Hypnosis vs. Meditation:
Which Is Better For Achieving Bliss?

By Barbara Lynn Allen

In many spiritual traditions meditation is said to be the path to finding inner bliss. People often ask me if hypnosis is the same as meditation. Can either or both lead us to finding our bliss?

Hypnosis is a deeply relaxed state in which we are focused inward: nothing seems to bother or disturb us when we have achieved that state of relaxation. Meditation can also be a deeply relaxed state, although it's not necessarily always relaxing. Like hypnosis, meditation is a state of focusing inward.

So what is the true difference between the two? In hypnosis we are usually goal directed toward the solution of a specific problem. For example, controlling our eating behavior, calming our nervous system, preparing for an exam. These are common and very effective uses for hypnosis.

In meditation we do not direct our mind. However, there are many "skillful means" in the meditative traditions which can allow us to quiet the mind, to bypass the mental chatter that most of us experience. We might use a "mantra" a word or phrase that we focus on, or we might follow our breathing to achieve the same result of inner quietude. The goal of meditation is not to create any particular result, but to realize our true nature. In the meditative traditions, realizing our true nature is the most blissful realization of all. By staying with our practice, the mind begins to quiet. We realize that we are more than we think we are.

In hypnosis, we also realize in a different way that we are more, and know more than we think we do. Directed by a skilled professional, we can solve emotional and practical problems that may be blocking us from fulfillment in our life. We can come to know our true lovable nature and learn to love ourselves. We can find out for ourselves that we really are good enough. Hypnotherapy can help us heal wounds from the past and develop a deeply positive self image.
Hypnosis and meditation are not mutually exclusive. People with meditation training often find it even easier and more natural to enter into a hypnotic state. People who have some hypnosis experience often become interested in meditation.

Whether we choose to experience spiritual awakening through a meditation practice or the self understanding and problem solving of hypnotherapy, we can find and follow our personal bliss right now, by simply beginning today.

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