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Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

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Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#51

Post by xavoy »

mannicken wrote: post #3

I used to meditate but no longer do since I'm starting to trip (audial/visual hallucinations) very fast and the trip is usually not a good one. It is a very powerful natural psychedelic experience, comparable to third plateau of DXM at least... but controllable, unlike DXM.

They are called Makyo in Zen (check wiki).

They are just another distraction, like any other thought but visual. Just let them go. The bigger a deal you make of them, the harder that will be. Acknowledge them and let them go.

As you progress in your practice you might have spacial and auditory hallucinations too. The same thing applies here. Just let them go.

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#52

Post by xavoy »

gojomo wrote: post #19
mannicken wrote: post #3

I used to meditate but no longer do since I'm starting to trip (audial/visual hallucinations) very fast and the trip is usually not a good one. It is a very powerful natural psychedelic experience, comparable to third plateau of DXM at least... but controllable, unlike DXM.

Some people react poorly to meditation -- even having hallucinations. See this story for more examples: http://www.sfweekly.com/2002-08-28/news/bad-vibes/ So sure, try it, but if it doesn't feel right, don't force it.

If you're forcing anything in meditation, you're doing it wrong.

And of course some people will 'react poorly'. For most people it's the first time in their lives they've actually sat down and looked at themselves. This can be shocking.

Ignoring the problem doesn't make it go away though. That's just 'treating' the symptoms and ignoring the causes, just like we do with modern medicine.

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#53

Post by silentbicycle »

pavelludiq wrote: post #35
silentbicycle wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I sit on a cushion for fifteen minutes or so, sitting cross-legged so that my back is relatively straight and my knees keep the whole posture relatively stable. Beyond that, it's just sitting and observing. If (ok, when) I notice my focus has drifted and I'm getting caught up in thoughts, I stop feeding into them and return focus to my breath, posture, and surroundings. It can be dreadfully boring, but when I do it p…

I've only read the google books previews of Brads books, but im impressed. As a hardcore punk fan myself i wasn't as surprised as most to the connection the Brad Warner made between punk and zen. Also anybody who puts dirty toilets, and tattooed Buddhas with mohawks on the cover of his zen books gets my respect. People should also check out his blog: http://hardcorezen.blogspot.com/ As for meditation practice, just s…

Yeah, usually when my mind starts to wander, it's reflected in slouching. I don't know which (if either) comes first, though.

BTW, if you're getting hung up on having a perfect cushion, let it go. You can sit zazen on the corner of a couch cushion. Seiza (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seiza) works, too, but I wouldn't unless you're already used to it.

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#54

Post by silentbicycle »

heed wrote: post #50
Estragon wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That description of meditation uses terms which cause a lot of confusion. Focusing on anything leads to problems. Dismissing thoughts leads to repression and unconscious expression of the thoughts. The way my teacher puts it is "rest in the experience of breathing." That means fostering awareness of every aspect of experience: the physical, the emotional and the mental. As for "effective," if you practice with any ho…

>...but better, in the long run, than ignorance. How so?

In this case, he/she is probably referring to dealing with things before they have a chance to turn into big issues - remembering to buy toilet paper when you're almost out, picking out clothes the night before when you need to be up early, actually getting enough sleep / exercise, etc.

Uncomfortable and boring sometimes, but you can avoid a lot of stress by catching things before they turn into big issues. Of course, if you thrive on drama, then making a habit of ignoring things until they blow up in your face will feed the fire. (Know anybody like that?)

I think the people at my old Aikido dojo called this "zanshin".

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#55

Post by silentbicycle »

xavoy wrote: post #51
mannicken wrote: post #3

I used to meditate but no longer do since I'm starting to trip (audial/visual hallucinations) very fast and the trip is usually not a good one. It is a very powerful natural psychedelic experience, comparable to third plateau of DXM at least... but controllable, unlike DXM.

They are called Makyo in Zen (check wiki). They are just another distraction, like any other thought but visual. Just let them go. The bigger a deal you make of them, the harder that will be. Acknowledge them and let them go. As you progress in your practice you might have spacial and auditory hallucinations too. The same thing applies here. Just let them go.

Yeah, it's just mental noise. Do you ever think you're hearing voices as you drift off to sleep, misread something you saw briefly as saying something very different, or mistake someone in a crowd for someone you knew?

Our brains constantly seek patterns in a sea of stimuli, and sometimes they create meaning out of noise. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareidolia)

"We are all greater artists than we realize." -Nietzsche

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#56

Post by mleonhard »

Estragon wrote: post #36
adbge wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Likely insomnia prevents him or her from getting more than 5 hours of sleep.

Yeah, I'm a light sleeper.

My sleep improved a lot once I started using a white noise generator. It takes about a week to get used to it. Highly recommended:

http://www.amazon.com/Marpac-Conditioner-SleepMate-580A-Mach...

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#57

Post by silentbicycle »

Estragon wrote: post #5

An equally valid interpretation is that Tolkien rots your brain. This is shoddy science, because their "control" experiment is little more than a fig leaf.

What would make a good control group against meditation?

Sleeping? Sitting quietly? Playing cards? Deliberately "carrying on" doesn't suggest anything in particular. Tolkein is a funny choice, though.

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#58

Post by silentbicycle »

anemecek wrote: post #26
Tawheed wrote: post #15

I learned Transcendental Meditation about a year ago, and it has had a seriously profound effect on my life.

I tried to look up more info about it but it seems like to learn anything, one has to take some $1500 course. Can you summarize how it differs from the standard meditation (i.e. zen meditation)?

Zen meditation isn't really "the standard meditation", American culture just has an infatuation with Zen because the Beats and Hippies drew a lot of attention to the San Francisco Zen Center at the right time, while otherwise Buddhism and Hinduism have mostly stayed in immigrant communities. (I don't know enough about the Hare Krishnas to say anything either way.)

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#59

Post by rubashov »

markbao wrote: post #11

| For the study, participants were taught to meditate by focusing on the sensation of their breathing, acknowledging and dismissing any stray thoughts that popped into their heads. For those who do practice meditation, what are other techniques that are effective to you?

The key to proper meditation is a good view and three well made cocktails. For the view your choices run ocean, mountain, or city. In each case, classy hotel rooftop works well.

For the cocktails, the importance of quality vermouth and bitters cannot be overemphasized. A top notch Americano requires both and will aid you greatly in your meditation.

Re: Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast

#60

Post by c00p3r »

This is a temporary, not lasting effect, just a glimpse that 'it works'.. After a short time the state of dullness will return.

It's a very common phenomena, when people were achieved temporary insight and thought they were got enlightenment or some high state.

Actually it is not even a the first step. It is just a temporary result of the effort, while true meditative state is effortless and natural, like breathing itself.

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