Why meditate, what does it do?

[Zerox]

What is meditation?
Why do we meditate?
What are the benefits/consequences of meditating? (Yin & yang)

How do I meditate?

If meditating is merely concentrating on something for a long period of time and doing nothing else, then I meditate quite often.

Why do you sit in that position with your legs crossed and make circles with your fingers?

Based on this: Survey on Meditation Thread, Meditation reads to me like Day dreaming. To me day dreaming isnt just about flying or being a super hero I also ponder on many real things in a more lose way.

Can you meditate to music? Any music?

[Andrew Brunelle]

Numerous studies have shown that meditation is good for overall health. Meditation is what you make of it. You start by concentrating on your breathing and you can shape it any way you like. It is a great way to quiet the mind and restore the body. If you are not sure how to start, I suggest getting a meditation tape to guide you. Guided meditation is the easiest way to transition to doing real meditation, with just you. I suggest Paraliminals and Insight & Focus Audio CDs - Reduce Stress, Increase Energy to help you in your practice.

[spacedout]

Ditto on the above answer. Meditation has shown to improve memory, concentration, and even intelligence. It has also shown to be good for the heart and overall health. Meditation quiets the mind and helps guide one to a state of non-duality. It has been said that reality is the lack of duality.

[Johnny5]

Hi Zerox,

According to the Buddha's teaching, Meditation is a tool for training the mind. The Buddha made comparison about a person with trained mind to trained horse. A welled trained horse is more valuable than an untrained horse.

A welled trained race horse in the United State worth so much more than wild horses in Arizona.

The same thing with a person with welled trained mind. He/she has more ability to learn and understand in the activities in his/her life (friendship, relationship, finance, works, sports, and health). When you understand more about those activities, you will take charge of those activities, instead of those activities overwhelm your life.

People with depression usually involved in get frustrated/hopeless with friendships, relationship, finance, works, sport, and health.

When you understand more about those activities in your life, you will have less frustration and more pleasure time. This is the benefit of the present life.

When you practice meditation according the Buddha's training guideline, you can get rid of past conditions (greed, hatred, and delusion) and you wisdom will arise. With wisdom, you deal with present condition ( conditioning signifies attachments rising in the mind from the impact upon it of outside influences, and the ideas born of outside influences which intoxicate/drown your the mind).

When your mind become pure, you will be in a state of ultimate pleasure (nivarna). The state of ultimate pleasure is what we are all looking for. This is the benefit of the future.

Best Regards,

Johnny

[Mato Kinze]

Originally Posted by Johnny5

Hi Zerox,

According to the Buddha's teaching, Meditation is a tool for training the mind. The Buddha made comparison about a person with trained mind to trained horse. A welled trained horse is more valuable than an untrained horse.

A welled trained race horse in the United State worth so much more than wild horses in Arizona.

The same thing with a person with welled trained mind. He/she has more ability to learn and understand in the activities in his/her life (friendship, relationship, finance, works, sports, and health). When you understand more about those activities, you will take charge of those activities, instead of those activities overwhelm your life.

People with depression usually involved in get frustrated/hopeless with friendships, relationship, finance, works, sport, and health.

When you understand more about those activities in your life, you will have less frustration and more pleasure time. This is the benefit of the present life.

When you practice meditation according the Buddha's training guideline, you can get rid of past conditions (greed, hatred, and delusion) and you wisdom will arise. With wisdom, you deal with present condition ( conditioning signifies attachments rising in the mind from the impact upon it of outside influences, and the ideas born of outside influences which intoxicate/drown your the mind).

When your mind become pure, you will be in a state of ultimate pleasure (nivarna). The state of ultimate pleasure is what we are all looking for. This is the benefit of the future.

Best Regards,

Johnny

Yeah. What he said.... mostly.

For me, meditation is the practice of quieting my mind and putting myself in a mental and emotional state from which I can effectively and efficiently make sense of my being and what's going on in my world. Our minds are like a rain-swollen river; constantly rumbling and swooshing and churning with thoughts, desires, needs, wants, etc. So much so in fact that we can't usually focus on any one aspect of our being.

When I meditate, I practice quieting all that churning and swooshing so that I can look at my world with perspective and detachment and concentrate on being effective in my life and pure in my emotions. If I have a question or a problem that I need an answer to, meditating will allow me to put all the other garbage out of my head for a time so that I can focus all my energy on solving my chosen issue.

In doing this, I keep my world from overwhelming me, I take charge of my emotions and train myself to respond to situations the way I want to, not in some knee-jerk, unconcious way.

As a result, I enjoy more things, am upset or angered by very few things, my relationships with others are stronger and I live a happier, healthier, more stress-free life than I would were I to not meditate.

Obviously, I don't speak for others, but that's what meditation is about for me, why I do it and what it does for me.

[goodstyles]

An interesting quote I read/heard once, helped put meditation into perspective for me. I cannot remember the exact quote, or who said it even, but it went something like:

...it's going to be a terribly busy day, so I will mediate a little bit longer...

The idea that since you will have more things to do, you would "do nothing" or meditate for longer seems counter-intuitive and that's why I liked this quote. It highlights the importance that meditation plays in your day-to-day living - in order to help you order your thoughts and quieten the rushing mind, meditate and seek out a some 'quiet' to start your day.

[mercuryrising]

Originally Posted by Zerox

What is meditation?

A means to commune with the Source.

Why do we meditate?

Because communing with the Source is our root desire. If you quench that desire, than all the rest are taken care of.

What are the benefits/consequences of meditating? (Yin & yang)

There are many benefits that go from the ordinary (relaxation, better focus) to the extraordinary (knowing the future, reading people's minds), but that isn't the reason to meditate. Sometimes benefits can be a hindrance.

The consequences would include the more nasty aspects of one's ego begin to rise to the surface out of the depths of the subconscious and one has to deal with those as they come. It can be a rather messy affair at times.

How do I meditate?

There are many techniques as I'm sure you know, but meditation itself is the same.

A simple technique I use is to repeat a name of the divine, focus on the third eye, relax the whole body and allow the inner light to come through.

If meditating is merely concentrating on something for a long period of time and doing nothing else, then I meditate quite often.

Whatever you put your attention upon, you become. If you put your attention on something limitless and eternal, you become that.

Meditation simply means absorption. So, yes, any form of absorption could be called meditation. But any other form besides absorption on the source is a dead end. The reason is that all other absorptions are temporary.

Like you fall in love with someone. The person is all you think about and you constantly want to be with them. But, eventually, the feeling passes and something else comes along. All of our desires are reflections of the one desire to commune with the source.

Why do you sit in that position with your legs crossed and make circles with your fingers?

There are channels of energy running through the body. The energy comes in through the top of the head and collects at the base of the spine. Sitting in a lotus position with the hands in the dhyana mudra creates a circuit out of that energy that directs it back to the source. In Kundalini and Taoist yoga, this is important.

In the technique I described, one connects with the energy before it goes down into the body, so the particular hand gestures or sitting position is not so important. Mainly, you want a stable position that you can maintain for long periods of time without moving and without falling asleep. You could sit in a chair and just put your hands in your lap.

I would recommend keeping the spine straight and in line with the top of the head. It makes it easier to maintain your focus at the third eye. You don't want to be rigid, but you don't want to slouch either.

Based on this: Survey on Meditation Thread, Meditation reads to me like Day dreaming. To me day dreaming isnt just about flying or being a super hero I also ponder on many real things in a more lose way.

Can you meditate to music? Any music?

I didn't look at the thread, but what you describe is more like contemplation. That is an aspect of meditation... you want to contemplate the source and your own separation from it. Visualization and imagination have their uses in meditation, but I think it is too easy to confuse the ego with the source. So I personally do not put any special meaning on imagination.

As for music, I think it is helpful to get you in the meditative mood, but I do not listen to music while meditating.

Meditation is the process of withdrawing the attention from the senses to the "home" of attention at the third eye. So you don't want anything to distract you.


I hope that helps you out.

[goodstyles]

Originally Posted by mercuryrising

A means to commune with the Source.

What is the Source?

[yossarian]

I'll take the "Source" answer one notch further..

Meditation is the means by which you silence your own personal ego and come in contact with God. The Divine enters your body and you feel unending bliss.

"Even a little bit of this Holy Science will prevent dire fears and colossal sufferings"

Meditation is not an austerity, it is the sweetest and most pleasurable experience imaginable. It is Bliss. When you're actively in the precense of God the most amazing bliss is with you like a constant orgasm across your whole body... the nature of God is Bliss and the purpose of Kumbaya is to feel this bliss.

"Meditation is the funeral of all suffering."

People go to incredible lengths to achieve things they think will be pleasurable -- vacations, houses, cars, sex. The Bliss of God is incomparably greater than every one of these.

"Seek first the Kingdom of God, and all of these other things will be added unto you."

Once you find God you will beg him to never leave you because his presence alone is precious beyond all measure. I know I do. Meditation is the technique to know God.

[cylon]

20 minutes every morning staring at a candle flame, right out of bed... before the mind has a chance to catastrophize.

[SarahLuvzYu]

Originally Posted by cylon

20 minutes every morning staring at a candle flame, right out of bed... before the mind has a chance to catastrophize.

That's really cool. I love candle flames

I prefer meditating before I sleep but this is specifically for LOA stuff... I should try in the morning, for good vibes during the day

[nightdiamond]

I thought about this one lately, probably the same thoyghts expressed here too..

I've read up and researched on meditation a lot in the past, I was very fascinated by it.

I remember reading about the ultimate state of meditation, where eventually a person gets to experience a type of pure bliss state, where they supposedly experience this state 24 hours a day.

They then seem to be either no longer bothered, or less bothered by the of activities of the daily world and also supposedly have psychic powers and abilities.

The problem is, I think at least, meditation can feel calming when we're alone and isloated, but later, when alert and interacting with others, it seems easier to forget those feelings and return to the stress and pet peeves.

I think a big key is to find a way to bring those calming feelings right into the middle of our 'normal' mind states when intereacting with other people- find a way to recreate this mind state during the day and with other people..


then meditation REALLY has some great benefits going for it.....

[yossarian]

nightdiamond, that's what the yogis call nirbikalpa samadhi and it is the actual goal of meditation. Meditation is like a stepping stone, you do it for years and years until, hopefully, one day, you are in a constant state of meditative bliss without having to sit still anymore.

[codenamesmiley]

Originally Posted by Zerox

What is meditation?
Why do we meditate?
What are the benefits/consequences of meditating? (Yin & yang)

How do I meditate?

If meditating is merely concentrating on something for a long period of time and doing nothing else, then I meditate quite often.

Why do you sit in that position with your legs crossed and make circles with your fingers?

Based on this: Survey on Meditation Thread, Meditation reads to me like Day dreaming. To me day dreaming isnt just about flying or being a super hero I also ponder on many real things in a more lose way.

Can you meditate to music? Any music?

Zerox,

I am walking proof that meditation works. The funky positions that alot of people sit in, is to get the ultimate flow of energy thru the body. I prefer to meditate laying down, if I am not too tired to stay awake thru the meditation.

I meditate daily to balance my chakras, and fill my body with healing light. I do this to relieve pain (arthritis pain that cannot be eased with medication..nerve pain, that the dangerous cocktail docs had me on would not touch...it is effective.)

I had a rather large AVM and aneurysm in my head. I went in for neck pain and they told me I needed a triple fusion in my neck and would need two more within a year after. I was told that they had to fix my brain first. (as they incidentally found the brain thing, when doing the mri with contrast die to check for blood flow thru the neck.) I wanted pain relief NOW. It was a two year process on the brain issues, and I felt bullied into receiving the expirimental radiosurgery that was the only option as it was inoperable locally or interveniously (to coil off).

I decided that I was done with doctors, and began to meditate on healing it. (as I learned about mind over matter.)

In the two years that it took for the radiosurgery to take effect, my neck went from a surgeons jackpot (not to mention the lower back surgeries they also prepared me to receive in future years), to not even bad enough to qualify for physical therapy thru the insurance company. I have the MRI pics to prove it, from 2006 and 2008.

Meditation does work for me. I have discovered that I am a natural healer. I can do hands on touch and heal others of swelling or pain, and I can detect other health problems by running my hands over a person. Maybe I am just gifted, maybe this meditation stuff really does work for everyone.

All I can say is that it worked for me, and if you believe it can work for you...meditate...and meditate some more. I reached the point where I felt that if I wanted something done that I had to do it myself. So, I did. (Myself meaning...me and God..not other people that declare themselves specialists in the name of income, that didn't seem to care about my personal overall health or comfort...unless comfort meant being drugged up on a cocktail of nerve and brain altering medications mixed with anti depressants and a few others.)

Always remember "The spirit controls the body, not the other way around". Once you can grasp that reality, anything is possible thru meditation.

Blessings to you,
Rebecca

[mercuryrising]

Originally Posted by goodstyles

What is the Source?

The Source is sitting right now at your third eye. If you put your attention there, you will get a more satisfying answer than I could ever provide.

[mercuryrising]

Originally Posted by yossarian

Once you find God you will beg him to never leave you because his presence alone is precious beyond all measure. I know I do. Meditation is the technique to know God.

That is a beautiful thing to say, yossarian. Thank you for sharing.


/|\

[nightdiamond]

Originally Posted by yossarian

nightdiamond, that's what the yogis call nirbikalpa samadhi and it is the actual goal of meditation. Meditation is like a stepping stone, you do it for years and years until, hopefully, one day, you are in a constant state of meditative bliss without having to sit still anymore.

Hi yossarian, thank you so much for the exact term -there are a million samadhis, and satories, this is basically the one I'm talking about...I might read a bit more into this...

Yes, I read too, that it takes a long time, almost a lifetime to accomplish, and it's not a guarantee, depending on which tradition you follow..

When I disconnected from the hindu and yoga interpretations, and looked at other ideas, I learned about some other interesting ideas about this...

One was the complaint that when a person meditated at home in a quiet room, it felt good and peaceful, but later, at work or in the office, the old feelings returned...

So one connection was made that, if there was a way to transfer those same peaceful states right in the middle of an alert and active state, and the person can experience those states, then a sort of "samadhi", can occur, even if there isn't any flashes and lights...

The whole idea is to make obtaining this alleged state, more practical and realistic, without having to wait a lifetime, yet still doing the work for it.

That's where the technical part come in, one person, Ken Wilber, a writer and psychologist, claims he enters this state frequently.

I once read briefly through another book that actually had step by step instructions to experience this state, written by another american psychologist.

Don't know how true these claims are, but interesting still..

[Jack]

While I am meditating,when I still my mind,I sometimes be aware of the sounds in the room(fans of the computer,tic-tacs of the clock).Should I stop being aware of the sounds?

[spacedout]

Originally Posted by goodstyles

An interesting quote I read/heard once, helped put meditation into perspective for me. I cannot remember the exact quote, or who said it even, but it went something like:



The idea that since you will have more things to do, you would "do nothing" or meditate for longer seems counter-intuitive and that's why I liked this quote. It highlights the importance that meditation plays in your day-to-day living - in order to help you order your thoughts and quieten the rushing mind, meditate and seek out a some 'quiet' to start your day.

That's a good quote. Sylvia Boorstein wrote a book about meditation - the title is Don't Just Do Something, Sit There.

[Manomanman]

It depends on what you mean by meditation.

I am so focused and conscious throughout the day, that to go through the steps that people normally go through when they meditate would be pointless.

Meditation just seems like a technique to "train your mind", to give you the discipline to achieve the thought patterns you desire.

If you read Steve Pavlina a lot and know how to apply it, you'll be in a perpetual meditative (disciplined) mental state.