How to Mindfully Meditate in Virtual Reality
Meditation has the power to change your life. It certainly changed mine. Meditation is a great tool to envision success. Meditation can be defined as the use of discipline to quiet the mind and let positive energy engulf your mind. It’s not about ignoring issues or struggles in your life but about peacefully and calmly acknowledging for what they really are, distractions.
“I used to be very skeptical of meditation. Just the word itself has an aura of incense and ommming. I didn’t want to lose my edge or be one of those hippies sitting cross-legged playing the banjo and singing Kumbaya. But as I dug deeper into the research, I found that mindfulness meditation (devoid of religious ties) can have massive, positive effects on your brain and help decrease your anxiety and depression, substantially.”
– Benjamin Foley
If you do not know who Benjamin Foley is I highly suggest you check out his profile on Medium and read a couple of his pieces.
Benefits of Meditation
According to an article written by the Harvard Medical School, “Mindfulness meditation can help ease psychological stresses like anxiety, depression, and pain.
What you Need to Get Started with VR
Hardware: Virtual Reality Headsets
To get started with VR you need some kind of a VR Headset device. The applications mentioned in this article use one of the following VR Viewers to immerse the user in a virtual meditative world.
Mobile VR Headset
These come in all shapes, sizes, and prices. VU Dream’s Headsets shop is one of the best places online to shop for VR Headsets specifically for your smartphone for an affordable price and unbeatable service and goodies.
Oculus Rift & HTC Vive
Both of these devices are on the highest end of VR and will provide the user with a true VR experience. The Oculus will set you back $600 and the HTC Vive will cost you $800. However, even on top of this relatively high price you will also need a High-end computer to get everything performing correctly.
The Best Meditation VR Apps (Free/Paid)
1. Provata VR — Guided Meditation & Mindfulness
Available on iOS App Store only.
Experience the next generation of guided meditation with Provata VR, a fully immersive virtual reality meditation app.
Within the app, you can escape to a variety of stunning locations around the world, from tropical waterfalls and secluded beaches to the dazzling northern lights and even underwater coral reefs. The typical approach to guided meditation has not evolved to leverage technological advances that empower everyone from beginners to experienced practitioners to take their meditation sessions to the next level.
Meditation Biofeedback
Provata VR proudly introduces meditation biofeedback. Patent-pending system leverages advances in health monitoring to enhance your meditation experience. Using smart feedback algorithms, Provata VR lets you discover the effects of guided meditation on your resting heart rate, monitor trends, and maximize the impact of your guided meditation sessions.
Meditation Goals
Train your brain to positively impact mood and productivity by selecting from a variety of meditations to maximize your meditation experience. Need help getting to sleep? Stressful day at work? Feeling anxious? Select the guided meditation that fits your current mood and personal meditation objectives.
Global Pass + Pricing
In the blink of an eye, teleport yourself to your own private utopia. Journey to secluded islands, meditate in tropical forests or take a plunge into underwater coral reefs. Global Pass members receive exclusive access to our ever-expanding selection of exotic locations around the world.
Yearly Subscription Renewal: $35.99
Monthly Subscription Renewal: $3.99
2. Guided Meditation VR
Available on Steam VR for $15 & Free for Samsung Gear VR
Bring peace, joy, and calm back into your daily life with the virtual relaxation app Guided Meditation VR. Use at home or work, while your mind vacations in exotic locations across the universe.
Guided Meditation VR transports users to four breathtaking environments — an autumnal forest, a Japanese village, the tropical island beach, and a snow peak in the arctic — allowing users to rest in immersive, exotic locations. No add-ons needed, just use the built-in elements of your Samsung Gear VR and any Samsung 2015-’16 phone to gain greater control of your body through natural measure.
Guided Meditation VR’s usage ranges from escaping the everyday, to pain management, pre/postoperative anxiety, therapy, senior care, among others, making its lasting effects limitless. Meditation content is fully customizable, drawing from Zen, Compassion, or Relaxation series crafted by leading experts. Within each location, users can find four different meditation spaces, making for a total of 16 unique relaxation areas, with additional free environment and mediation content to be released monthly.
3. Relax VR: Rest & Meditation
Available on the iOS App Store ($2), Google Play Store ($2), Samsung Gear VR (Free), and Daydream ($5)
Imagine if you could relax on beautiful beaches, watching the clouds go by… Or lie in rice paddies, listening to soft melodic tunes. Maybe gaze over vast beautiful oceans, while doing a gentle guided meditation. This is Relax VR, the ultimate relaxation experience in virtual reality.
How to Meditate in VR with Relax VR
1. Select your scene. 2. Slip your phone into your VR Headset 3. Choose between a guided Yoga Nidra meditation and calming, peaceful music. 4. Let the incredible beauty, peaceful sounds and meditation naturally slip you into a relaxed state of mind.
5. Emerge from your experience feeling at peace, rejuvenated and rested.
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Originally published at www.vudream.com on February 13, 2017.
