Creating alpha waves

Pressure in the modern workplace leads many of us to think that if we can do two things at once, we could save time and shine as a star in the melodrama of multitasking. Multitasking has become a normal way of working. It may be answering the phone, reading your e-mails, sending text messages, or even cramming in a busy social life on top of an already demanding job.

With an emphasis on multitasking we easily fall victim to anxiety and stress-related diseases. Anxiety and stress reduce the efficiency of our immune systems.
People who produce more alpha brain-waves experience less anxiety and their immune systems appear healthier. Unfortunately, one consequence of the modern stressful lifestyle is that we forget how to produce alpha brain waves .

The alpha state is an intensely pleasurable and relaxed state of consciousness essential to stress reduction and high levels of creativity. Osho has suggested a meditation technique which can help you produce more alpha waves, and make you calm and relaxed.

“If you can manage to do this, thoughts disappear, thinking disappears, but you are not asleep. You are fully aware... a deep peace surrounds you, and your whole being is replenished, rejuvenated,” says Osho. It is a scientific method, and needs to be followed precisely. It requires a commitment of forty minutes a day for one year.

Sit, with a straight spine, but not rigid. Make sure you are comfortable. Put your left hand on the right hand, so that both thumbs touch each other.

Then let your gaze rest on your left hand, just go on looking into it in a very empty, passive way. This relaxed looking stimulates your right brain, because your left hand is connected with the right brain, and if you look at it, your eyes and your left hand eventually fall in tune and an energy cycle arises, and your right brain starts functioning.
Then inhale deeply, and say ‘one’ inside. As you exhale deeply, say ‘two’ inside. Continue to inhale and exhale counting up to ten, then start from ‘one’ again. Do this for 40 minutes. If you lose count, start again from one, and go from one to ten. The first ten breaths should be as deep as possible. From the second cycle you can relax and let the breathing be natural, silent and quiet - but continue to count.

After you have been doing this for three months, change your counting. Only count exhalations. Exhale - count one, inhale - keep silent. Exhale -count two, inhale - keep silent.

Then again after three months, drop counting altogether. And just watch the breath.