Explores meditative practice, experience and research. The bloggers practise Acem Meditation, but represent their own views here.
Carla Helland: “Acem Meditation has become a valued part of each day. I have been meditating regularly for a few years now. I notice that my stress and anxiety levels have become more balanced and that I have a much easier time being present in the daily moments of life. Meditation has been a grounding force for me. It has helped me to grow and has helped me focus on what I find important. Read more…
The classic introduction – available for the first time in English
This book presents the classic introduction to Acem’s theory and practice of meditation, written by the founder. Psychology of Silence provides an easy-to-read account of the technique and its effects on health and personality. The book also includes chapters on meditative silence and the cultural background of Acem Meditation. Read more…
Acem’s Training in Interpersonal Communication helps you improve your empathetic capacity and understanding of yourself and others. This year’s course will have English, German, Spanish, and Scandinavian groups, provided a sufficient number of people sign up for each language. The registration deadline is 15 April, with 15 March for early-bird registration. The course takes place 29 April – 7 May 2017 at Acem International Retreat Centre Halvorsbøle, Norway. Read more…
American counselors often make use of various meditation techniques in their clinical practice, most often mindfulness-based stress reduction and acceptance and commitment therapy. An article in the journal Counseling and Values presents other techniques, including Acem Meditation. Based on scientific studies that provide evidence for positive effects, the presented techniques are judged to be promising and useful. Common effects include relaxation, stress reduction and the reduction of negative psychological states, such as depression and anxiety. Read more…
“Which is better for your body: meditation or exercise?” asks The Telegraph journalist Jonathan Wells on 23 March 2016. “On the surface, it seems like an obvious decision – physical exercise can strengthen our muscles, bones and heart, and has been proven to promote the production of oxytonin and other ‘feel-good’ chemicals. Whilst meditation is, well, a fad. Right? Wrong. Or, at least, possibly wrong.” Read more…
Renowned psychiatrist and disaster survival expert Dr Are Holen is driven by the desire to improve our quality of life, writes R. Gowri of the New Straits Times from Malaysia. Read more…
“Here are three novel techniques to help you de-stress,” writes MORE, an American magazine “for women of style and substance”. One of the techniques they recommend for those who want to “chill out” is Acem Meditation, because it does not ask you to empty your mind, but allows thoughts and impressions to come and go freely. This “makes this Norwegian version much easier for some people.” Read more…
An increasing body of medical evidence confirms that meditation has a wide range of positive effects for the practitioner. The probably most influential and respected print media in Germany, der Spiegel, recently ran the article: Der heilende Geist: Gesund durch Meditation und Entspannung (The healing spirit: Healthy through meditation and relaxation) on its front page.
Are Holen, founder of Acem Meditation, Norway, speaks to Priti Agrawal about meditative yoga. The interview was printed in Speaking Tree, published by The Times of India, on 16 November 2012.
What is meditative yoga?
Meditative yoga is a special way of doing Hatha Yoga, very different from the hurried, sweaty, gym-like yoga of many schools around the world. It is in line with Patanjali’s chitta-vritti-nirodha and of slow movements that are well-coordinated with deep and unforced breathing. The attention is, initially directed towards the movements, later towards breathing, and finally, towards the wholeness of the postures. Meditative yoga brings the mind to silence and focuses on slow movement yoga with abdominal breathing for maximum relaxation.
Two and a half years after her father died, the Norwegian-American novelist Siri Hustvedt was about to give a speech in his honour at the place where he had worked. Before she had finished her first sentence, she began to shudder violently from the neck down, her arms flapping, and her knees knocking.
She kept shaking as if she was having a seizure, but her voice was not affected, and she managed to finish her speech. When the speech ended, so did her shaking, but similar fits returned to her on several later occasions. And then she wrote a book about it: “The Shaking Woman or A History of My Nerves”. I read the Kindle version on an iPhone.