depicting Shiva meditating]]Meditation describes a state of concentrated attention on some object of thought or awareness. It usually involves turning the attention inward to a single point of reference. Spiritual Dictionary. Retrieved on:August 21, 2007 The benefits of the practice can engender a higher state of consciousness. Meditation is recognized as a component of eastern religions, where it has been practiced for over 5,000 years.The Bhagavad-Gita and Jivana Yoga By Ramnarayan VyasHatha Yoga: Its Context, Theory and Practice By Mikel BurleyZen Buddhism: A History (India and China) By Heinrich Dumoulin, James W. Heisig, Paul F. Knitter Different meditative disciplines encompass a wide range of spiritual and/or psychophysical practices which can emphasize development of either a high degree of mental concentration, or the apparent converse, mental quiescence.The word meditation comes from the Latin meditatio, which originally indicated every type of physical or intellectual exerc