|
|
Meditation has long been considered a pathway to Spiritual progression, but a Huffington Post article by naturopathic doctor Michael Stanclift suggests it may also have a more direct physical impact upon practitioners.
Confirming long-held belief in the power of thought, and pointing to research from neuroscience, Stanclift says where we direct our attention actually changes the anatomy of the brain. Meditation helps us wilfully direct our attention and thus consciously create our physical as well as Spiritual evolution.
Understanding Meditation: How Attention Changes Our Brains, The Huffington Post 12/14/2011
Harvard Magazine, January-February 2012, carries an article describing how some leading academics are embracing retreats conducive to the practice of meditation.
MIT Dalai Lama Center for Ethics fellow Sousan Abadian, a regular retreat participant, says: “Retreats allow us to access and strengthen subtle capacities and to hear ourselves and others on a different level.”
Christopher Germer, clinical instructor in psychology in the department of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and practicing Buddhist says: “Mindfulness has become probably the dominant paradigm of psychotherapy”.
Cambridge psychotherapists Susan and Bill Morgan are attendees at a silent meditation retreat. Susan says: “The encouragement is to unplug from this world… to learn how to straddle that line between participant and observer all the time… and learn how to meet all of experience with a certain amount of equanimity.”
Abiding Our Own Minds, Harvard Magazine January-February 2012
In The Way of Peace James Allen expounds his New Thought Movement affiliations, referencing Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism. The book is essentially a treatise on the importance of meditation as a ‘pathway to divinity’. Whatever we meditate upon, Allen explains, we become. If you meditate upon ‘ that which is selfish and debasing, you will ultimately become selfish and debased’. Whereas if you meditate upon ‘ that which is pure and unselfish you will surely become pure and unselfish’.
Now copyright expired and in the public domain, new age spirituality is delighted to offer The Way of Peace as a free online ebook.
Alternatively, you may purchase your own copy from Amazon
Author: sushant pandey
A mantra is a combination of psychically potent sound syllables that are capable of influencing the human system. It works on different levels of being (from gross to the subtlest).
Mantras as it is defined, is that tool which liberates the mind from bondage, here bondage means ‘the state of identification of the gross mind’. Mind is always identified with the world of idea name, form and objects. At the energetic level the identification leads to dissipation of energy (vikshepa), mind is tied down to the plane of gross sensorial world creating the spectrum of experiences colored by the polar opposites of pains–pleasures, heat-cold, depression-elation etc. Here in these conditions mantras helps to tune the vibrations of mind to the subtler frequencies of mantras and hence helps to internalize it. Continue reading Mantra and Consciousness »
Author: Anmol Mehta
There are as many types of meditation techniques as there are wonderful flavors of ice cream. This allow each person to find a flavor that is delicious to them. In this article series I will provide an overview of many of the different meditation techniques that exist and hopefully this will help you find the style that is sweetest to you. Continue reading Comprehensive Guide To Worldwide Meditation Techniques »
Author: Jeanie Marshall
For over 30 years, I have been meditating. For almost as many years, in workshops, consultations, friendly conversations, and writing, I have been encouraging, teaching, or leading people to meditate and create quiet times. During this time, the world has changed considerably, and so have I. My most important learning is: everyone is different. Certainly there are commonalities in meditating, but each individual is unique. I consider that meditation is one of the most empowering practices that anyone can engage in. Continue reading Meditation is a Quiet Revolution »
Author: Tom Ball
Why is the Buddha smiling? Because it’s finally happened: meditation is mainstream.
Of course, the true “Buddha mind” finds reason to smile from within and is said to be unfazed by such spacetime frivolities as cultural trends, but surely the “enlightened” among us, whoever they are, must be encouraged that meditative practices are being taken up in boardrooms of corporate America, taught at YMCAs, introduced to schoolchildren around the world and even advocated within the military. Continue reading How to Choose a Meditation Technique »
By Steve Gillman
There are so many different types of meditation. How many? Who knows, but enough so that you can find the one that’s right for you. To get your search started, here are six types of meditation you can try. Continue reading Six Types Of Meditation »
By Jane Michael
Meditation as often though of as a way to reach some sort of psychic mental state but there are many more reasons for people for individuals pursuing meditation. Through meditation there are a number of ways to lead the body, mind, and spirit to peace and it does not necessarily have to be a difficult task. There are simple techniques that can be used to give beginners the state of mind they are seeking and there are more intricate practices for those that have been involved in meditation for a longer amount of time that will help them to take that state to a higher level. But one thing that individuals who wish to practice meditation must remember is that you have to find the particular technique that is right for you as an individual. Continue reading The Many Uses of Meditation »
By Jane Michael
The first practitioners of Zen meditation were Zen Buddhists monks. The techniques employed in this meditation are breathing, sitting positions, koans, repetition of thoughts, and shikantaza. Continue reading Zen Meditation »
|
