Harmony Meditation

This article presents Harmony Meditation, a meditative practice codified by the authorin the 1990s, derived from the Zen tradition and integrated with psychological,psychophysiological, and neuropsychological expertise.Unlike other meditative approaches widespread in the West, such as Mindfulnessand Transcendental Meditation, Harmony Meditation is not limited to nonjudgmentalobservation or the mechanical repetition of a mantra. It configures itselfas a transformative practice that guides the practitioner through experiences combiningsymbols, visualizations, breath, and awareness, with the aim of dissolving thepsychic nuclei that fuel suffering and symptoms and of inducing psychobiological inputsto act directly on the organism and on certain illnesses.The practice is structured on two applicative levels and has been taught foryears in Italy in university and hospital settings, proving particularly effective withcomplex patients such as, for example, fibromyalgia patients (it was an importantturning point in the treatment of fibromyalgia, showing significant improvementsin several patients, with partial or total remission of symptoms in several caseswhere, for example, comorbidities allowed it), traumatized patients, and also withindividuals for whom traditional psychotherapy meets strong resistance.The present work does not present experimental data, but, having existed sincethe 1990s, it intends to summarize a theoretical description of the technique and itsplacement within the panorama of contemporary meditative practices.