regularly settling down to who we really are %u2014 pure consciousness, all there really is.