Meditation, simply put, is a state of awareness where you are free from other distractions. When in a meditative state, the mind should be free from scattered thoughts and focused on a single thought process. Nowadays, meditation has taken on the connotations of being a spiritual practice in which you empty your mind, enter a state of relaxation in order to find inner peace. In this state, pray takes place and even an experience of your deity.

There may be some confusion around meditation since it is derived from two different Latin words. The first is ‘meditari’ meaning ‘to think, dwell upon and exercise your mind’. The second word is ‘mederi’ meaning to ‘heal’. Additionally, the Sanskrit meaning of ‘medha’ adds to the derivation of the word meditation by meaning ‘wisdom’. Everybody has their own idea of what meditation is and how it is practiced. True meditation is however not an act, but a state of awareness.

Some may say that meditation includes the practice of yoga, or repeating a personal mantra. This is true, however not for everyone. Any act that allows you to quiet and steady your mind is a form of meditation. You may find your meditation in gardening, painting or running.

Best Quotes on Meditation

“You should not be carried away by the dictation of the mind, but the mind should be carried by your dictation.”
– A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami

“When we pay attention, whatever we are doing…is transformed and becomes a part of our spiritual path. We begin to notice details and textures that we never noticed before’ everyday life becomes clearer, sharper, and at the same time more spacious.”
– Rick Fields et al., Chop Wood, Carry Water: A Guide to Finding Spiritual Fulfillment in Everyday Life

“Life is a mystery – mystery of beauty, bliss and divinity. Meditation is the art of unfolding that mystery.”
– Amit Ray

“Meditation brings wisdom; lack of mediation leaves ignorance. Know well what leads you forward and what holds you back, and choose the path that leads to wisdom.”
– Buddha

“This is universal. You sit and observe your breath. You can’t say this is a Hindu breath or a Christian breath or a Muslim breath.”
– Charles Johnson

“Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.”
– Dalai Lama

“Meditation is the dissolution of thoughts in eternal awareness or pure consciousness without objectification, knowing without thinking, merging finitude in infinity.”
Swami Sivananda

“Quiet the mind and the soul will speak.”
– Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati

“When the mind goes beyond the thought of ‘the me,’ the experiencer, the observer, the thinker, then there is a possibility of a happiness that is incorruptible.”
– Jiddu Krishnamurti

“My sole literary ambition is to write one good novel, then retire to my hut in the desert, assume the lotus position, compose my mind and senses, and sink into meditation, contemplating my novel.”
– Edward Abbey

True meditation is a profound state of peace while being at a high level of awareness. Meditation leads you to a mental state of deep peace while still remaining alert to your daily routine.

Meditation offers a variety of benefits in your daily life, from stress relief and increased productivity, to improved health and overall better quality of life. One could say that meditation is an effortless practice to improve day to day living, without compromising on one’s alertness. Regular practice of meditation techniques, one can achieve a balanced state of mind and reach a true state of meditation.

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The soul, according to religious, philosophical and mythological teachings, is often described as an incorporeal element of a living being. Depending on the religion, your soul can be either mortal or immortal. You may also describe the soul as being the driving force of the physical being.

That is, your soul inhabits your physical body and acts through it. In a sense, your body is only a vessel to carry your soul and all that you are. Without a soul, your body is simply like a light bulb without electricity, no driving force.

Your soul gives your body life, along with all your abilities such as sight and hearing, speech, thought, emotions, intelligence, will and desire as well as personality and ultimately, your unique identity.

Philosophy explains how not only humans possess souls, but so do animals, plants, rivers and the ocean, and even inanimate objects. Where your soul acquires its energy that sustains you is a very personal thing.

The energy that drives your soul may come from a daily practice like running or yoga, or from the faith you have in your chosen religion. The soul is often linked to the “why” of your existence. What is the meaning of your body being on earth and what is your purpose?

Best Quotes on Soul

The true meaning of soul is defined by a lot of great writers in their writings. Given below is a list of meaningful quotes about the soul.

“I think… if it is true that
there are as many minds as there
are heads, then there are as many
kinds of love as there are hearts.”
― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

“The soul is placed in the body like a rough diamond, and must be polished, or the luster of it will never appear.”
― Daniel Defoe

“The soul, fortunately, has an interpreter – often an unconscious but still a faithful interpreter – in the eye.”
― Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

“My soul is impatient with itself, as with a bothersome child; its restlessness keeps growing and is forever the same. Everything interests me, but nothing holds me. I attend to everything, dreaming all the while. […]. I’m two, and both keep their distance — Siamese twins that aren’t attached.”
― Fernando Pessoa

“Every book has a soul, the soul of the person who wrote it and the soul of those who read it and dream about it.”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón

“Your soul knows the geography of your destiny. Your soul alone has the map of your future; therefore you can trust this indirect, oblique side of yourself. If you do, it will take you where you need to go, but more important it will teach you a kindness of rhythm in your journey.”
― John O’Donohue

“My soul is a hidden orchestra; I know not what instruments, what fiddle strings and harps, drums and tamboura I sound and clash inside myself. All I hear is the symphony.”
― Fernando Pessoa

“There is one friend in the life of each of us who seems not a separate person, however dear and beloved, but an expansion, an interpretation, of one’s self, the very meaning of one’s soul.”    ― Edith Wharton

“There may be a great fire in our soul, yet no one ever comes to warm himself at it, and the passers-by see only a wisp of smoke.”
― Vincent Van Gogh

“What the soul hardly realizes is that, unbeliever or not, his loneliness is really homesickness for God.”
― Dom Hubert Van Zeller

Conclusion

Your soul is your inner identity, and not necessarily what you portray on the outside. Your body expresses your soul’s vision, just like a symphony expresses the vision of the composer who poured out his feelings to create the masterpiece. It can also be seen as an expression of your deity’s intention for your life. Your soul is highly significant on the path to self-awakening since it is your driving force. You soul is there to give your life and freedom to express your true desires in a physical form.

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The term Eternal Peace will have different meanings to different people. It can be thought of as something that we will experience once we die or something we can experience in the present. Eternal peace may lead back to religion or can be explained as something that is spiritual. In life, eternal peace can be found from within. It can be explained as acceptance of all or an insight to true happiness.

In death, eternal peace means that you achieved freedom from all the despair you faced during your life on earth. Your soul is seen as your eternal or immortal self. In the afterlife, you achieve eternal peace either by ascending to the heavens or becoming one with all creations. All things on earth can be deemed circumstantial, meaning that even if you achieved inner peace it may be taken away from you. Life is temporary, but your spirit or soul is eternal, meaning that you can find peace through the love of a higher power.

Eternal peace is a spiritual state of mind. It can be experienced in different ways depending on who you are and where you come from, but it is possible for everyone.

Best quotes on Eternal Peace

“Though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and cooperation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace.”
―Dwight D. Eisenhower

“None of the abstract concepts comes closer to fulfilled utopia than that of eternal peace.”
―Theodor Adorno

“The longing for peace is rooted in the hearts of all men. But the striving, which at present has become so insistent, cannot lay claim to such an ambition as leading the way to eternal peace, or solving all disputes among nations.”
―Alva Myrdal

“The ancient Jewish people gave the world the vision of eternal peace, of universal disarmament, of abolishing the teaching and learning of war.”
―Menachem Begin

“The Japanese chose the principle of eternal peace as the basis of morality for our rebirth after the War.”
―Kenzaburo Oe

“Some pacifists have carried the sound idea of the prime importance of security too far, to the point of declaring that any consideration of disarmament is superfluous and pointless as long as eternal peace has not been attained.”
―Ludwig Quidde

“What you are, and who you are should provide greater clarity about where you have been and where you are headed. Although one distinguishes spiritual from physical nature, the ultimate unification of the two is the consequence of the struggle for internal, external and eternal – peace.”
― T.F. Hodge, From Within I Rise: Spiritual Triumph Over Death and Conscious Encounters with “The Divine Presence”

“War is the plague of mankind; I am and remain in solidarity with eternal peace.”
― Kristian Goldmund Aumann

“One day we will all have to leave this beautiful world, and we want to leave with peace towards eternal peace. We also want our future generations to live with joy and peace.”
― Debasish Mridha

“You are born with infinite possibilities. Take responsibility for turning these possibilities into reality, and you will be bestowed with success, love and eternal peace.”
― Vishwas Chavan, Vishwasutras: Universal Principles for Living: Inspired by Real-Life Experiences

Eternal peace can be summed up as having no doubts, no thoughts, no tensions, no stress, no sorrow, no anger, no agony, no malice, no hatred, no greed, no desire and no questions. It is just acceptance of all that is. All negative emotions or thoughts disappear and become immaterial. Whether eternal peace is found on earth or in the afterlife it does not matter. It is a conscious or sub-conscious state of mind where you find true happiness through acceptance of all that is or transcendence into the immortal afterlife.

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