11 Benefits of Meditation for Students (with research findings)

Meditation is one of the most essential tools used in Eastern philosophy. As a Buddhist, I have been practicing meditation since my childhood. It not only improves my academic skills but also helps me to be successful in my life. Indeed, meditation allows you to live a life without stress and discomfort but full of joy and happiness. As a student, meditation helps you to improve your memory and understanding of a subject, so it's essential to add meditation to your daily routine. Today we discuss the benefits of mediation for students with the facts found by many researchers and my own experiences.

Advantages of meditation for students

1. Improve focus

As I mentioned in the article about online classes, meditation is the best method to keep the focus on the same thing for long hours. What we do here is practice concentrating on something and understanding it deeply. Furthermore, we know that whenever we engage in our study sessions, it's pretty hard to keep our concentration on the same thing for long periods. 

Sometimes when I'm studying, I've spent half the time thinking of something else while staring at the book. Sometimes it was a movie I watched or some incident that happened lately, and I kept thinking about those without even knowing. I hope you also have the same experiences. That's why meditation is essential. Practicing meditation as a habit can free your mind from unnecessary thoughts and keep your concentration for long hours. 

2. Improve memory

By now, researchers have been able to prove the results of meditation through MRI scans. They have shown that when we engage in meditation, few changes occur in the structure of our brain. Likewise, they have found out how practicing meditation can directly help to improve memorization capacity and thinking ability. On the other hand, as it removes unnecessary thoughts from our minds, we can easily remember things with long-term memory retention. 

3. Critical thinking

This is one of the most important skills people need, but many don't. Many steps have been taken to improve the critical thinking of people. But none of the actions has been more successful than meditation. Meditation has the power to enhance one's ability to think. Much research has been based on this to see how meditation affects critical thinking. Somehow at the end of their surveys, they found a positive relationship between meditation and critical thinking. Consequently, people worldwide who want to enhance their critical thinking are encouraged to practice meditation. 

4. Understanding

Imagine that you're solving a math problem. You must have a complete idea about the question to get the answer easily. Because unless you don't understand the problem, you won't be able to answer correctly. So the first thing you need to have is the focus. As I mentioned above, like the way that meditation improves your thinking, it leads you to understand a question correctly. Also, it helps you have a clear mind, so you can compare facts with your knowledge and go to a conclusion.

5. Problem-solving

Before we want to solve a problem, we must understand it properly, separate it into small parts and solve it step by step until the solution comes. In solving math problems and making computer software, we use the same procedure to reach the end result. So to engage in this endeavor, we surely need to have a clear mind to think of the question as then we can solve it correctly. Not only for our academic problems but also in our day-to-day challenges, this works in the same way. And I suggest you look at the Buddha's way of solving problems called the Four Noble Truths. It's a four-step problem-solving method similar to modern scientific methods.

6. Improve mental health

Good mental health is the main benefit we approach through meditation. Also, many try to meditate as a method of stress release. As students, we have a lot of tension because of our studies. So in order to get a proper education, we need to keep our mental health at the best level. Accordingly, the best solution for this is meditation. And dozens of studies also found that meditation can help students overcome procrastination. In addition, researchers have proven that it helps you to find out your hidden skills and what you're special at. So try to be a successful student to possess the effects of meditating. 

7. Improve physical health

Research done by Harvard University has found that meditation helps a peaceful mind and lowers blood pressure. Meditating can be done in many postures. Not only just sitting but also by walking, we can meditate. Believe me, I've seen that many sportsmen have also mentioned meditation as a good habit they practice and the way it helps their skills. Furthermore, some studies suggest meditation as a method of controlling pain. Likewise, it helps us in every aspect, and there's no doubt that meditation is essential to our life.

8. Improve patience

As students, patience is essential for us. When we study for a long time, we need to be patient because it's time we separate for the success of our future with books while others enjoy their life on other things. In my experience, whenever I have distractions during my study sessions, I get so unconscious and angry quickly. I think you feel the same. But practicing meditation made me more patient and calm even in the most challenging moments. During those times, I usually go through simple work that doesn't need much concentration. It can be anything, such as cleaning the room and making a timetable. 

Even in school, dealing with different people, we must improve our patience. If we consider our friends, they all are not our best friends. While some help beautifies our life, some try to ruin everything we have. Patiently dealing with them in those incidents is the most brilliant thing instead of arguing. Otherwise, it can destroy our reputation too.  

9. Good sleep

Many people tend to sleep by looking at the phone screen though many researchers have proven that it's not too good for our eyes. Furthermore, it avoids our sleep and doesn't give us a fresh start the following day. But if you can meditate before you sleep, it surely helps you to a night of sleep without nightmares. Even more, you can start the next day without laziness, leading to more concentration on your studies.

10. Make you happier

We can't afford happiness by being rich. It is a mental state where you feel free and fulfilled. Buddha thought that we could afford the ultimate satisfaction through meditation. Moreover, through meditation, we learn to be happy with what we get leading us to a precious life. Whenever we face challenges coming from our society, school, or friends, we have the power of confidence to overcome them. That's why I'd like to recommend meditation as a habitual activity.

11. Social skills

From my own experiences, I know how meditation changed my life positively. With this practice, I've switched to a different person who is calm and kinder to everyone. This helped me to make more new friends and gain the trust of everyone. Plus, the person who meditates well in every aspect and has a good heart always makes that person helps others or success. Likewise, when you practice meditation, you'll be able to have good strong relationships with society and be a respectable person among all.

Conclusion

If you read this article, you will think of adding meditation to your daily routine. I suggest you do it without overthinking because you don't need to spend any money. You can start mediation for free at your home. If you meditate, you will see the benefits and results of it yourself. And on the other hand, mediation has several advantages that we can't describe over languages because they are mental stages. So without further ado, go and try it. After a few weeks, come back here and share your thought with us. If you share this article with your friends, it will help you more with your spiritual life.