Difference between active and passive meditation and which is better to learn to meditate

If you want to learn how to meditate and have been doing your research, you may have heard the terms active meditation and passive meditation. If so, you may be wondering which one is best for a person trying to learn to meditate. Guided meditation is active meditation and therefore may be the right choice to start your meditation journey.

The difference between active meditation and passive meditation is that in active meditation, the meditator proactively uses thoughts and images to stimulate alpha brain wave activity and keep the conscious mind engaged.

For example, in passive meditation, the meditator only observes the thoughts and images that may come to mind, but in active meditation, the meditator imagines or visualizes a specific scene or image. During a guided meditation, the guide will instruct you to imagine and imagine different things to bring about relaxation and help you focus your mind.

Why should you focus your mind during meditation and how will that help you? The reason guided meditation is so effective at getting you into a meditative state is because when you focus your mind, it literally slows down. When a person meditates or goes into a trance state, their brain waves slow down to about 10 bets per second. There are four stages of brain waves, and at this rate, you are in the alpha state.

In the alpha state, the subconscious mind is more accessible. It is easier to learn and also easier to relax. As brain waves slow down, external distractions and stressful thoughts are minimized. So the goal of meditation, from a physiological point of view, is to reach the alpha state.

While passively meditating, unless you are an experienced meditator, it can take a long time to reach the alpha state, as thoughts and feelings can keep dragging you back into the beta state of fully aware and alert. However, when you use guided meditation, because you are listening to the voice of the guide, following the suggestions and using your mind, keeping it occupied, it is much easier to enter the alpha state, so it is much easier to reach the physiological goal of meditation, the alpha state.