h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Did someone mention Immanuel Kant? In a rhyme?

I tend to give a stunning (in more ways than one) rendition of the Philosopher's song at this point, as it has been the sum total of my philosophy religion so far.

Ahem.

That should be revision, not revision. I'm good at doing that...

Ahem.

And the second "revision" in that post should have been "religion". Very good, it would seem.

I have a little book and accompanying tape on beginning meditation. I really must try it out one day.

I always wondered about meditation. I mean, do you really have to *do*it? Isn't it enough to just sit and think about it?

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!
Doing or non-doing, that is the very essence of it. Very subtle point you raise, oh wise one of Dublin four. But "thinking" about it is pointless .

Sometimes ah sits an' thinks, sometimes ah just sits.

Exactly!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaah

Does it count as meditation when you sit staring at something, there are specific points that are good for looking at (like the corners of windows, and looking at the window rather than looking through it) and you let your thoughts take you off wherever, everywhere and nowhere, and then suddenly WHAM! You're back.

Another good question, to which I don't know the answer. I had a colleague who used to meditate and she said it wasn't just like gazing at a point until you kind of glazed over. It was more focused than that. The trouble I have is finding time to do it. I'm wondering if i should enrol in a class to do the thing properly.

OK you lot. I'm getting the distinct feeling of a bit of philosophical leg-pulling going on here. And why not. But you've asked for the following. Just in case you are even remotely interested in what constitutes meditation, as opposed to sitting around with a digit up one's sphincter, here's a brief intro.

The idea of meditation is primarily to become aware of the state of your mind. Sounds simple. Depending on the tradition of meditation you follow, there are various ways "in." The most well-known is probably through the use of a "mantra," as advocated by TM wallahs ( like me ), but there are many and varied approaches.

Briefly a "mantra", ( a Sanskrit word derived from two roots, man=mind, and tra=move , hence "mind-mover" ) is a sound which allows the mind to settle into a quieter state. All sorts of physiological changes occur as a result ( which have been the subject of numerous research papers ) including, we presume, a gradual changing of active brain "set" from right frontal cortex to left, not to mention stuff going on in the temporal lobes, and the parietal lobes, such as we have discussed at length over on the "god" thread.

Way back in the 70's, a very prestigious American shrink, Dr. Bernard Glueck produced remarkable evidence ( from studies on severely troubled criminal psychiatric patients ) that the mantras as used in TM had the effect of cooling out what he called a limbic system feedback loop, the main trigger/storage point for extreme stress. He also happened to notice that the effect of the meditation was to produce ( even in severely disturbed and anxious patients ) coherent brain-wave function at all frequencies ( alpha, beta, theta etc.) spreading across both dominant and non-dominant hemispheres. Rather like tuning light waves from scattered ordinary light-bulb distribution to coherent laser-type synchrony. This was previously observed only when a person had an "ah-hah" experience of information "gelling" in response to a problem.

And that's enough of all that technical stuff.

Other types of meditation include observing the flow of breath through the nostrils ( a basic Buddhist technique for beginners, but remarkably dificult in fact ) while allowing thoughts to arise but to dissipate without engaging in them.

Another, called Self-enquiry, popular with the neo-advaitins ( non-dual Vedantins ) involves sitting quietly, eyes closed, allowing the mind to settle, and then asking the mind "Who am I?" and following that thought deeper and deeper. Actually, that one sometimes works better if you ask "Where is "I"?" Allow the mind to seek out the source of this apparent "I"-ness, and see if you can find it.

There are many much more involved forms of meditation, incorporating visualisations etc., as one finds in Tibetan Buddhism, but even they start with what is termed "calm abiding," just observing the flow of thoughts "without clinging or aversion."

Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice sometimes starts with a sort of yoga meditation where you do full-length prostrations, while repeating the refuge mantra ( I take refuge in the Buddha, I take refuge in the Dharma/teachings, I take refuge in the Sangha/community, I take refuge in the lama/teacher. Sangye-la chapso che-wo, Cho-la chapso che-wo, Gendun-la chapso che-wo, Lama-la chapso che-wo ) and visualising them as you repeat the mantra, once for each prostration.

Zen in some forms makes the act of sitting/kneeling still the focus of the meditation, while gazing at a blank wall, and again, allowing the mind to settle while observing the flow of thoughts.

In Thailand and other Theravadin Buddhist countries, a common type of meditation is walking meditation, just walking while being totally aware of the process.

If you think the mind is easy to "catch," try not thinking about pink rhinoceroses for the next few minutes. Not a thought of pink rhinoceroses to be let into your mind, not even a memory of the term, pink rhinoceros. Have a go!

OK you lot. I'm getting the distinct feeling of a bit of philosophical leg-pulling going on here. And why not. But you've asked for the following. Just in case you are even remotely interested in what constitutes meditation, as opposed to sitting around with a digit up one's sphincter, here's a brief intro.

The idea of meditation is primarily to become aware of the state of your mind. Sounds simple. Depending on the tradition of meditation you follow, there are various ways "in." The most well-known is probably through the use of a "mantra," as advocated by TM wallahs ( like me ), but there are many and varied approaches.

Briefly a "mantra", ( a Sanskrit word derived from two roots, man=mind, and tra=move , hence "mind-mover" ) is a sound which allows the mind to settle into a quieter state. All sorts of physiological changes occur as a result ( which have been the subject of numerous research papers ) including, we presume, a gradual changing of active brain "set" from right frontal cortex to left, not to mention stuff going on in the temporal lobes, and the parietal lobes, such as we have discussed at length over on the "god" thread.

Way back in the 70's, a very prestigious American shrink, Dr. Bernard Glueck produced remarkable evidence ( from studies on severely troubled criminal psychiatric patients ) that the mantras as used in TM had the effect of cooling out what he called a limbic system feedback loop, the main trigger/storage point for extreme stress. He also happened to notice that the effect of the meditation was to produce ( even in severely disturbed and anxious patients ) coherent brain-wave function at all frequencies ( alpha, beta, theta etc.) spreading across both dominant and non-dominant hemispheres. Rather like tuning light waves from scattered ordinary light-bulb distribution to coherent laser-type synchrony. This was previously observed only when a person had an "ah-hah" experience of information "gelling" in response to a problem.

And that's enough of all that technical stuff.

Other types of meditation include observing the flow of breath through the nostrils ( a basic Buddhist technique for beginners, but remarkably dificult in fact ) while allowing thoughts to arise but to dissipate without engaging in them.

Another, called Self-enquiry, popular with the neo-advaitins ( non-dual Vedantins ) involves sitting quietly, eyes closed, allowing the mind to settle, and then asking the mind "Who am I?" and following that thought deeper and deeper. Actually, that one sometimes works better if you ask "Where is "I"?" Allow the mind to seek out the source of this apparent "I"-ness, and see if you can find it.

There are many much more involved forms of meditation, incorporating visualisations etc., as one finds in Tibetan Buddhism, but even they start with what is termed "calm abiding," just observing the flow of thoughts "without clinging or aversion."

Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice sometimes starts with a sort of yoga meditation where you do full-length prostrations, while repeating the refuge mantra ( I take refuge in the Buddha, I take refuge in the Dharma/teachings, I take refuge in the Sangha/community, I take refuge in the lama/teacher. Sangye-la chapso che-wo, Gendun-la chapso che-wo, Cho-la chapso che-wo, Lama-la chapso che-wo ) and visualising them as you repeat the mantra, once for each prostration.

Zen in some forms makes the act of sitting/kneeling still the focus of the meditation, while gazing at a blank wall, and again, allowing the mind to settle while observing the flow of thoughts.

In Thailand and other Theravadin Buddhist countries, a common type of meditation is walking meditation, just walking while being totally aware of the process.

If you think the mind is easy to "catch," try not thinking about pink rhinoceroses for the next few minutes. Not a thought of pink rhinoceroses to be let into your mind, not even a memory of the term, pink rhinoceros. Have a go!

Sincere apologies for the double entry, but hootoo seems to be on "go-slow" mode tonight. In fact, there is a correction in the second version ( to the Tibetan version of the Refuge mantra ) which I only spotted as the first one, which I thought I'd lost, was already on its way.

Sorry.

Much appreciated. I had a look on the Basic Buddhism website as well, and it ends with the nice phrase: "Things become less solid, slightly ridiculous, and you become more lighthearted."

That's not meditation, that's my usual state of mind.

Yeah I know what you mean sometimes.

Lucky old you, Slarvi. But if you want to start meditating formally, without going off to classes and looking around for a reputable ( and affordable teacher ) just take, say, 20 minutes in the morning, soon after awakening, but before eating too much. Take the phone off the hook. Sit with your back well supported in a comfortable chair, or even just sit up in bed first thing. Then try the breath-watching. Don't even count the breaths ( counting can become an addictive mental habit.) You don't need any special externals, but if you find it helps, light a candle, light some incense, whatever. Don't play background music, as that will tend to predetermine ( through associations ) your experience.

You're aiming at silence and stillness. But you will certainly experience mental chatter. So you just let all that rise and dissipate.

The key is effortlessness, non-concentration.

And if you find you are getting bored and restless, very good. The body wants to move you along, away from this stillness where your usual habits may be confronted. To deal with the boredom and restlessness, here is the golden nugget.

Allow you awareness easily to be focussed on the body. Wherever you feel the restlessness, tension, irritability, boredom etc., just allow your awareness to be there. Just feel it without judgement or rejection. Let your awareness settle into the midst of the sensations, letting them "burn out." Then when that has all settled and subsided, return to watching your breath.

You will be surprised how quickly the time passes. As with bodily sensations, so with external noises. Noise is not a problem. The problem is how you feel about it. Be with the feelings rather than agitating about the noise. Trains and planes are great places for meditating.

Above all, take it easy.

Meanwhile, folks, here is a link to an interesting piece on memory and the self from May "New Scientist", summarised for the "god" thread.
F55607?thread=192835?thread=&skip=8546

There's a dead good thing on a Matrix- esque reality in this month's New Scientist, as well as the normal stuff on the second last page.

Isn't it a shame that Matrix Reloaded turned out to be the reality of a good thing gone dead? Some great FX, but basically boring. They forgot that a compelling story line helps.

Thanks for the tip, must go get the latest New Scientist tomorrow.

Missed it by one; Chai's "New Scientist article on memory" post is F55607?thread=192835&skip=8545