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The Impact of Meditating Every Day

pascalprecht.github.io

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Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#121

Post by mettamage »

mr_overalls wrote: post #97

This type of meditation - a secularized form of Vipassana in which one passively observers mental events - is very popular in the West. But it's not the only one, and shouldn't be called merely "meditation" without regard to the vast body of practices that exist. Another form of meditation that's traditionally talked about in Buddhism is shamatha, which translates to something like "concentration" or "tranquility." I…

I always mention to people that meditation is an umbrella term just like sport or exercise is, and I also tell them it is at least as diverse.

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#122

Post by sixstringtheory »

mr_overalls wrote: post #97

This type of meditation - a secularized form of Vipassana in which one passively observers mental events - is very popular in the West. But it's not the only one, and shouldn't be called merely "meditation" without regard to the vast body of practices that exist. Another form of meditation that's traditionally talked about in Buddhism is shamatha, which translates to something like "concentration" or "tranquility." I…

I recently finished the Book of Joy (great read), an interview by Douglas Abrams of Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama, which ends with an appendix full of different types of meditation and mindfulness practices.

I am intrigued to practice the Dalai Lama's usual practice of analytical meditation (listed in parent's linked paper alongside Vipassana), but it's certainly an advanced practice. Most resources I can find recommend a daily practice of Shamatha for some months before undertaking analytical meditation.

I found this poetic description of the thought process one might go through during analytical meditation: https://www.lotsawahouse.org/tibetan-masters/mipham/wheel-of...

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#123

Post by cpeterso »

spectaclepiece wrote: post #54

I began meditating every day after I wake up four years ago and it has been the most beneficial change I ever introduced into my life, quitting cannabis securing a stable second place. I began with five min and worked my way up to 15. Now I have an iOS shortcut “hey Siri, start meditation” which sets a timer randomly between 15 and 20 min to counteract the body clock expectation of a fixed duration.

Have you tried meditating at other times of the day? I would be afraid that I would fall back asleep if I tried meditate after waking up. :)

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#124

Post by mikestew »

mr_overalls wrote: post #97

This type of meditation - a secularized form of Vipassana in which one passively observers mental events - is very popular in the West. But it's not the only one, and shouldn't be called merely "meditation" without regard to the vast body of practices that exist. Another form of meditation that's traditionally talked about in Buddhism is shamatha, which translates to something like "concentration" or "tranquility." I…

And don't forget about Zen, where according to some you think about...not thinking. But, yeah, it's a pretty broad term along the lines of "church". That word is a good start, but is often not descriptive enough to be used as an umbrella term.

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#125

Post by sixstringtheory »

snikeris wrote: post #79
vcoelho wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I do 2-4 hours a day. Just reading this gave me anxiety.

What is this anxiety? Does it come from the fear of non-existence? I will be dead some day, and I surely don't want to spend my limited existence staring into the void. Gotta keep moving!

On the right time scales, is there even any difference between "staring into the void" or "moving"?

What difference will it make anyways after you're dead?

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#126

Post by Broken_Hippo »

thomk wrote: post #76
cols wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mentioned quitting cannabis. If you don't mind elaborating, I'm curious what benefits you have experienced and why you ended up quitting. Thanks!

Ex cannabis user here, so I thought I'd give you my empirical perspective & and opinion. I will tell you what I would tell my own child: Cannabis, like any recreational drug, steals the most precious resource we have: our time. I've been on benders in my life that I simply can not remember what I did during that period, sure, but that's not what I'm talking about. What I am talking about is the time any person needs…

This is not my experience at all.

I am more motivated to eat healthier, exercise, and so on when I smoke regularly. I spent most of my 20's sober and the opposite in my 30's and overall, my experience in my 30's was much better. I remember about as much either way - at least in the long term. I also learned a second language while mostly stoned.

Overall, I'm much more motivated.

And I'll state that overall, my life is full of wasted time. I don't have children nor much responsibility, really, and I'm over 40. I'm happy, though, and that isn't just the beer talking.

Edit: I can go either with or without and have taken semi-regular breaks from time to time. I'm mostly at weekends now, but that's mostly to save money rather than life stuff.

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#128

Post by andreilys »

GuB-42 wrote: post #118
andreilys wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> “ While the benefits differ slightly, the magnitude of benefit from other SIDCHAs -- like exercising, drawing a picture, writing a blog post, writing three business ideas, cooking a meal from scratch, etc every day -- can be just as great.“ I’m not sure how you can equate meditations benefits to drawing pictures, or writing three business ideas. They are fundamentally different activities that produce vastly differ…

Meditation may have specific benefits. But having a fit body and knowing how to draw, write or cook is also nice. But the important common part is that you take steps to better your life. Even activities that have no proven benefits by themselves such as magic rituals, "alternative medicine", prayer, etc... can work. The idea is that such activities can create a positive chain of events: you going to the gym, your tr…

The issue I take is saying the benefits differ slightly.

It's difficult for me to appreciate the equivalent benefits of being able to draw nice pictures vs having mastery over ones mind.

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#129

Post by stronglikedan »

thomk wrote: post #76
cols wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mentioned quitting cannabis. If you don't mind elaborating, I'm curious what benefits you have experienced and why you ended up quitting. Thanks!

Ex cannabis user here, so I thought I'd give you my empirical perspective & and opinion. I will tell you what I would tell my own child: Cannabis, like any recreational drug, steals the most precious resource we have: our time. I've been on benders in my life that I simply can not remember what I did during that period, sure, but that's not what I'm talking about. What I am talking about is the time any person needs…

> Recreational drugs make you immature which will prevent you from going very far in life.

Put a "may" before "make" and a replace "will" with "may", and you have a truthful statement. However, as it stands, it's simply false. Some of us "well adjusted, functioning adults" just use drugs safely and responsibly, because it can make life just a bit more interesting.

Re: The Impact of Meditating Every Day

#130

Post by pklausler »

spodek wrote: post #7

> I try to meditate every morning for about 15 minutes and been doing that for quite some time now. I find that doing any Self-Imposed Daily Challenging Healthy Activity will improve your life tremendously, meditation being just one type of SIDCHA. While the benefits differ slightly, the magnitude of benefit from other SIDCHAs -- like exercising, drawing a picture, writing a blog post, writing three business ideas, c…

The one that you missed, and that works incredibly well to give me a good day, is practicing a musical instrument.
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