For people who find it hard to do personal meditation, guided meditation can prove to be a perfect alternative. It is a kind of meditation that involves getting pointers from a meditation partner to achieve a state of relaxation.

There are several types of guided meditations. Some involve the partner telling a relaxing story to the other person. Others would require the partner to give out instructions to the other person to help him or her reach a calm state. However, there are some general reminders in doing guided meditation.

In most cases, guided meditation is best performed in the morning or evening. During these times, the surroundings are most quiet. For people who want to get into the practice quicker, twice a day meditation may prove to be helpful. Likewise, to make the environment more peaceful, relaxing music can be played. Scented incense sticks can also be lit to freshen the air.

Second, in choosing a partner, it would be best to choose someone from the opposite gender. Because the whole process involves the partner talking to the person doing the meditation, it would also be best to choose someone who has a soft and pleasing voice.

Before the guided meditation process starts, the partners should start focusing on their breathing. This could be better achieved with the partners sitting in front of each other and in an upright position.

Once prepared, the guiding partner can start assisting the other person to focus on a certain element. The best example would be a ball of bright light shining on the other person like a sun. It is a symbol of healing for most people. Next, the partner should try to make the other person feel the element in focus. In this case, the bright light can be imagined to penetrate the body of the other person. This way, the healing warmth can more likely be felt. Once the partner is already able to feel the focus element, other elements, such as color, can be put into the picture.

The length of guided meditation depends on the way the partners relate to each other. Once the guide feels that the other person has already reached a relaxed state, he or she can slowly divert that persons attention to the present environment again.