You may have never heard of it before but every year National Garden Meditation Day is celebrated on the 3rd of May. It is a beautiful practice of taking time out from the day-to-day hustle and bustle of one’s hectic routine and going into a garden, picking a nice spot, and taking time to meditate and relax the mind and body.
You can even find meditation gardens which are especially designed to cut you off from the outside world and allow you to meditate peacefully. Natural triggers such as gentle trickles of water, can help calm the mind and help with meditation.
Meditation itself is an ancient practice and evidence of its existence can be found in the 5th and 6th centuries in the South Asian cultures of Hinduism and Buddhism. When Asian cultures started to spread worldwide around the 19th century the concept of meditation was quickly adopted by the Western world. With this came the idea of redesigning spaces, especially for meditation. The result of embracing this wonderful practice is that we now have landscapes designed with exotic gardens that contain ponds, wind chimes, and soft music to aid a peaceful meditation.
As we are aware spending time outdoors in a green space or bringing nature into your everyday life can have a positive impact on both your mental and physical wellbeing. So why not make it a regular practice this month to get outdoors for at least 20 minutes to meditate or simply just relax, breathe in the fresh air and let Mother Nature work her magic on you?
Take it one step further and take an essential oil you enjoy in the form of a personal inhaler, roll-on, wireless diffuser or simply dot it onto a tissue and inhale the scent while outdoors to aid further relaxation.
You will also be able to use this same scent in the future to relax in periods of stress as your brain will associate the feeling of peace with this smell.
How to Celebrate National Garden Meditation Day
- Meditation does not mean you need to sit in one place, you can find inner peace while taking time to care for your plants or make a small personal garden today.
- If you don’t have a garden at home, leave work early and take a walk in the park, and breathe in the fresh air.
- If you don’t have a garden at home but would like to try outdoor meditation, why not head to your local park or woods and pick out a comfy spot under a tree and relax your mind and body? Breathe in the positivity of Mother Nature.
5 Fascinating Facts on Meditation
- Just 20 minutes is enough to help refresh your mind and body.
- Gardening is a form of meditation that is proven to lower stress levels. During the COVID-19 lockdown, many people turned to gardening which helped manage and keep stress levels down. (Reference – National Library of Medicine)
- Meditation acts as a mood-booster, helps you let go of stress, and the freshness of a garden rejuvenates you. Combined with essential oils garden meditation can be a powerful tool for self-care.
- Mindfulness meditation practices may reduce insomnia and improve sleep quality
- Meditation and mindfulness may reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Best Essential Oils to Aid Meditation
- Frankincense
- Lavender
- Sandalwood
- Vetiver
