Meditation has been used for centuries has way to relax the mind and body, relieve stress, and allow the mind to work at it optimum. It is still popular and is recommend by numerous medical authorities as a way to relieve stress and the physical and mental illnesses caused by stress. The three main goals of meditation are to:

• Clear the mind of conscious thinking
• Investigate the inner workings of the mind
• Use visualization to cause the mind to think about something in particular

These three goals have led to the development of three main types of mediation. Each type concentrates on way to eliminate hindrances to achieving a particular goal, and on ways to achieve that goal.